Next Departure Date: 22 Apr 2021
Member Price (per person): 140
Non Member Price (per person): 160
Tour Duration: 1 Day
The European ownership of Retford Park dates from 1821 when Governor Macquarie granted Edward Riley two parcels of land. The property remained in the Riley family until the 1880s when it was acquired by Samuel Hordern of the respected Hordern family. He named the property Retford Park in recognition of his family links to the town of Retford in England. Retford Park House was completed in 1887. Keen cattle and horse breeders, Samuel Hordern and his son, Sir Samuel Hordern, equipped the home with complete horse and cattle facilities. Following the death of Samuel Hordern III in 1960, the American Company, King Ranch, purchased the property. Over the years architect Espie Dods added architecturally sympathetic extensions to the home and Melbourne landscape architect David Wilkinson contributed the Knot Garden, the Green Room and the Millennium Canal to Retford Park’s tranquil gardens. In April 2016 John Fairfax gifted this historic home to the National Trust of Australia. (Image credit: Destination NSW).
