AGY-3427 | Commissioners for Apportioning the Territory

Full description

The problem of settling Crown lands in New South Wales and Van Dieman’s Land in the 1820s was discussed in a report by Commissioner Bigge who strongly recommended the surveying of land to be used by settlers.(1) Bigge argued land should be laid out in districts of not more than thirty-six square miles, and subdivided into farms of such sizes as are usually granted. Governor Brisbane was informed by the Secretary of State that the division of the whole territory of New South Wales and Van Dieman’s Land was of the highest importance and must accompany or precede every other plan of general improvements.(2) To ensure the tasks were carried out quickly and accurately, Governor Brisbane was instructed to appoint a Commission, and on 23 June 1825, three Commissioners were appointed by Letters Patent with the Surveyor General being the Chief Commissioner. The other two Commissioners appointed on this date were John Campbell and William Cordeaux, who were both paid £500 per annum.(3) The Commission was established immediately prior to Brisbane’s successor, Governor Darling, receiving his instructions. As a result, Darling’s Instructions included the establishment of the already appointed Commissioners for Apportioning the Territory.(4) The Commissioners were instructed to carry out a general survey of the Colony and to divide it into Counties, Hundreds and Parishes. The five existing Counties: Cumberland, Westmoreland, Camden, Argyle, and Northumberland were included in the survey and changes to the last four were made.(5) The Commissioners were to also determine the valuation of land by striking an average value of the lands in a Parish by taking into consideration the "fertility and other accidental or local Advantages or disadvantages of the lands".(6) After the division and valuation of land, the Commissioners were to reserve land for public purposes. This included land to be used for public roads and internal communications; the sites of towns and villages; land for churches and schools; for parsonage and burying grounds; reserves in the neighbourhood of populous places as vacant grounds, either for the future extension of towns and villages, or for the purposes of health and recreation; and land along navigable streams or the sea which could be used for quays and landing places.(7) The Commissioners were required to report regularly to the Governor on the progress of the survey and they were to include maps and charts of the area surveyed. The reports would be approved by the Governor, transcribed, the original deposited with the records of the Supreme Court, one copy would be sent to the Governor and another copy registered in the Surveyor General’s office.(8) The Commissioners were abolished in accordance with the instructions of the Secretary of State contained in a despatch of 6 May 1830, and the duties of the Commissioners were transferred to the Surveyor General.(9) ENDNOTES
1. Historical Records of Australia (HRA), series 1, vol.11, p.930.
2. ibid., p.434.
3. Returns of the Colony for 1825.
4. HRA, series 1, vol.11, p.435 and HRA, series 1, vol.12, p.113.
5. HRA, series 1, vol.11, p.930.
6. ibid., p.437.
7. loc. cit.
8. ibid., p.436.
9. HRA, series 1, vol.15, pp466-467.