Elderslie is a

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...

of the

Macarthur Region Macarthur is a region in the south-west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The region includes the local government areas of the City of Campbelltown, Camden Council, and Wollondilly Shire. It covers an area of 3,067 s ...

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

in the state of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

in Camden Council. In addition, it is located on the east side of the

Nepean River Nepean River (Darug: Yandhai), is a major perennial river, located in the south-west and west of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The Nepean River and its associated mouth, the Hawkesbury River, almost encircles the metropolitan region of ...

. It has a small local shop, high school, primary school, skateboard park, netball courts, cricket, Australian Football (AFL) oval, Rugby League oval, a BMX track and a historic house, John Oxley Cottage, which was built in the 1890s and converted into the Camden Visitors' centre in 1989. It was named after explorer

John Oxley John Joseph William Molesworth Oxley (1784 – 25 May 1828) was an explorer and surveyor of Australia in the early period of British colonisation. He served as Surveyor General of New South Wales and is perhaps best known for his two exp ...

who held an early grant of land in the area.

History

The area now known as Elderslie was probably originally home to the

Tharawal people The Dharawal people, also spelt Tharawal and other variants, are an Aboriginal Australian people, identified by the Dharawal language. Traditionally, they lived as hunter–fisher–gatherers in family groups or clans with ties of kinship, s ...

, based in the

Illawarra The Illawarra is a coastal region in the Australian state of New South Wales, nestled between the mountains and the sea. It is situated immediately south of Sydney and north of the South Coast region. It encompasses the two cities of Wollongo ...

region, although the

Western Sydney Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

-based

Darug people The Dharug or Darug people, formerly known as the Broken Bay tribe, are an Aboriginal Australian people, who share strong ties of kinship and, in pre-colonial times, lived as skilled hunters in family groups or clans, scattered throughout much ...

and the Southern Highlands-based

Gandangara people The Gundungurra people, also spelt Gundungara, Gandangarra, Gandangara and other variations, are an Aboriginal Australian people in south-eastern New South Wales, Australia. Their traditional lands include present day Goulburn, Wollondilly Shire ...

were also known to have inhabited the greater Camden area. Very early relations with British settlers were cordial but as farmers started clearing and fencing the land affecting food resources in the area, clashes between the groups arose until 1816 when a number of indigenous people were massacred and the remainder retreated from direct conflict with the settlers. In

1795 Events January–June * January – Central England records its coldest ever month, in the Central England temperature, CET records dating back to 1659. * January 14 – The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Uni ...

, a group of lost cattle was discovered in the area, earning it the name Cowpastures. In

1805 After thirteen years the First French Empire abolished the French Republican Calendar in favour of the Gregorian calendar. Events January–March * January 11 – The Michigan Territory is created. * February 7 – King Anouvong become ...

, a small hut was built at Elderslie near the ford on the

to house two constables assigned to keep an eye on the cattle. This was the first house built by British settlers in the Camden region. Later the same year, wool pioneer

John Macarthur John MacArthur or Macarthur may refer to: *J. Roderick MacArthur (1920–1984), American businessman *John MacArthur (American pastor) (born 1939), American evangelical minister, televangelist, and author * John Macarthur (priest), 20th-century pro ...

was granted 5,000 acres (20 km²) at Cowpastures. After the land was cleared, it was used for farming for most of the next 200 years until Sydney's suburban sprawl reached the town of Camden and modern suburbs like Elderslie were subdivided into housing blocks. Elderslie Post Office opened on 1 January 1839 and closed on 30 April 1841 when it was replaced by the nearby Camden office. It reopened on 1 August 1876 and closed in 1969.

People

Demographics

At the 2016 census, there were 6,005 residents in Elderslie. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 2.5% of the population. The most common ancestries in Elderslie were English 29.8%, Australian 29.2%, Irish 9.5%, Scottish 7.2% and Italian 3.3%. 82.4% of people were born in Australia. The next most common country of birth was England at 3.8%. 89.1% of people spoke only English at home. The top responses for religious affiliation were Catholic 30.3%, Anglican 25.9% and No Religion 21.6%.

Governance

Elderslie lies in the south ward of Camden Council, currently (March 2021) represented by Peter Sidgreaves, Eva Campbell and Paul Farrow. It sits within the state electorate of Camden, represented by

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

Peter Sidgreaves Peter Bryan Sidgreaves is an Australian politician. He has been a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly since 2019, representing Camden for the Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The ...

, and the federal electorate of Macarthur, represented by

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

's Dr. Michael Freelander.

References

External links

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] {{Sydney Camden suburbs Towns in the Macarthur (New South Wales) Camden Council (New South Wales)