The cache is not at the published coordinates!
Lake Mac Heritage Series
How to get there: From Morisset, head towards Cooranbong along Martinsville Road, and turn left into Watagans Road. Continue uphill to Watagans Forest Road towards the series.
Road Use and Quality: The roads in the Watagan and Onley State parks are accessible by 2WD in dry conditions only. 4WD should be used at all other times. However, in some circumstances, the best way to approach these caches is on foot, especially on the narrower tracks. Common sense prevails!
The Lake Mac Heritage Series was placed to pay homage to the people, places and events that contributed to building and pioneering the Lake Macquarie region. The pick and shovel were chosen in this geoart series to symbolise the hard work the people of Lake Macquarie put forth into the region.
Mr Bull's Gardens
Most residents of the Charlestown area would be unaware that part of the current suburb of Whitebridge was once a major tourist spot of the Newcastle area, drawing thousands of people to visit and picnic.
Edmund Bull
In 1845 Edmund Bull arrived in NSW from the Isle of Wight aboard the ship 'Herald' with his wife Frances and their 4 children. Frances died in 1846, and Edmund married Mary Jane Sands on the property 'New Freugh' at Singleton in 1849. It is said that Edmund came from a long line of gardeners who had been cultivating plants in Scotland and the Isle of Wight for several hundred years. Edmund and Mary took up land in 1854 at 'The Folly' (now Waratah), and set up market gardens there, selling their produce in Newcastle.
Mr Bull's Gardens
In around 1860, Edmund bought a 60 acre plot in what is now Whitebridge and set about setting up gardens at that location. The family business thrived, with Edmund tending the gardens and his children organising the transport of the produce. Edmund's deep love of gardening meant that the gardens went beyond a livelihood and were beautifully landscaped with rockpools and waterfalls, and filled with a large variety of plants - many imported from overseas.
Public Gardens
Sid took over management of the gardens in 1904, and opened up free access to the public. Sid and his family continued to live in the original house on the property which was called 'Glen Eureka', and they made a good living out of supplying refreshments, flowers and fruit to the visitors. People flocked to the gardens in their hundreds on holidays and weekends, often catching the train to nearby Whitebridge station. Many of these visitors were Masters of sailing ships anchored in the port of Newcastle, who had heard news of the beauty of the gardens whilst abroad. At the busiest times it is said there were as many as 200 horse-drawn cariages pulled up on the green outside. Edmund and Mary continued to live at the gardens until their deaths - Edmund in 1899 and Mary in 1903. Both are buried at nearby Whitebridge cemetery.
The puzzle
All historical and heritage information courtesy of Lake Mac Libraries
Any questions regarding this puzzle cache or the LMHS geoart series will be answered by clicking HERE
*** The LMHS geoart was placed in conjunction with the OzGeoMuster 2018 mega event. The Oz GeoMuster 2018 committee would like to thank the following people for their contribution to this series. ahomburg, day1976, sedgwickDave, The Morris, bobbiesgirl, and the_garbageman.***
Enjoy!
Marcus Vitruvius