Among its many uses, it has been The Woodman Inn, The King’s Arms, Buss’s Inn, a gentleman’s residence, school for young gentlemen, day school for local children, guest house, boarding house and private residence.
Thomas Pembroke, some years after release from his sentence completed the first buildings on the site, circa 1834 after he was granted two acres and later a further 48 acres. He used stone masons and timber splitters to construct a building which may have later become the schoolroom, Fairfax sitting room and the three small adjoining rooms.
Woodford Academy stands close to the place where William and Mary James ran a “sly grog” shop for people travelling through the mountains on their way to Bathurst and further inland to settle on the land. In the 1850s it became a stopover for people on their way to the goldfields in search of their fortunes.
The Academy is available now for schools to learn about the history of the Blue Mountains, among other purposes.
This cache has the blessing of the management. They would prefer that cachers park in Vale Road, via Woodford Ave. Please do not park in the carpark of the Academy or the church. The cache resides in Woodford Reserve, behind the Academy. There are also some Aboriginal rock carvings nearby in the reserve.