Fagan Park is a large recreational area located in Galston, a semi-rural area in

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 ...

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 ...

. The park has been managed by

Hornsby Shire Hornsby Shire is a local government area situated in Northern Sydney (Upper North Shore), as well as parts of the Hills District, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The shire stretches from the M2 Hills Motorway in the south to the Haw ...

since its opening in 1988, and covers an area of 55 hectares. The land that is now the park was home to the Fagan family until 1980, when Bruce Fagan and his sister, Ida, donated the land to the New South Wales State Government. Hornsby Shire Council was appointed sole trustee. The park was officially opened by the

Premier of New South Wales The premier of New South Wales is the head of government in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The Government of New South Wales follows the Westminster Parliamentary System, with a Parliament of New South Wales acting as the legislature. ...

Nick Greiner Nicholas Frank Hugo Greiner (;) (born 27 April 1947) is an Australian politician who served as the 37th Premier of New South Wales from 1988 to 1992. Greiner was Leader of the New South Wales Division of the Liberal Party from 1983 to 1992 an ...

, MP on 5 November 1988.Fagan Park
Hornsby Shire Council. Accessed 7 December 2023.

History

The Fagan Family

William Fagan was a free settler who emigrated from

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

in Ireland who arrived in Sydney in 1848. He later married Ann Waddell and the couple had three sons and four daughters. After their marriage the Fagans purchased of land in

Arcadia, New South Wales Arcadia is a semi-rural suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia 42 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of Hornsby Shire. Arcadia is in the Hills District region. Histor ...

and the family established a successful citrus orchard. They were pioneers in the citrus industry in

Dural Dural is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia 36 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district in the local government areas of Hornsby Shire and The Hills Shire. Dural is part of the Hills District. ...

, Galston and Arcadia, on the north-western outskirts of Sydney. Two of William and Ann's sons, William and Samuel, worked in the family business and later began their own operation at Dural. In 1900, Samuel and his wife acquired land at Galston and conducted their business on the property. They constructed 'Netherby,' a house made of bricks that were hand made. The property was the largest orchard in Galston and had a sizable workforce.History of Fagan Park
Accessed 9 November 2019. By the early 1930s, because of the arrival of the Great Depression, Samuel Fagan commenced to closed down his orchards. Bruce Fagan, the youngest child in the family, ran a herd of Jersey dairy cattle on the property after the closure of the orchard. He later added a dairy building to the property and commenced a renowned cattle breeding programme. In 1980 Bruce Fagan and his sister, Ida, donated the original property, "Fagan Park," to the Department of Lands. The Hornsby Shire Council was appointed as the sole trustee for the park. Before his death in 1984, Bruce Fagan was consulted regarding development plans for the site.

Bicentennial Project

The

Bicentenary __NOTOC__ A bicentennial or bicentenary is the two-hundredth anniversary of a part, or the celebrations thereof. It may refer to: Europe *French Revolution bicentennial, commemorating the 200th anniversary of 14 July 1789 uprising, celebrated i ...

of Australia was celebrated in 1988. It marked the occasion of the beginning of

European settlement of Australia European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...

, with the arrival of the

First Fleet The First Fleet was a fleet of 11 ships that brought the first European and African settlers to Australia. It was made up of two Royal Navy vessels, three store ships and six convict transports. On 13 May 1787 the fleet under the command ...

of British convict ships at

in 1788. A national programme of events and celebrations was organised to celebrate the occasion and Fagan Park was adopted as Hornsby Shire Council's bicentennial project. The Council received a government grant towards the cost of the planned "Garden of Many Nations." The garden now covers of the park and features the flora of countries from all over the world including North America and South America, Great Britain, Africa, Asia and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

The original homestead, 'Netherby', together with the original milking complex and packing shed, were also restored for the bicentennial year. "Netherby" is regularly opened for inspection and the packing shed and milking complex are used as a rural museum.

Sport and Recreation

* The Galston

Parkrun Parkrun (stylised as parkrun) is a collection of events for walkers, runners and volunteers that take place every Saturday morning at more than 2,000 locations in 23 countries across six continents. Junior Parkrun (stylised as junior parkrun) ...

event is held every Saturday at 8 am. This is a timed run over 5 kilometres. It is organised by volunteers and is free of charge. * The Hornsby Electric Model Flying Club meets in the park. * The Friends of Fagan Park open all museums on Tuesdays (their volunteering day, from 1-4pm on the second Sunday each month, and conduct 3 Open days each year. * The Fagan Park Eco Garden is a Council-driven community initiative that showcases environmentally friendly gardening techniques. Workshops are held regularly.Fagan Park Eco Garden
Accessed 9 November 2019. * Carr's Bush is an area of remnant bushland within the park. It contains a network of short walking trails. * The "Garden of Many Nations" is available to all visitors to the park.

Facilities

There are many facilities for visitors to Fagan Park including: * Picnic tables * Large picnic shelters which can be hired which seat 18 to 36 people, depending on the size of the structure hired. * Barbecues * Children's playgrounds * Bushwalking trails * Sealed paths for bicycle riding, walking and running * Toilets

History

The Fagan Family

Bicentennial Project

Sport and Recreation

Facilities

References

External links