Greenethorpe is a town in the Central West region 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. The town is located in the Weddin Shire local government area, west of the state capital, Sydney. At the , Greenethorpe and the surrounding area had a population of 320. The village, with the associated "Mount Oriel"

homestead Homestead may refer to: *Homestead (buildings), a farmhouse and its adjacent outbuildings; by extension, it can mean any small cluster of houses *Homestead (unit), a unit of measurement equal to 160 acres *Homestead principle, a legal concept th ...

(known locally as

Iandra Castle Iandra (colloquially known as Iandra Castle) is a large heritage register, heritage-listed homestead south of Greenethorpe, New South Wales, Greenethorpe, in the Weddin Shire, New South Wales, Australia. The property was added to the New South ...

), is a rare example in Australia of the

manorial Manorialism, also known as the manor system or manorial system, was the method of land ownership (or "tenure") in parts of Europe, notably France and later England, during the Middle Ages. Its defining features included a large, sometimes forti ...

system, "the likes of which may not exist elsewhere in the state or nation".

History

Greenethorpe is a purpose-built town, established in 1908 to house sharefarmers who worked on Iandra, the nearby

pastoral station A pastoral lifestyle is that of shepherds herding livestock around open areas of land according to seasons and the changing availability of water and pasture. It lends its name to a genre of literature, art, and music (pastorale) that depicts ...

owned by

George Henry Greene George Henry Greene (20 July 1838 – 22 December 1911) was an Irish-born Australian politician. He was born in Collon in County Louth to farmer William Pomeroy Greene and Anne Griffith. In 1842 the family moved to Melbourne, where William ...

. The village, built adjacent to a

rail siding A siding, in rail terminology, is a low-speed track section distinct from a running line or through route such as a main line, branch line, or spur. It may connect to through track or to other sidings at either end. Sidings often have lighte ...

on the

Grenfell railway line The Grenfell railway line is a partly closed railway line in New South Wales, Australia. It branches from the Blayney–Demondrille railway line at the town of Koorawatha. The line opened in 1901, and closed between Greenethorpe and at the Gr ...

, was originally named ''Iandra Siding'' but to avoid confusion between the pastoral station and the train station, the Post Office agreed to change the name to ''Greenthorpe''. Shortly after, the spelling was again changed, this time to ''Greenethorpe'' from the Greene family name. Greenethorpe Public School was first established in 1903 as a Provisional School and named ''Iandra Siding''. The school was renamed in 1909. ''Iandra Siding'' Post Office opened on 20 January 1908 and was renamed ''Greenethorpe'' in September that year. The village itself was based on the English

system, with tenant farms—generally each—distributed around the central homestead. The sharefarming system began in 1892 and a rail siding constructed in 1903. In the early years of the twentieth century, Iandra set a record for the largest ever yield of wheat from a single property, and by 1911 there were fifty sharefarmers working over there—the farmers supplying the machinery and labour and Greene providing seed and clearing ground suitable for ploughing. Around 1914, the property began to be broken up and most tenants were offered an option to purchase the land they had farmed. The main dwelling in the Iandra homestead is an ornate mansion built from

reinforced concrete Reinforced concrete (RC), also called reinforced cement concrete (RCC) and ferroconcrete, is a composite material in which concrete's relatively low tensile strength and ductility are compensated for by the inclusion of reinforcement having hig ...

in the Federation Romanesque style with Tudor influences. Consisting of 57 rooms on two storeys, it is referred to locally as "The Castle" in reference to its striking design and its semi-feudal role in the community. The homestead, built by pioneering engineer, Edward Giles Stone, also includes a blacksmith, manager's residence, stables, and a small Gothic chapel.

Heritage listings

Greenethorpe has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: * Iandra Road:

Today

Facilities in the town include a Post Office cum General Store, a

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

- The Shamrock, a Public School and a Police Station. There is also a Cafe and Bed & Breakfast - CIRCA 1935 located in the heritage listed former Bank of NSW Building. The town has an art gallery - Blue Sky, the owner of which also manufactures gypsy caravans and tiny homes. The town does not have a mail delivery service; mail must be collected from the post office. Greenethorpe Public School still uses the existing 1903 building for two classrooms, a library and a computer laboratory with the art room, kitchen and the administration located in adjacent buildings. The school is fully air-conditioned. The Soldiers Memorial Hall is the centrepiece of the village and is currently undergoing restoration and upgrading of the building and grounds. The building houses photographs and information relating to locals who served in WW1 and WW2. It is used for social events such as dances, concerts, school functions, yoga classes, and is also available for hire at a nominal fee, for private functions. A recent addition is a separate building to house the Greenethorpe History Group and its collection. An external War Memorial is planned for 2021. There is no longer a rail service to Greenethorpe, this having terminated in 2009. Both Local and State governments have been extensively lobbied to reopen the service for grain transport and tourism, however to date this has not been successful.

References

External links

Community websiteIandra Castle website
{{authority control Towns in New South Wales Towns in the Central West (New South Wales) 1908 establishments in Australia Weddin Shire