Primbee - History

Land grants

This area was a farming and dairy farming district in the 1860's.

In 1863 land was purchased in the area by Richard Robinson Bothwick, James Stewart, David James and Thomas Griffin.

Further purchases were made in 1867 by Eugene Dominique Nicolle, Michael O'Donnell, Patrick Fitzgerald and the Bank of New South Wales. (Reflections on Primbee, 1987)

An 1884 Parish Map shows land in Primbee owned by Thomas Griffin, John Stewart, Eugene Nicolle, Francis Axam, M Shannon and the Bank of New South Wales. (Parish of Wollongong map 1884, 2nd ed.)

Early residents

Eugene Dominique Nicolle (1824-1909)

Eugene Nicolle is remembered as a pioneering engineer. He worked with Thomas Sutcliffe Mort in the development of refrigeration in Australia during the 1860s and 1870s. He designed the first freezing plant built by the Fresh Food and Ice Company and built the first plant for extracting kerosene from shale at Lithgow.

In 1867 Eugene Nicolle purchased approximately 160 acres of land in the Primbee area as an investment. In 1878 Nicolle move from Sydney to live on his land at Primbee. He built a residence called 'Whiteheath' "on a high sandy ridge with a panoramic view to the west towards Lake Illawarra and the Illawarra escarpment." Apart from some time spent on overseas visits, Nicolle resided at Primbee for the remaining thirty years of his life. (Organ & Turnidge, 2000)

Nicolle was 54 years old when he first settled at Lake Illawarra. While living at Whiteheath he spent a great deal of time in his workshop laboratory which was stocked with lathes, drills, and a blast furnace. He experimented with various machines and worked on his inventions and scientific studies.

'Esperanza' was built on the estate at Primbee. Esperanza was built 100 yards to the south-east of Whiteheath on the crest of Primbee hill. Work on this unique home commenced in 1890 and was completed in 1892. (Reflections of Primbee, 1987; Organ & Turnidge, 2000).

Stanley Nicolle

Stanley Nicolle initially followed in his father's footsteps, pursuing a career in engineering. He was educated at Camden College and Mr Sotheby's, Throsby Park, Moss Vale. On leaving school he spent some time at Mort's Dock, Sydney, training for his chosen profession. He married Catherine C. Watt in 1892 and moved to Primbee in 1895 to be near his father. He remained at Primbee until about 1924 when he moved to Wollongong. He died in Wollongong in 1929.

Early industry

Agriculture

Abundant amounts of fish and prawns were to be had in the lake around 1914 but the fishing industry failed to thrive. There was simply no market for the produce. Local fishermen claimed they could catch 15-20 cases of prawns and fish per night. The catch then had to be boxed and iced, transported by horse and cart to Wollongong, and then railed to Sydney. In 1933 the return for 30lb of fish was only 6 shillings. Local fish hawkers sold their produce door to door.

In 1925 the Berkeley Fish Co-operative opened. This proved to be of huge benefit to the local fishermen. In about 1945 a fishing co-operative opened at Primbee. A sawmill operated in the early days near where the Port Kembla Golf Course is now situated. (Reflections on Primbee, 1987)

Early transport

In 1914 the only transport was horse and cart. A 'sheep fence' was constructed to contain livestock on Eugene Nicolle's property. The fence continued down into the water in Nicolle Road. Local residents had to open several gates to enter Primbee.

When the lake was closed and flooding occurred access was over the Tom Thumb bridge which linked Port Kembla and Wollongong, or via the Steelworks along an old track and over the bridge at Allens Creek.

The first road to be laid through Primbee was begun in 1932 and completed in 1934. Before 1938 there was no public transport. After the Windang bridge was opened in 1937 a daily public bus service ran from Shellharbour to Wollongong. (Reflections of Primbee, 1987)