Newstead Shearing Shed

Project Overview

A Conservation Management Plan for one of NSW's earliest shearing sheds, immortalised by Australian Impressionist Tom Roberts and guiding the long-term preservation of a place central to Australia's pastoral and cultural identity.

Conservation Management Plan

Service Category:

Newstead, NSW

Location:

2023

Year of Completion:

Inverell Shire Council

Client:

Forming part of the greater Newstead Station Group, the Newstead North Shearing Shed dates to 1857 and represents the earliest phase of pastoralism in the Inverell area of the NSW Northern Tablelands. Newstead Station was the first squatting run in the district, and the shearing shed demonstrates early bush construction techniques alongside later adaptations reflecting changes in shearing technology and station operations. The shed is strongly associated with Australian Impressionist painter Tom Roberts as the subject of The Golden Fleece and Shearing Shed, Newstead, iconic works that captured the significance of wool production in Australia’s economic and cultural history. Heritas was engaged to prepare a Conservation Management Plan for the shearing shed, including consideration of future public access. The work involved historical research and analysis of fabric change to identify elements of significance and guide conservation recommendations. The resulting plan enables the owners to prioritise conservation works and funding, supporting the long‑term preservation of this highly evocative pastoral place.

An aerial view of an old, rusty barn with a metal roof, surrounded by fenced grassland, with a dirt road and a few parked cars nearby. There are trees and small structures around the barn.

A rural landscape with leafless trees, a grassy field, and a metallic building. A person stands on the right side of the field, holding an object, with a blue sky and clouds overhead.

An old, dilapidated metal shed with rusted roofing in a rural landscape. Surrounding it are open fields, a few trees, and a distant black horse grazing in the field under a partly cloudy sky.

An aerial view of an abandoned, dilapidated barn with rusted corrugated metal roof situated in a rural landscape with sparse trees and open fields.

A vast rural landscape with rolling hills, sparse trees, a small pond, and an old barn with a rusty roof, under a clear blue sky with scattered clouds.

A rural landscape featuring open fields, scattered trees, a small pond, and an abandoned barn with rusted, weathered metal roofing under a partly cloudy blue sky.