Pumpkin Point, Hawkesbury River, NSW
by Anthony Dunk, October 2016
A photo of Pumpkin Point that I took in 2012. Pumpkin Point Creek is to the right.
Pumpkin Point is located on the Hawkesbury River between Big Jims Point and Bar Point, but on the opposite side of the river.
Peter Hibbs lived here for some years in the early 1800's, along with his wife Mary Pardoe, and their children. Hibbs (1757-1847) arrived on one of the first fleet ships and was one of the earliest settlers on the Hawkesbury River. In his book, "The Brisbane Water Story, part two" (1954), Charles Swancott said the following about Hibbs:
Peter and his wife settled on the river. They lived for some years in a huge cave in a great rock near the water's edge at the mouth of Pumpkin Creek. The creek and headland derive their names from the fact that a point at the mouth of the creek is shaped like a huge pumpkin. A number of Hibbs' children were born in the cave. Peter later built himself a home from native timber, roofing it with bark.
Fascinated by this paragraph, I kayaked from Spencer downstream to Pumpkin Point in 2012, alighting briefly at Pumpkin Point itself, and also paddling up Pumpkin Point Creek. I did not see any evidence of a huge cave at the water's edge where a family could have lived. I did find an Aboriginal cave on the northern side of the creek with a sizeable shell midden, but this did not seem to be a suitable cave for a large family. Also, I did not see any prominent pumpkin shaped boulders in that area.
My understanding is that much of Swancott's information came from oral histories, so it is hard to know if everything he wrote is entirely accurate. Sometimes people's memories are imperfect, and sometimes the things people say are misheard or misunderstood.
A cave with a midden on the northern side of Pumpkin Point Creek.
However, Births, Deaths and Marriages records show that one of the Hibbs children, Richard was born at Pumpkin Point in 1808 (although it does not say he was born in a cave), so it would seem that at least part of the paragraph above is true.
The Hibbs family seems to have had a long association with Pumpkin Point. Peter Hibbs died there in 1847, aged 90, as did William Hibbs' wife Elizabeth, who died in 1876. Richard Hibbs (1808-1839) also seems to have lived much of his life here. In addition, Joseph (John) Izzard, who was married to Peter's step-daughter Ann, was granted one acre of "sufferance occupation" at Pumpkin Point in 1823.
The origins for the name "Pumpkin Point"
In my research, I've come across three possible origins of the name "Pumpkin Point":
- "The creek and headland derive their names from the fact that a point at the mouth of the creek is shaped like a huge pumpkin.", Charles Swancott, 1954.
- "Given the nature of the terrain it is highly unlikely that any pumpkins were grown on the point but they could have been cultivated in the rich valley further along the creek. It would therefore seem plausible that the creek was named first followed later by the naming of Pumpkin Creek Point.", John Powell, 1994.
- "I also heard that it got its name because during the floods all the produce from the market gardens further upstream washed down and got stuck on the point - apparently this produce was largely pumpkins. Makes sense if you look at the shape of the river there it is like an elbow shape.", Kerry Roozendaal, 2010.
Of these three origins, I feel that the last one is the most likely. When I was there I did not see any prominent pumpkin shaped rocks. I also doubt the area was ever suitable for growing pumpkins. The lower part is a mangrove swamp and the upper part is dry sandstone country.
On Trove, I found an article about a big flood on the Hawkesbury in 1898 which says:
...South-creek and other small water
courses backed up until the lowlands were
covered by a sheet of water, upon the surface of
which thousands of pumpkins, melons, and other
produce floated... At Richmond, the waters covered a
large portion of the lowlands, destroying many
hundreds of acres of maize, melons, pumpkins,
potatoes, and sorghum... The river rose to the great height of
39ft... Much debris floated down stream, and great quantities of pumpkins and melons.
So it seems likely that one of the big floods on the river could have sent a quantity of pumpkins down the river, and that some of these vegetables could have been lodged on the shore at Pumpkin Point. However, for the above flood, the dates are not right since the first mention of "Pumpkin Point Creek" that I could find on Trove was way back in 1834, in an advertisement for the sale of land here. If this origin of the name is correct then perhaps one of the earlier floods had a similar effect.
According to this web page, there were at least 7 major floods on the river recorded during the 1800's. In some of these the river rose by up to 15 metres (49 feet) !
An old Marramarra parish map. I have added text showing the locations of Pumpkin Point and Pumpkin Point Creek. The grant to Robert Hourston on the southern side of Pumpkin Creek may have been where members of the Hibbs family lived in the 1800's. Peter Hibbs grant of 60 acres, Courangra, can be seen at the top of this map. Also note the cross south of Pumpkin Point which marks the Izzard sufferance occupation grant.
Robert Hourston
Robert Hourston bought portion 6 in 1836 according to Trove:
93. Cumberland, 50, Fifty acres, parish of
Marramarra at Pumpkin Point; bounded on the
east by a line south 17 chains, commencing at the
swamp of Pumpkin Point Creek; on the south
by a line west 30 chains; on the west by a line
norib 24 chains; and on the north by the swamp
of Pumpkin Point Creek, reserving a road 50
links wide alpng the foot of the range. Applied
for by Robert Hourston. Price 5s. per acre
However, he seems not to have been able to enjoy his purchase for long because in October 1841 an inquest was held at Pumpkin Point Creek into the death of a man named "Hewson". One can only assume this was the same man, but quoted with a different surname spelling. Spellings were often much more flexible in the early days than they are now.
A Coroner's Inquest has been held during the
week, before David Duncombe, Esq, assisted
professionally by Mr Dowe, surgeon, of Windsor, at Pumpkin Point Creek, a few miles from
the mouth of the Hawkesbury, upon the body
of a person named Hewson. As far as we have
been enabled to glean particulars, the deceased
who was a carpenter, residing by himself in the
lonely spot above named was found dead, and
from the decomposed state of the body, the poor
man must have been many days a corpse.
It is unclear when ownership of portion 6 was transferred to the Hibbs family, but in his book "Bar Island and Lower Hawkesbury River Settlements", Tom Richmond says this:
... By the 1860's Hourston's land was occupied by William Hibbs, a son of Peter Hibbs. He was born in 1804 and lived his life along the banks of the Hawkesbury.
A photo of Pumpkin Point Creek taken in 2012. Robert Hourston's grant is still inhabited today, and a house is located on the left (southern) bank of the creek
The location of Peter Hibbs' cave
Without a more thorough ground search, it is not possible to know if the cave that Swancott describes actually exists. I could not see any such cave from the water. In any case, if it does exist, it seems likely that it is located on portion 6, which is private property, so is not accessible.
Portion 6 seems to have a creek flowing down from the mountain above which may have provided a source of fresh water for the early settlers, and the valley faces north which is a good aspect.
An aerial photo showing the location of the house at Portion 6 and the creek catchment to the south-east
Update: July 2017
I recently visited a cave which a former local told may have been Hibbs cave. It is located high up on the end of the spur directly south of Mud Island. The cave contained some shells but I could not see any other evidence of habitation. Photos of this cave are below.
References
- "The Brisbane Water Story, part two", Charles Swancott, 1954.
- "Bar Island and Lower Hawkesbury River Settlements", Tom Richmond, 2005.
- "Hawkesbury River History", Edited by Jocelyn Powell and Lorraine Banks, 1990.
- Peter Hibbs, Wikipedia
- Pumpkin Point, Hornsby Shire Council
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