Llewella Davies gave a great deal to the community during her near century of life in the area. From charitable works with organisations such as the Red Cross or Meals on Wheels, to sharing and creating yarns of the old town, Miss Camden, as she was affectionately known, contributed much to the community. But her most lasting contribution, and the one with which most current residents have a connection, is her bequeathing of her family’s 55 hectare dairy farm to Camden Council.old aerial east.
Evan Davies, Llewella’s father, started the dairy farm on the 55 hectare property on Exeter Street. It is located just on the outskirts of the town leading to the Nepean River, entirely within the famous Camden Flood Plains. According to the Council Property Report (2007), the land is representative of both Camden’s dairy heritage, and also of Camden’s heritage character as a town immediately surrounded by agricultural land. Some of the structures that existed on the farm were in poor condition when bequeathed, but have since gained a kind of rejuvenation though the efforts of the volunteer management committee.
As Camden Town Farm the property has gained new life within the community. Centred around gardening, the Town Farm facilitates the activities of Camden Community Garden, a hub for community learning through social inclusion and interaction. It comes alive every Saturday with the Fresh produce markets, showcasing the top quality produce from the Town Farm and local producers.
Historical Development
The subdivision plan contained in Hardie & Gorman’s 1887 sales brochure indicates that Allotments 5, 6, and part of 7 had been sold to H. Head . The land was first established as a dairy farm by Dennis Hickey, who probably leased the land from Head around the turn of the century. This became the Nant Gwylan Dairy.
The town allotments on which Nant Gwylan is situated were part of the Camden Park Estate subdivision, bought in 1841 by Reverend Thomas Hassall (see Figure 2. 5). Of the 44 allotments sold at the initial auction of the Camden town subdivision, Hassalls’s price for Lots 15 and 16 was the lowest price paid, at £18.2 In his will, Hassall left the land to John Macquarie Anthill in trust for Anthill’s daughter Catherine Hope, a widow. In 1898, Hope sold the land to John Peat, a bricklayer of Camden.
Davies Family (1908-2000)
In 1908, Mrs. Peat sold the one-acre property in the township to Mrs. Mary Fabert Davies, wife of Evan Alfred Davies, who later served as an alderman for 28 years with Camden Council. In the same year, Mrs. Davies purchased the 130-acre farm opposite the house. EA Davies named the house Nant Gwylan, Welsh for ‘Home of the Seagulls’ after his ancestral home in Wales; his father and younger brother also named their homes Nant Gwylan. Mary Fabert Davies was the daughter of RP Richardson, founder of Richardson and Wrench, who lived at Hillview in Sutton Forest.
In 1909, at the time of making a primary application to bring the farm land under the Real Property Act, EA Davies listed his occupation as Farmer. By 1938, when a new Certificate of Title was issued, Davies was described as a gentleman. Despite registering a stock brand, (see figure below) it appears that the Davies family never farmed the land themselves. Within months of acquiring the farm, the Davies leased 20 acres at the corner of Exeter Street and Grove Road to Tong Hing of Camden, a market gardener. The terms of the lease require that Tong Hing would “not use the premises other than a dwelling and the grounds other than a market garden,” indicating that a separate dwelling may have existed on the farm land prior to Davies purchasing it. (The dwelling referred to is certainly not Nant Gwylan, which is recorded on a separate Certificate of Title.)3 Tong Hing’s lease continued until 1938. Additionally, Davies leased the farm to various dairymen over the years, commencing with George Burnell in the 1920s and 1930s.
The Davies’ younger daughter, Llewella Davies, went on to become one of the most prominent and colourful local characters in Camden over the course of the 20th century. Llewella lived at Nant Gwylan for almost her entire life, from the age of seven until just prior to her death in 2000. Her sister Avis having married and left home, Llewella inherited the family home and farm after her mother’s death in 1960 (her father died in 1945). Llewella was a very keen gardener and faithfully maintained the gardens at Nant Gwylan, with some assistance in her later years. Llewella was an active member of the Camden community, viewed by some to be rather eccentric. She was given the key to Camden at a civic dinner in her honour held in 1992, and was also an honorary Council ranger, and an honorary prefect at Camden High School.
Llewella contributed to many community organisations including the Red Cross (from whom she received a long service award), Meals on Wheels, the Camden Show, the Camden Garden Club, and the “Camden News”. During World War II she worked at the Air Force Hospital at Macquarie Grove and served the Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD). Llewella was very knowledgeable in matters of history, helping to establish the Camden History Museum, and contributing to research and publication of local histories such as Colonial Buildings of the Macarthur Growth Centre. In 1981, Llewella Davies was awarded the Order of Australia medal for services to the community. Upon her death in 2000, she was remembered as the ‘Queen of Camden’. Continuing to lease the farm to dairy farmer Ray Moore, Llewella Davies maintained the notion of the family property. In 1983, when a water treatment plant constructed on land purchased from the Davies in 1938 became obsolete, Llewella attempted to buy the land back, saying “although the treatment works site is extremely flood prone I hope to acquire it, to consolidate the old family estate.”
When she died, Llewella Davies left the farm land to the Council of Camden with the proviso that the land be kept as open space for the town to enjoy. Similarly, Llewella planned for the survival of her house and garden by actively campaigning with the Heritage Council of NSW to place a Permanent Conservation Order on the property.