BLACKTOWN CITY HISTORY Blacktown and Prospect Reservoir :
swimming , boating and fishing
by John Horne
The Prospect area in Blacktown City is rich in heritage and history . One of the heritage items in this area is the Prospect Reservoir , still being used for its original purpose . Surrounded by the Prospect Nature Reserve which is closed to the public , it has picnic and recreational areas on its eastern perimeter but there is no public access to the reservoir ’ s waters .
In his October Community Update , the Mayor of Blacktown City , Tony Bleasdale OAM , advocated making available public access to the land and water of Prospect Reservoir as a place for walking , cycling , swimming , kayaking , sailing and other passive sports . Public access to Prospect Reservoir Recently people could make a submission online to the NSW State Government about their opposition or consent for greater access to Prospect Reservoir , especially with regard to getting into the lake ’ s water for various recreational activities . Time will tell what will become of this . Locals who have lived in Blacktown for a long period of time have heard these rumblings before and nothing has changed . The dam has remained out of bounds for swimming , boating and fishing .
Public access to the reservoir has never been guaranteed . If the relevant government body so decides , the reservoir is shut . During the recent COVID pandemic it was closed for public health reasons . At the same time in 2020 , Sydney Water made the dam available to a foreign film company so it could build a set for a movie ,
Artist ’ s impression of a monorail at the proposed water park .
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings . While this was happening the public ’ s use of the site was very restricted . Prospect Reservoir , the beginnings First opened in 1888 , Prospect Reservoir is the first earth-fill embankment dam to be built in Australia and from its beginning it has always been an integral part of supplying drinking water to the population of Sydney . Covering an area of 5.25 square kilometres , it is the largest lake in the Sydney Basin . Today , even though it is an offline reserve storage facility , it can still be used to supplement Sydney ’ s water supplies whenever the need arises . Prospect Reservoir under construction in the 1880s Several hundred workers and their families lived in a tent and corrugated iron town while the dam was being built . Picks , shovels , horses , carts , rollers and a steam shovel were used to move the soil and clay that was needed to construct the earthen dam wall . Pincott ’ s Roller that was used in the reservoir ’ s construction in the 1880s is displayed there today .
Though the site of the Prospect Camp is under water , one of the corrugated iron buildings stands in the grounds of St Bartholomew ’ s Church at Prospect . Did you know that the Royal Cricketers ’ Arms on Reservoir Road at Prospect was built to catch the trade from the thirsty workers who lived in the Reservoir Camp ? Water parks at Prospect There is already a water park at Prospect , Raging Waters Sydney , that was formerly known as Wet ’ N ’ Wild Sydney . It opened on 12 December 2013 and offers swimming , rides and water slides during the hot summer months . Construction of Wet ‘ N ’ Wild cost more than eighty million dollars and during its first ten years it is reported to have had a turnover of five hundred million dollars . It is just across the road from the reservoir .
Water activities at Wet ‘ N ’ Wild in 2016
The idea for having a water park at Prospect is not a new idea . Believe it or not , it was first mooted in December 1980 , when Blacktown Council proposed that
Wet ‘ N ’ Wild , 2016 .
Aerial view of the reservoir in 1932 .
vacant land it already owned at Prospect near the reservoir should become a water park .
The estimated cost to build such a park was about 10 million dollars . It was planned to have a cascade swimming complex , Japanese style bath houses , a roller-skating complex , bush tracks , restaurant facilities , a plant nursery , an aviary , adult and child boating areas and other kinds of amusement facilities . John Aquilina was the Mayor at that time but unfortunately funding was a problem and our district had to wait another thirty-three years before Wet ‘ N ’ Wild was developed . Prospect and William Lawson The site where the Prospect Reservoir stands is also the place where one of Australia ’ s pioneering European settlers and explorers had his home . William Lawson was granted 500 acres ( 200 hectares ) of land near Prospect Creek , where he farmed with the help of convict labourers at Prospect in 1808 .
With his friends Gregory Blaxland and William Charles Wentworth , he charted a pathway across the Blue Mountains in 1813 . Over time he built a house , Veterans Hall , where he lived with his family until he died in 1850 . Sadly , Veterans Hall was demolished by the Water William Lawson .
The reservoir under construction in the 1880s .
Pincott ’ s Roller .
Board ( Sydney Water today ) in 1929 and all that marks the spot is a small stone cairn and some residual exotic trees which once stood in the grounds of the house . Trout In 1894 there was an experimental trial to hatch trout eggs in an old blacksmith ’ s shop beside the reservoir . Some small rearing ponds were constructed beside the dam and by 1896 thousands of trout fry had been released into eighty-six streams in New South Wales .
Up until 1924 Prospect Reservoir ’ s Trout Hatchery was the only one operating in New South Wales . We have no idea when the hatchery was closed but one wonders , how many trout are still swimming in the reservoir today and would the lake be a good fishing spot ?
It all makes one wonder , what will the future hold for Prospect Reservoir and what will the community be allowed to do there in the years to come ?
Blacktown
and District Historical Society Incorporated
EMERTON VILLAGE
02 8632 3408
Great Coffee , Great Food , Great Service !
Founded in 1976 to ensure that the history of the Blacktown area would be collected and conserved for all time by tapping into documents and people ’ s memories .
You are welcome to visit our Research Centre , open Tuesdays 10.00 am to 2.00pm , or by appointment .
Grantham Heritage Park BDHS Research Centre 71 Seven Hills Road South , Seven Hills NSW 2147 PO Box 500 Blacktown NSW 2148 Phone 02 9676 1198 www . blacktownhistory . org . au
SHOP 1 , 40 JERSEY ROAD , EMERTON
Monday – Sunday 7:00am – 5:00pm Kitchen last order 3:00pm
Leaf Cafe Emerton Village leafcafeco _ emerton www . leafcafe . com . au
10 ISSUE 33 // DECEMBER 2023 MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY HOLIDAYS ! theindependentmagazine . com . au BLACKTOWN CITY INDEPENDENT