The Cowpastures

The Cowpastures hold a unique and significant place in Australia’s early agricultural history. Long before formal European settlement in the region, this landscape became central to the development of farming in New South Wales and to the story of Belgenny Farm and the Camden Park Estate.

The history of the Cowpastures is significant for several reasons. It provides the local context for John Macarthur’s land grants and purchases, illustrates early colonial attitudes to land use and livestock management, and offers rare insight into the natural environment at the very beginning of European impact. The wild cattle themselves, their origins, behaviour and characteristics, continue to be of particular interest to agricultural historians.

Origins of the Cowpastures

In 1788, shortly after the arrival of the First Fleet, two bulls and five cows wandered away from Sydney Cove and were presumed lost. For several years their fate remained unknown.

In 1795, a large herd of wild cattle was discovered thriving south of the Nepean River. Having survived and multiplied without human intervention, the cattle were found grazing across open grasslands and woodlands shaped by Aboriginal land‑management practices. This remarkable discovery led to the area becoming known as the Cowpastures.

Early visitors were struck by both the scale of the herd and the quality of the landscape. Their descriptions provide one of the earliest European records of the local environment before widespread settlement and clearing.

Protection, Control and Conflict

As the number of wild cattle grew, colonial authorities became concerned about their management and protection. By the early 1800s, the herd numbered in the hundreds, then thousands, and the government moved to regulate access to the Cowpastures.

To protect the cattle:

• Entry to the Cowpastures required government permission
• The cattle were declared Government property
• Stockyards, huts and later tanneries were established to manage, tame or slaughter the animals

Despite these controls, conflict emerged. Local settlers and workers were known to illegally capture or shoot cattle, while the government sought to assert control over the herd and the land it occupied.

The Cowpastures and the Macarthurs

In 1805, John Macarthur was granted 5,000 acres of land in the Cowpastures to develop the merino wool industry, naming his grant ‘Camden’. This marked a turning point in the history of the area.

Over the following decades, Macarthur expanded his holdings through additional grants and purchases. As government cattle were gradually removed and operations wound down, the land became increasingly focused on private agricultural enterprise.

By 1837, the Camden Estate had reached its maximum size of 27,698 acres, firmly establishing the Cowpastures as one of the most important agricultural regions in the colony.

A Lasting Agricultural Legacy

The Cowpastures played a critical role in:

• The early development of cattle and dairy industries
• The expansion of wool production
• The shaping of settlement patterns across the Camden district

Remarkably, probable descendants of the original wild cattle were identified as late as the 1930s in remote country near Mount Guouogang in what is now Kanangra‑Boyd National Park, west of Camden—an enduring reminder of the cattle that gave the Cowpastures their name.

Summary Timeline

• 1788 – Two bulls and five cows brought out on the First Fleet wander from Sydney Cove and are lost
• 1795 – Wild cattle discovered thriving south of the Nepean River; area becomes known as the Cowpastures
• 1801 – Wild cattle estimated to number between 500 and 600 head
• 1803 – A hut built at the Cowpastures; some bulls shot and beef salted
• 1803 – Government permission required to enter the Cowpastures; cattle declared Government property
• 1804 – Wild cattle numbers estimated between 3,000 and 5,000
• 1805 – John Macarthur granted 5,000 acres at the Cowpastures; names the land ‘Camden’
• 1810 – Governor Macquarie estimates the wild cattle herd at 4,000–5,000 head
• 1815 – Stockyards established to tame or slaughter cattle; stock centres created at Cawdor, Stone Quarry (Picton) and Brownlow Hill
• 1816 – Illegal catching and shooting of wild cattle by settlers and workers reported
• 1821 – Nearly 900 wild cattle tamed and added to government herds; bulls shot, meat salted and hides tanned at Cawdor
• 1824 – Government cattle removed to allow Macarthur to take possession of 10,400 acres at Cawdor
• 1826 – Government tannery at Cawdor closed
• 1837 – Camden Estate reaches its maximum size of 27,698 acres
• 1930s – Probable descendants of the wild cattle identified near Mount Guouogang in the Kanangra‑Boyd National Park