Shepherd family

James Shepherd arrived in New South Wales as a convict aboard the "Matilda" in August 1791. Convicted at Croydon, England In 1785, he had already served six years of his 14-year sentence and soon received a pardon. He married Ann Thorn in February 1795. She had arrived on the "Surprise (2)" in October 1794 with a seven-year sentence. In November 1794, a month after her arrival, Ann Thorn was granted 20 acres at the Eastern Farms. Her grant contains the first reference to the district name as "Kissing Point". Four months after her arrival, she married James Shepherd.

Ann and James Shepherd made their home at Thorn Farm, in the vicinity of Thorn Street, Ryde. In addition to Ann's 8.1-hectare (20-acre), James received 12 hectares (30 acres) at the Field of Mars in May 1797. He purchased Squire's 12 hectares (30 acres) on the northern boundary of Ann's grant for A£100, acquired Bradley's adjoining grant and James Stewart's 12 hectares (30 acres) east of Squire's land in 1809. Squire's grant became known as Shepherd's Bush, Bradley's was called Shepherd's Hill and James Stewart's became New Farm. By Governor Macquarie's administration, Shepherd owned all land from Parkes Street to the river between Bowden and Belmore Streets. By 1820 he owned 73 hectares (180 acres) at Kissing Point and by 1828 he had 610 hectares (1,500 acres). In the beginning he had run sheep and grown wheat but soon turned to orange orchards. Much of his land was leased out to tenants.[1]

James and Ann Shepherd had two sons, James (1796-1882) and Isaac (1800–1877), and two daughters, Ann (1797-1882) and Elizabeth. Ann Shepherd died on 7 April 1806, aged 48, and was buried on her farm. Her eldest daughter, nine year old Ann, cared for the other children until her marriage in 1813, aged 16. ln 1843, James Shepherd 'being desirous of making some provision' for his daughter, Ann Henry, gave her 0.4 hectares of land on which The Retreat was built. Much respected in the district, James Shepherd died on 27 April 1847, aged 85, and was buried on Thorn Farm. The gravestones of Ann and James Shepherd were moved to Field of Mars Cemetery when their slab and stone cottage was demolished in 1926.

From the 1820s, much of Shepherd's land at Ryde was managed by, or transferred to, his son, Isaac. Isaac married Ann in 1832 and the following year started to build a cottage, later called Addington, on part of the Stewart grant. In 1835 Isaac acquired land at Meadowbank where in 1840 he built his home, Hellenie, a two-story sandstone mansion. This became his base for pastoral activities in the Murrumbidgee district. Isaac Shepherd was the member of parliament for St Leonards from 1860 to 1864 and was instrumental in efforts to bring local government to Ryde, achieved in 1870, the year of his death.

In 1837 Isaac Shepherd sold a portion on the southern corner of Victoria Road and Bowden Street for a police station. In 1841 he subdivided land around the watch house and near St Anne's, in conjunction with James Devlin. They described their subdivisions as the "Village of Rydell, named after the birthplace of Mrs Turner, the wife of their resident clergyman.

Wallumetta stands on part of what was once New Farm and by about 1890 was owned by Mary Elizabeth Bowden, daughter of lsaac Shepherd and widow of prominent Sydney solicitor, Thomas Kendall Bowden.