BLACKTOWN CITY HISTORY
Mutiny, rebellion, shipwreck and Minchinbury
by John Horne
The modern suburb of Minchinbury takes its name from Irishman William Minchin( 1774 – 1821), who received a land grant there in 1819. Minchin’ s remarkable story stretches across continents from mutiny and shipwreck to military service and the foundations of early New South Wales.
Minchin joined the British Army in 1797 and, as an Ensign, was posted to the Lady Shore, a vessel carrying 66 female convicts and farming supplies bound for Botany Bay. Near the coast of Brazil, soldiers aboard the ship mutinied, killing the captain and first officer before casting Minchin, his wife Anne, and 27 others adrift in a small boat.
Remarkably, the group made landfall at Port St Pedro, Brazil, but Minchin was ordered back to England to answer questions about the mutiny. Exonerated in 1799, he eventually returned to New South Wales in November 1800. Governor King appointed him an engineer and artillery officer, and Minchin went on to supervise construction of Fort Phillip on Observatory Hill in the early 1800s.
In 1808, Minchin joined his fellow officers of the New South Wales Corps in the overthrow and arrest of Governor Bligh during the Rum Rebellion. When Governor Macquarie arrived in 1809 to restore order, the Corps renamed the 102nd Regiment of Foot was posted overseas.
Minchin served in Guernsey, Bermuda, and during the War of 1812 in Canada before resigning his commission and returning to New South Wales with Anne and their daughter, Maria Matilda.
In 1819 he was granted 1,000 acres west of Rooty Hill, an estate soon known as Minchinbury. Macquarie appointed him Principal Magistrate of Police and Treasurer of the Police Fund, and Minchin also became a director of the Bank of New South Wales and held roles in several philanthropic institutions.
His promising career was cut short when he died after a brief illness on 26 March 1821. Originally buried at the old Devonshire Street Cemetery, his remains were later relocated to La Perouse during the construction of Central Railway Station.
Two years after his death, Anne Minchin married Merchant Captain Eber Bunker at St John’ s, Parramatta. When she passed away in 1837, she was buried in the churchyard there. The Minchinbury estate then passed to William’ s daughter, Maria Matilda, who married Henry Howey in 1826. Tragically, the entire Howey family Henry, Maria and their six children perished when their ship, the Sarah, sank en route from Sydney to Port Phillip Bay in 1838.
With no heirs remaining in New South Wales, ownership transferred to William’ s brother, George Minchin, who lived in Canada. In 1859, the estate was purchased by wealthy businessman Dr Charles McKay, who transformed Minchinbury into one of Australia’ s leading vineyards. He established extensive cellars and acquired surrounding lands, and in the early 1860s built Minchinbury House near Rooty Hill Station later renamed Atornish House by subsequent owner James Angus.
Under McKay and Angus, Minchinbury became one of the nation’ s major wine producers, known for varieties such as Pineau, Riesling, Shiraz, Burgundy, Hermitage, Madeira, Colonial Port and from 1908, the celebrated Minchinbury Champagne.
In 1912, Penfolds purchased the winery and expanded the cellars to a capacity of 1.25 million bottles. More than 400 acres of vineyards thrived on the estate until Penfolds ceased operations in 1978. Minchinbury was the first and largest champagne producer in NSW and played a vital role in shaping Australia’ s early wine industry.
After the closure, debates erupted over the future of the heritage site. Developers, the State Government’ s Land Commission, local residents and Blacktown Council each had competing visions for its preservation and redevelopment. Today’ s suburb of Minchinbury reflects the outcome of those long negotiations. Much of the original estate has been transformed into housing, while the remaining winery ruins though significant are now in poor condition.
From mutiny to modern suburbia, Minchinbury’ s story is one of dramatic twists, influential figures and a unique place in Australia’ s colonial and winemaking history.
This propaganda cartoon from the Rum Rebellion, 1808, depicts Governor Bligh as a coward who had to be dragged from hiding from under his bed in Government House, Sydney. The Officer standing on the right is Lieutenant Minchin. Courtesy Mitchell Library( State Library of New South Wales.
Extract of map showing William Minchin’ s land grant. Courtesy National Library of Australia.
Minchinbury House( Atornish House) on the corner of Rooty Hill Road South and Beames Avenue, Rooty Hill was demolished in 1978. Courtesy Blacktown Memories.
The original Minchinbury Aeroplane erected by Penfolds in 1933. The Penfold’ s slogan said Don’ t crash! Drink Penfolds! Courtesy Bill Young.
Blacktown and District Historical Society Incorporated
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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.
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10 ISSUE 57 // DECEMBER 2025 MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY HOLIDAYS! theindependentmagazine. com. au BLACKTOWN CITY INDEPENDENT