The Retreat

This Victorian Georgian sandstone cottage was built by Isaac Shepherd and James Shepherd Henry.

Originally part of a grant of 12.1 hectare from Lieutenant-Governor Patterson to James Squire in 1795. Squire found land closer to the river more suitable for his brewery and wharf and in 1799 sold his grant to his former assigned servant, James Shepherd, for £100.

This land was owned by Shepherd's descendants until 1911.

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. Ann was the second wife of the Reverend William Henry, a London Missionary Society preacher who had spent time in Tahiti. Ann's stepson, James, and her brother lsaac were apparently the builders with the sandstone being taken from James Shepherd senior's nearby quarry.

The Henrys returned to Tahiti for four years then settled in The Retreat in 1849. William preached at St Anne’s and acted as schoolmaster. He died in 1858, and Ann Henry continued to live at The Retreat until she moved to Glebe in about 1880. The property remained in the Henry family until 1911 and has had a succession of owners since. A Permanent Conservation Order was placed over The Retreat in 1987 and it was placed on the State Heritage Register in 1999. Ceilings are of lath and plaster or pressed metal and an original front veranda has been removed. The house was last traded in 2023.