Camden, New South Wales

The area now known as Camden was originally at the northern edge of land belonging to the Gandangara people of the Southern Highlands, who called it Benkennie, meaning 'dry land'. North of the Nepean River were the Muringong, the southernmost of the Darug people, while to the east were the Tharawal people. They lived in extended family groups of 20–40 members, hunting kangaroos, possums and eels and gathering yams and other seasonal fruit and vegetables from the local area. They were described as 'short, stocky, strong and superbly built' and generally considered peaceful. However, as British settlers encroached on their land and reduced their food sources, they turned to armed resistance which ended in 1816 after many of their number were massacred.[3]

Explorers first visited the area in 1795 and named it 'Cowpastures' after a herd of cattle that had disappeared was discovered there. In February 1805, Governor King instructed (apparently reluctantly) a surveyor to measure 5,000 acres (2,000 ha) for John Macarthur at Cowpastures, where Macarthur had been promised land by the Secretary of State for War and the Colonies, Lord Camden. Macarthur named his property Camden Park in honour of his sponsor.[4]

As Macarthur's wool industry thrived, local citizens began pushing for the establishment of a town in the area to support the industry. Surveyor-General Major Thomas Mitchell suggested Macarthur surrender 320 acres (130 ha) of his land for the purpose to which he refused. Following his death in 1834, his children decided to subdivide the land and the first lots in the new town of Camden went on sale in 1840. Camden Post Office opened on 1 May 1841, the day after the nearby Elderslie office (open from 1839) closed.[5] By 1883, the population had grown to over 300 and a movement began to establish a local council which held its first meeting in 1889.

According to the 2016 census, there were 3,230 residents in Camden. In Camden, 80.0% of people were born in Australia. The most common other countries of birth were England 4.5%, New Zealand 1.6%, Scotland 0.9%, Ireland 0.8% and Germany 0.6%. 87.8% of people only spoke English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Spanish 0.6%, German 0.5%, Croatian 0.5%, Mandarin 0.4% and Italian 0.4%. The most common responses for religion in Camden were Catholic 30.7%, Anglican 26.4% and No Religion 19.9%.[1]

On 27 May 2008 Camden Council rejected plans from the Quranic Society to build a 1,200-student Islamic school in the nearby suburb of Cawdor on planning grounds. The site was 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) south of the centre of Camden adjacent to the Camden General Cemetery and 800 metres (2,600 ft) north of the then recently relocated Camden High School. The issue received national[14][15][16][17][18][19] and international media coverage.[20][21][22] The proposal was opposed from within the local community, many expressing fear and hatred about the presence of Muslims in an area where relatively few Muslims live.[23][24] There were angry comments by a number of residents in Camden that were viewed as racist and Islamophobic.[25] The Christian Democratic Party (CDP) opposed the proposal. Speaking at a public meeting in December 2007, CDP leader Fred Nile (present alongside Robert Balzola) said he opposed the school "because Islam opposed Christianity". A spokesman for the Quranic Society said it was "absurd" to claim that Muslims are anti-Christian.[26]

In making its decision several council members, including Mayor Chris Patterson, said the school was inappropriate for the semi-rural area of Camden and likely to cause parking, traffic and other problems.[27][28] Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd indicated before the council decision that he wouldn't support the school on planning grounds.[29] The Quranic Society said it will appeal the council's decision in the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales.

In September 2008, a proposal to build a private Catholic school received media attention for not provoking the same sort of outcry as the previous proposal. Some residents who were not supportive of the Islamic school now welcomed the Catholic school proposal.

On 2 June 2009, The Land and Environment Court passed down the decision to reject the appeal by the Quranic Society, with the court stating that the "development application was not suitable for the rural nature of the land."[30]

However, on 17 May 2021, it was announced that A-League team Macarthur FC had acquired 17 hectares (42 acres) of the planning grounds to construct a football precinct to house the team's future W-League squad, as well as the National Premier Leagues NSW squads.[31]