Restoration/Preservation
Step back through history at Old Government House:
- The 6 stages of construction of Government House, Parramatta
- Much to do - and undo!
- The first 'restorations'
- Stepping back into 1821
Old Government House was built in stages starting with the 1799 core constructed by Governor Hunter. The addition of Palladian wings as part of a major transformation by Governor and Mrs Macquarie between 1815 and 1821, and embellished or neglected by subsequent occupants tells the story of Australia’s oldest public residence. The house was used by the Governors until 1855, at which time it was leased to private tenants including the Kings School. A more detailed, chronological look at the history of the house can be found in the timeline.
The building is currently owned by the NSW State Government however, in 1966, the National Trust of Australia (NSW) took over responsibility for its care and management. The early years were a flurry of work, rushing against the clock to restore and furnish the house in preparation for not one, but two visits from the British Royal Family.
Old Government House is listed in the Register of the National Estate, the NSW Heritage Register and Local Government Heritage Registers. It has also recently been nominated for World Heritage listing.
The 6 stages of construction of Government House, Parramatta 
1790
- A 44 x 14 foot, lath and plaster house with hall, bedroom and living room, with skillion along the back.
1793
- Two buildings, one 2 level and one 1 level building, were added.
- One was used as a store, and the other as a kitchen.
3. John Hunter
1799
- Hunter removed the lath and plaster house and builds a 60 x 24 foot, two storey brick house, with cellars underneath.
- It is one room wide. The oldest surviving part of OGH.
c1812
- Macquarie adds a two storey block to the house, staircase and other rooms.
c1815
- Macquarie builds a kitchen pavillion, then Governor's private wing.
- Phillip's outbuildings removed.
c1816
- Staircase block demolished to 3 feet from the ground and whole section rebuilt in larger form, adding another four rooms.
- New front door and portico added.
The restoration of Old Government House has been immense. The April 1970 Bulletin reported that, 'The cost of the initial restoration, furnishing and landscaping approximating $180,000 has severely strained the Trust’s financial resources'. Fortunately, benefactors were plentiful, foremost among them was the Commercial Bank of Australia Limited, which donated $50,000 to the project in 1967 to commemorate its own centenary.
The tale of neglect and dilapidation was a long one, but it certainly could not be blamed on its early occupants. In the February 1995 Bulletin former National Trust curator Ian Stephenson wrote that, 'After Macquarie’s departure only minor extensions were made but the house was regularly refurbished. For example, considerable repairs and improvements were made for Governor Bourke in 1832.' The Colonial Architect queried the costs, 'especially those of the painter who claimed to have applied five coats of paint.'
The first major period of decline appears to have started in 1847 following the death of the Hon Lady Mary Fitzroy, wife of Governor Fitzroy, in a carriage accident in the grounds. After the incident, the Governor rarely visited the house. It fell into disrepair to the point where the Colonial Architect found in 1855 that it was ‘in such a decayed state as to render it, in my opinion, useless to attempt to repair it’. A period of private leases followed, but the property was still in poor shape. Large sections of render were missing from the front and rear, the eaves had dropped and Lady Gipps’s Bower had collapsed. However, Government Architect Walter Liberty Vernon carried out what has been called the first conscious restoration project undertaken in NSW in 1909.
The property was adapted at this time to allow its lease to the Kings School. Changes were largely superficial and the configuration of the central portion of the house remained largely intact. Ian Stephenson reported that, ‘Many original details were repaired or copied. For example, the plaster cornices inside the house and the decoration on Greenway’s portico were re-run using the old as a template.’
When the National Trust took over responsibility for the property in 1966 Stephenson was reported by the Bulletin as saying, ‘A main aim was to reconstruct elements from the gubernatorial period which had been lost in the 1909 works. This involved reconstructing the kitchen and elements of the Housekeeper’s Room and Servants’ Hall, based on the 1817 plan attributed to John Watts. In addition, skirting boards and a stone chimney piece were changed to give the public rooms a more uniform appearance. The effect was to make the house look like one building instead of a series of structures whose major development took place over 20 years between 1799 and 1818.’
A quarter of a century later, however, major repairs were needed again. ‘The slate roofs and downpipes were failing and the hard internal cement renders applied in 1909 and the 1960s were exacerbating problems with damp and threatening to damage the soft brick walls.’
In 2001, funding of $1,200,000 under the Commonwealth Federation Cultural Heritage Projects Program allowed the National Trust to embark on major conservation works which, for the first time in decades, dealt with structural problems delayed due to the lack of funds. The Butler’s Pantry and Housekeeper’s Room were restored, the latter complete with shelves as revealed by archaeological investigation. The exterior of the house was painted as it was during Macquarie’s residency and the interpretation of ground floor interiors to 1821 began. Over the past year, since early 2004, a soft furnishings program coordinated by Dr James Broadbent and nineteenth century soft furnishings specialist Elizabeth Wright has transformed the ground floor to reflect the tastes and styles of Mrs Macquarie. Skilled volunteers are recreating the curtains, bed hangings and even the floor coverings using colours and fabrics known to have been favoured by Mrs Macquarie. Almost a century and a half since the departure of the last gubernatorial household from Old Government House, the property today is reasserting its significance as Australia’s oldest public building and a rich experience to be treasured. For more information on this project, please visit the Soft Furnishings gallery.
Extract from National Trust - Our Properties
Including "Conservation Plan for Old Government House, Parramatta:
NSW Department of Public Works and Services, November 1977.