First Government House - Bridge Street & Phillip Street - NSW

First Government House

Bridge Street And Phillip Street South Western Corner




33° 51’49”S
151° 12’ 41”E

Where The Museum Of Sydneyis Now, Is Where The Frst And Original Government

House Stood....

It's The House That Governor Bligh Was Supposedly Hiding Under the Bed When a The Red coats Of The New South Wales Army Corp Were Going to Put Him

under House Arrest. 

Construction Of The First Government House  Was Commenced On This Site On May 15 1788, And Governor Phillip Moved In Shortly Before June 4th 1789. It Was The Residence Of All Governors Until 1845 

Captain Collins Worte That A Gang If Labourers Was Put

under The Direction Of A Stonemason, And On The 15th May The First Stone Of The  Building Intended For The Residence Of The Governor Until Government House Could Be Erected  Was Laid On The East Side Of The Cove. 

On the 7th March 1899 Robert John McCann, While Excavating A Telegraph Tunnel, Discovetrd The Cornerstone Of The Building

Said McCann " I Came Across 2 Flat Stones, One On Top Of Another, And On Clearing The Earth I Saw A Piece Of Copper Lying Between Them, I Took Care Not To Injure The Copper Plate, Because I Thought It May Be Of Some value, As There Was Writing On It. It's Only Blemish When Found 111 Years After Its Embedment Was Discoloration From Dampness And A Hole

made With A Workman's PickAxe"

This Historic Copper Pate Is Now In The Dixson Gallery, Sydney

The First Government House Was Completed On The 4th June 1789, In Time To Celebrate The Birthday of Goerge III. Governor Phillip Threw AParty  There In Honour Of His Illustrious Master. 

The Buiding In Bridge Street, About The Corner Of Phillip Street Stood About 56 Feet AboveThe High Water Mark. There "By Sinking A Well About Fifteen Feet In The Rock, An Excellent Sprring Of pure Water" Was Obtained. 

The House Included Australia’s First Staircase

It is 170ft Long And 40 And A Half Feet High. The Ballroom

Measures 150 Ft In Length And 28Ft Width. 

The Present Government House Stands In A Portion Of The Domain, On The Shores of Farm Cove, And Was First Occupied By Governor Gipps in 1845. Joseph Fowles, In Sydney 1848 Described It As An Elegant Sandstone Ediface In Tudor Gothic"