* Location
Minchinbury is a suburb in western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Minchinbury is located 39 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Blacktown and is part of the Outer Sydney Region.
Minchinbury is predominantly a residential area with a small commercial/retail area in the centre and industrial/commercial zones in the westernmost part.
* History
Minchinbury takes its name from the property named by Capt. William Minchin who was granted 1,000 acres (4.0 km2) here in 1819. William Minchin was the Principal Superintendent of Police and Treasurer of the Police Fund in the colony. After the death of William in 1821, the property passed to his only daughter Maria Matilda. In 1838, Maria Matilda and her family were lost at sea, leaving no descendants of William Minchin alive.
Dr. Charles McKay purchased the property in 1859 and developed it into vineyards and cellars. Over the next 2 decades, Dr. McKay bought many neighbouring properties and in 1881, he put all of his land up for auction. At this time, the land did not sell and it wasn’t until 1895 that James Angus bought all of McKay’s properties.
Penfolds Pty. Ltd. purchased the winery and vineyards in 1912. Most of the existing buildings at the winery were probably added while under the ownership of Penfolds. In 1898, during James Angus’s winemaking years, the vineyards suffered a viral disease that destroyed the vines. New vines were planted and grew until 1962 when soil erosion made them useless. New vineyards were established on other properties around the area to supply the fruit for the winery. Minchinbury Winery became famous for its champagne. Penfolds stopped operations at the winery in 1978.
* Minchinbury Timeline by Blacktown City Libraries – January 2023
Places of Interest
