Hambledon Homestead facts for kids

The Hambledon Homestead is a very old and important house located on Tarcutta Street in Tarcutta, New South Wales, Australia. It is also known as Tarcutta Station. This historic building used to be an inn (a place for travelers to stay) and a store. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999, which means it's protected because of its special history and design.

History of Hambledon Homestead

The Wiradjuri People

Long ago, the Wiradjuri (Waradgery) people lived in the Tarcutta Valley. Their land stretched from places like Jugiong and Tumut in the east to the Lachlan and Murrumbidgee rivers in the west. The Bogong moth was a very important food for the Waradgery tribe during summer. They used spears made from strong reeds and hardwood, sometimes with sharp points made of flint. Many old Aboriginal tools have been found in the area.

The name Tarcutta comes from the Wiradjuri language. It means "meal made from Gulla or grass seed," or "flour and cakes made from grass seed." The name Murrumbidgee means "a flood" or "a big water."

Early European Explorers

The first European explorers to see the Wiradjuri people here were Hume and Hovell. This happened on 6 January 1825. Their group met friendly Aboriginal people near Tarcutta. The explorers were impressed by them, and some Aboriginal people even traveled with them to Yass.

Later, in 1829, Charles Sturt explored the Murrumbidgee River. He noted that the last European settlements were near Jugiong and South Gundagai.

The First Settlers and Thomas Mate

In the 1820s, people started looking for new and better grazing lands for their animals. Many pastoralists (people who raise livestock) sent shepherds or stockmen to distant areas.

A good example of an early settler was Thomas Mate. He was an Englishman who settled on the Tarcutta Creek around 1835 or 1836. His property was about 30 miles (48 km) east of Wagga Wagga. Because his land was on the main road to Port Phillip (now Melbourne), he quickly opened a store and an inn.

By 1837, Thomas Mate had settled on the Upper Tarcutta Creek. Other settlers had also arrived in nearby areas.

Thomas Mitchell's Visit

In October 1836, Major Thomas Mitchell's group came to Tarcutta. He saw many cattle and horses in the valley. He wrote about the beautiful trees, rich open lands, and calm cattle. In 1836-37, Mate's first house was a simple hut made of wattle and daub (a mix of sticks and mud), without floorboards. By 1838, Thomas Mate's land, called Umuther and Toonga, was huge. It was about 120,000 acres (48,562 ha) and could hold 800 cattle and 11,000 sheep.

Lady Franklin's Journey

In 1839, Lady Jane Franklin, the wife of the Tasmanian Governor, traveled overland from Melbourne to Sydney. She was the first woman known to do this. In her diary, she wrote about seeing Aboriginal people near Mate's homestead on 25 April 1839. She mentioned "Dabtoe" as the Chief of Hoonbiarjo.

By 1843, Mate's property, Umutter, had 27 residents and good huts. It was described as having "an excellent inn" that was "well conducted."

Thomas Mate's Life and Family

Thomas Mate arrived in Sydney in 1833 from Sudan via Hobart. He was a cabinet maker. On the same ship was Maria Bardwell, who later became his wife. They married in Sydney in 1836 and had eight children.

Mate was born in Kent, England, in 1810. He had £1000 when he arrived in Sydney. In 1835, he bought sheep from Hannibal Macarthur, a relative of John Macarthur of Camden Park. He traveled south with his sheep, wife, and baby in late 1836 and settled on Tarcutta Creek.

Mate had a good relationship with the local Aboriginal people. As many as 300 or 400 Aboriginal people would camp near his place at times. He managed them with kindness and firmness, and they never harmed anyone on his station. They also helped with station work, like shearing sheep.

Growth of Tarcutta and Mate's Businesses

In 1837, Mate's name appeared in the NSW Government Gazette as a landowner. Hambledon homestead is one of the oldest buildings in this part of New South Wales.

By 15 June 1839, Mate had an inn, a store, and a sheep station by the creek. He became a licensed publican for his "Tarcutta Inn" on 1 July 1839. His store was very important, offering many goods. It also became a key stop for mail services. However, its importance decreased after the railway reached Wagga Wagga in 1878. The town of Tarcutta grew up around Mate's homestead.

Between 1847 and 1849, a new house was built on the other side of the creek. This U-shaped homestead, made of vertical slabs, is still called "Hambledon" today. Tarcutta's first Post Office likely opened in this building in 1849.

In 1850, a drought ended with a flood. Also in 1850, Mate became a general storekeeper in Albury when the Beechworth gold diggings opened. He became an important person in Albury and later became its Mayor. By 1894, his store, "Mates Ltd.," was one of the biggest businesses outside Sydney. Mate continued to manage this business, while his sons looked after his station properties.

In 1855, Mate's son Alfred managed Hambledon. An 1858 survey shows the U-shaped building with other smaller buildings nearby. This matches the current homestead.

Thomas Mate in Parliament

Mate was interested in land laws and was elected to the Parliament as the Member for Hume. He served from 1860 to 1869. While in Parliament, he helped pass a law about the "Careless use of Fire" and supported the Public Schools Act of 1866. He also became a Magistrate.

Life at Tarcutta Station in 1872

In early 1872, a reporter visited Tarcutta Station and wrote about it:

Tarcutta is a great station on the Tarcutta Creek, raising both cattle and sheep. The owner's welcoming home is near the main southern road. The gardens are filled with beautiful trees, shrubs, and flowers, making the place look lovely. There are many kinds of roses, fuchsias, and other flowers, cared for by the ladies of the house. Tall poplars, willows, acacias, and elms also grow there. There are plenty of fruits, including oranges, and mulberry bushes. I was shown excellent silk made by one of Mr. Mate's family members. Arrowroot was growing well, and there were fine fields of maize. Mr. Mate has spent a lot of money on improvements. The station covers over 70,000 acres, with nearly 8,000 acres purchased. It now has about 10,000 sheep and 1,000 cattle. The cattle are very well-bred, and their shiny coats are famous in the district! Their ancestors were mostly "Purple blood" cattle, and their imported father, Lucifer, belonged to Mr. Mate. In a large field, half a mile from the house, I saw a wash pen for warm and cold water, built very well. The water comes from Tarcutta Creek. Across from the home station is a large brick hotel with stables, called "The Horse and Jockey." Right behind the house is a big swamp called "Umutbee," which is 8 miles long. Years ago, this swamp was covered with rushes that looked like fields of grain. Large eels have been caught from Tarcutta Creek, which is interesting because some people thought eels were only found in eastern waters.

By February 1879, Tarcutta was much quieter because the main coach road had moved after the Wagga Wagga railway station opened.

Later Years

After his wife Maria died in 1877, Thomas Mate moved to Albury. He remarried in 1882 to Florence Ada Brown. He later became an Alderman and Mayor of Albury. He retired to a home in Walla Walla and died in Manly on 22 July 1894.

The Tarcutta, Oberne, and Humula areas were completely burned in January 1905 due to dry grass. The region has also experienced many droughts (like 1914, 1929) and floods (like 1916, 1956).

Later owners of Hambledon included Henry Tyson and Charles Owen Lloyd-Jones. The current owner is a famous Olympic equestrian. The building was restored in the 1980s with help from a $50,000 loan.

Description of Hambledon Homestead

The Hambledon Homestead is built with vertical timber slabs and has a U-shape. The northern part of the building dates back to around 1837.

An old survey from 1858 shows the U-shaped building with a separate building at the back and smaller buildings on one side. This is very similar to how the homestead looks today, with its large U-shaped slab house and a brick kitchen block.

Hambledon's slab construction is very interesting because the building is much larger than most other slab buildings. It's a great example of traditional timber building and is the biggest surviving slab homestead in Southern New South Wales. The vertical timber slabs are cut with an adze (a tool for shaping wood). They fit into a groove at the bottom and are held in place at the top by a wooden strip called a batten.

The house is a single storey with a hip roof, which means all sides slope downwards to the walls. The roof is covered with corrugated iron, but older wooden shingles are still underneath. A veranda (a covered porch) with its own iron roof runs across the front and down one side. The slabs are painted white.

Inside, the walls are made of timber studs covered with thin strips of wood (lathe) and mud plaster. The front door has six panels and a brass knocker. At the back, a separate brick kitchen faces the inner courtyard. The chimneys have some decorative brickwork.

Condition of the Homestead

As of 2008, the complex includes:

• A brick outbuilding.
• A kitchen: Its brick walls show some signs of dampness and drainage issues (from 1981).
• A weatherboard shed west of the kitchen: It's in reasonable condition but needs new gutters (from 1981).
• The homestead (slab building): It's in good condition. Over the years, some modern features like kitchens and bathrooms were added inside the main house. Only small changes are needed to fully restore Hambledon (from 1981-1982).

Changes Over Time

• 1836-37: The first house was a simple wattle and daub hut without floorboards.
• 1839: Mate had an inn and a store.
• 1847-49: A new, U-shaped homestead made of vertical slabs was built on the other side of the creek.
• 1850: A flood occurred.
• 1872: A reporter described the station, its gardens, animals, and the "Horse and Jockey" hotel.
• 1958: A power line was put across part of the front garden to supply electricity to Hambledon and Tarcutta.
• 1982-83: The homestead and a brick outbuilding were restored with a $50,000 loan.
• August 1983: The property suffered flood damage because of problems with a nearby levee.
• 1984: Discussions happened about moving the power lines away from ornamental pine trees. The power lines were moved to the back of the property in September 1984.

Heritage Listing

Hambledon Homestead was officially listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999, recognizing its importance to the history and heritage of New South Wales.