Elizabeth Farm

Once home to Elizabeth and John Macarthur, pioneers of the Australian wool industry, the house is set in an 1830s garden which contains the first olive tree planted in Australia. With its broad roof, shady verandahs and shuttered doors, this 'Indian bungalow' design pre-empted the classic Australian homestead. The Macarthur garden of native and exotic ornamentals, fruit trees and vegetables has been recreated around original plantings and archaeological features dating to the early 1800s. An unusual decision to allow furniture, documents and objects to be touched, used and experienced, gives a vivid impression of this once turbulent household.