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Tocal Homestead New South Wales

Tocal Homestead

Tocal Homestead New South Wales

Located in the New South Wales Hunter Valley, the Tocal Homestead is a historic house and associated buildings originally established in 1822 by J. P. Webber. In 1834 the property was sold to Caleb and Felix Wilson, who commissioned the homestead as a country retreat from their Sydney business.

Subsequently the farm was leased to the Reynolds family who occupied it for two generations adding many of the wooden buildings to the farm. In 1926, four siblings of the Alexander family purchased the property. The last, C.B. Alexander died in 1947, leaving all of his properties tied in a complex will which stipulated that it was to be used for destitute and homeless children. Eventually this became the Tocal Agricultural College, now run by the NSW Department of Agriculture. The college is located not far from the homestead and is now an important educator in the agricultural industry.

An additional stipulation of the will was the allowance of his two nieces Myrtle and Marguerita Curtiss be allowed to live out their lives at the homestead. This they did until 1985 when they died within five days of each other.

Getting There

Located a 15-minute drive from Maitland, the homestead is well sign posted and easy to find. During our visit, it was only open on Sundays from 10:00AM to 3:00PM, but check their website for updated times and dates.

Tocal Homestead

The tour of the homestead is self-guided, with a map and personal audio player provided at reception. This allows you to self-pace around the property, taking your time at places of interest and moving on from others. The descriptions of each room, their uses and furnishings were excellent.

Alexander was keen to use new technology, installing electricity in the homestead. Not only did he purchase a generator, but also sufficient battery storage in case the generator failed.

Internal Lift

Another innovation Alexander adopted was the internal lift so that the upper floor could be accessed as he aged. Unfortunately, on one night while alone in the house, one of the Curtiss sisters was trapped in the lift. She had to wait until the staff arrived in the morning to let her out.

Internal lift Tocal Homestead New South Wales
Internal lift

Farm Buildings and Equipment

Designed by architect James Blackett the largest barn has amazing internal framework for the roof is a work of art. As you walk around, you get to meet some of the animals as you walk past the pig stye and chicken run.

Near the homestead is a garage with a 1929 Rolls Royce Phantom in immaculate condition, along with the first tractor used at Tocal, a Twin City 17-28 imported from Minneapolis USA.

Wedding Venue

The homestead is a popular wedding venue, with its wonderfully decorated rooms and gardens.

Fig tree in the homestead garden
Fig tree in the homestead garden. A favorite spot for wedding photos.

Visitors’ Centre and Cafe

At the end of the tour, we went back to reception where we ordered a Devonshire Tea. The little cafe overlooks the surrounding farmland and was very relaxing.

Devonshire Tea
Devonshire Tea

Tocal Field Days in the Hunter Valley

Cows Were Everywhere

Tocal Field Days

The Tocal Field Days is an annual event held at Tocal Agricultural College in the Hunter Valley. It is an opportunity for suppliers to display their latest products and services to the farming industry. It is also an opportunity for people to display their skills and produce to the general public.

Parking is well set up with officials directing vehicles where to go. Each row of cars is numbered so it is easy to find your way back, unlike some events where you can get lost in a vast field of cars.

Tocal Agricultural College
Tocal Field Days
Tocal Agricultural College

As expected, manufacturers of farming equipment had displays of their latest products. There were many rows of tractors and other farm gear.

We were in time to see a cow milking demonstration and my wife was able to fulfil a lifelong dream of milking a cow.

We watched a piglet race where 6 pigs race around a track, there was a bowl of food as the end, which they aim for. They ignore barriers and tend to jump fences to get to the end first. It was all good fun and they seemed to enjoy the run. We loved watching them!

Piglet Races
Piglet Races

Llamas

There was a large llama display by the Llama Collective with a number of the animals present. Despite a reputation for spitting, they were all very well behaved and great to pat. There was even a llama kissing booth! A small alpaca was present, and you were able to see the difference between the two. If you are interested, the difference is the shape of the back and ears, with llamas having curved versus an alpaca’s straight ears.

Other Animals

Apart from the usual animals, there were colourful chickens and several bison, which made a nice change to the usual displays.

What Did We Think of the Tocal Field Days?

We had a great time looking around the displays, watching the pig races, patting the llamas and milking a cow. It was a nice way to spend a day, slowly wandering around and looking at the displays.

To see what else there is to do in New South Wales, please see some of our other stories.

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