CAMDEN, NEW SOUTH WALES

'Camden' in New South Wales, Australia, is a historic town and Sydney Suburb 65 km southwest of the Sydney CBD and near the city of Campbelltown.
Camden is now a smaller, yet well known town lying on the fringe of the Sydney Metropolitan area. It is well known for the annual Camden Show, which combines amusement park attractions with the elements of a state fair. Camden is also the location of research facilities for the veterinary and agricultural schools of the University of Sydney.

Contents

History

Indigenous People

British settlement

People

Demographics

Notable residents

Local Media

Politics

State Politics

Federal Politics

References

External links

History

Indigenous People

The area now known as Camden was originally at the northern edge of land belonging to the Gandangara people of the Southern Highlands who called it Benkennie meaning 'dry land'. North of the Nepean River were the Muringong, southernmost of the Darug people while to the east where the Tharawal people. They lived in extended family groups of 20-40 members, hunting kangaroos, possums and eels and gathering yams and other seasonal fruit and vegetables from the local area. They were described as 'short, stocky, strong and superbly built' and generally considered peaceful. However, as British settlers encroached on their land and reduced their food sources, they turned to armed resistance which ended in 1816 after many of their number were massacred.^[1]

British settlement

British explorers first visited the area in 1795 and named it 'Cowpastures' after a herd of cattle that had disappeared was discovered there. In February 1805, Governor King instructed (apparently reluctantly) a surveyor to measure 5,000 acres (20 km²) for John Macarthur at Cowpastures, where Macarthur had been promised land by the Secretary of State for War and the Colonies, Lord Camden. Macarthur named his property Camden Park in honour of his sponsor.^[2]
As Macarthur's wool industry thrived, local citizens began pushing for the establishment of a town in the area to support the industry. Surveyor-General Major Thomas Mitchell suggested Macarthur surrender 320 acres of his land for the purpose to which he refused. Following his death in 1834, his children decided to subdivide the land and the first lots in the new town of Camden went on sale in 1840. By 1883, the population had grown to over 300 and a movement began to establish a local council which held its first meeting in 1889.
Between 1882 and 1962 Camden was connected to Campbelltown and Sydney by railway.

People

Demographics

In the 2001 Australian Bureau of Statistics Census, the suburb of Camden had a population of 3,068 people. Generally speaking, the suburb is a microcosm of broader Australia. Most families are couples with children (45%) or couples without (38%) with a small number of single parent families (16%). They live in detached houses (77%) and are mostly Australian born (81%) with those not born in Australia primarily from English speaking countries such as England (6%), New Zealand (1%) or Scotland (1%).^[3]

Notable residents

A number of prominent people were either born in Camden or lived there for a significant part of their lives:

★ Steven Bradbury, speed skater who won Australia's first ever Winter Olympics gold medal.

★ Rob Hirst, drummer with the band Midnight Oil.

★ John Macarthur, father of the Australian wool industry.

★ Mat Mladin, world motorcycle champion.

Local Media

Camden is served by two local radio stations, 2MCR and C91.3FM. Local newspapers are the Camden Advertiser, the District Reporter and the Macarthur Chronicle.

Politics

Camden Council consists of 9 councillors: 3 for each of three wards. North Ward (Bringelly, Rossmore, Leppington, Cobbitty, Oran Park, Catherine Field, Harrington Park, Smeaton Grange, Currans Hill, Kirkham) is represented by Peter Johnson, David Funnell and Cindy Cagney. Central Ward (Mount Annan, Narellan, Narellan Vale) is represented by Fred Anderson, Rob Elliott and Debby Dewbery. South Ward (Ellis Lane, Grasmere, Camden, Elderslie, Spring Farm, Bickley Vale, Cawdor, Camden South) is represented by Chris Patterson, Eva Campbell and Fred Whiteman.
Chris Patterson was elected mayor in 2006 and David Funnell deputy mayor.
Camden local government area is contained within one federal electorate, Macarthur, and one state electorate, Camden.

State Politics

The seat of Camden covers Camden Council area and some fringe areas of Campbelltown, and is currently held by Labor's Geoff Corrigan, the former Mayor of Camden. The seat was won from the Liberal Party at the 2003 State election.

Federal Politics

Macarthur has been traditionally a bellwether seat but since being won by former ultra-marathon runner Pat Farmer it has now become a safe Liberal seat.

References

1. "The History of Camden"
2. "The History of Camden"
3.

External links

★ Camden Council website

★ Camden Advertiser website