1. Court House 1837
2. Corney's Garage 1945
3. Shamrock Inn 1860s
4. Church Presbytery
5. Former Royal Hotel
5. Catholic Church
Hartley is an historic village preserved and managed by the NSW Parks and Wildlife service. Located on the western edge of the Blue Mountains it started as the farmlands beyond the mountains were developed. In particular, the court house served as a policing centre for the growing population. A busy village sprung up around it though over time it dwindled to practically a ghost town but didn't disappear because it was mostly built from sandstone.
Today as you descend the mountains you see this lovely cluster of buildings beside the highway. It's well worth diverting from the highway to have a look.
That is the sad thing about progress.
ReplyDeleteThe government unites the state with a criss-crossing of railway tracks. This is followed up by a network of roads.
Now we simply bypass all the clusters of villages and take the freeways and main roads quickly to the other side of the state.
A bypass brings peace and quiet, and relief from tourists and their latte-sipping mannerisms. But with relief, comes strangulation.