Old Government House, Parramatta, UNESCO heritage site in Parramatta, Australia
Old Government House is a two-storey Georgian building in Parramatta Park, built by convicts and enlarged in 1815 to a design by John Watts, with two single-storey end pavilions and a central portico attributed to Francis Greenway. Its entrance hall has a black-and-white chequered floor made of painted wood, since marble was unavailable in early Sydney. A section of brick flooring from July 1790 survives on display.
Between 1800 and 1847, the house served as the country residence for ten early governors of New South Wales during the colonial period. It was a centre of colonial administration during these decades.
The house sits on Darug land, where the Burramatta people shaped the area through their practices for thousands of years. The park today carries traces of this older relationship with the landscape.
The house stands in Parramatta Park, overlooking the Parramatta River, on 110 hectares of parkland. River Road, a tree-lined avenue, follows the river and is a good route for walking to the house. The park retains Governor Macquarie's carriageway layout, and the Crescent serves as an outdoor amphitheatre.
The trees on the grounds bear visible marks from Aboriginal firestick practices dating back generations. These marks provide rare evidence of ancient land management techniques still visible today.
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