How the Catholic Church acquired land at North Head
When we visit North Head today, we cannot help but be impressed by the beauty of the location and perhaps think of how fortunate the Catholic Church was when it was granted a large parcel of land there in 1859. But the reaction at the time was very different.
In 1855, New South Wales became the first Australian colony to achieve self-government when it was granted its own constitution and elected parliament. Having been founded by the British, the official religion up until that time had been Anglican.
However, the new electorate differed from that back in Mother England. Because of the number of Irish convicts who had been transported, up to 30 per cent of its population was Catholic.
Given the democratic process and the constitution, the new government had to prudently take this reality into account. So when the Anglican Bishop of Sydney was assisted with 59 acres of land at Randwick to build himself a residence, it was tactful that a similar grant be given to the Catholic Church to allow a residence for its head, Bishop Polding.
To avoid complaint, the grant made was 60 acres, one more than the Anglican one. However, the location was a different matter. Just 10 years earlier, in 1837, because of its remoteness, North Head had been chosen as the location of the colony’s quarantine station. So when the government announced that it was excising 60 acres from the station to provide the Catholic grant, this was not necessarily greeted with grateful thanks. The site was very remote and potentially deadly.
Initially, Catholic Bishops were not particularly interested in the land. However, this changed with the growth of the village of Manly and in 1891 Bishop Moran decided that it would be the ideal location for a seminary, a training college for priests. St Patrick’s College was built.
Richard Michell is the vice-president of the Manly, Warringah and Pittwater Historical Society and the secretary of Friends of Dee Why Lagoon. Visit mwphs.org.au and fodyl.au