Looking up from the streets of Cessnock the impressive Bridges Hill dominates the natural landscape.
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It has always been there, a quiet green sentinel over the city.
It would have been known to the Wonnarua people, but its original name is unknown.
The first European description of the hill appears in the Maitland Mercury & Hunter River General Advertiser in 1874.
'Cessnock stands in rather a romantic locality and occupies the central spot between the Wollombi township and West Maitland....Rising abruptly, stretching some distance and towering some two or three hundred feet above the level of the sea, stands an immense block of hill, covered with prickly scrub and enormous forest trees ....'
The hill was named by its one-time owner, shop keeper Arthur William Bridge. He built a house on top of the hill in 1906, with a commanding view over the growing township of Cessnock. The house was described as having a large garden and orchard adding to its idyllic location.
In 1921 the Catholic Church opened a convent at the top of the hill and in 1935 a Catholic girl's school next to it. It was fittingly named Mount Saint Joseph Catholic Girls School and it educated children until the end of 1967.
The convent's commanding presence overlooking the town was so dramatic that the hill itself gained the moniker 'Convent Hill', a term still used by many locals despite the convent having been demolished in 1974.
The Catholic Church still has a strong presence on the hill, including the impressive Catholic Hall, aka Lyceum Hall. This spectacular building has 22-foot high ceilings, with beams of Canadian Oregon wood. Nearby a large presbytery and St Joseph's Church cement the ongoing connection between the church and Bridges Hill.
There's more to the hill's story though. It had two small coal mines, a water reservoir mired in controversy and was at one stage a rubbish dump known for its toxic burning off practices, sending plumes of acrid smoke over the town.
And what ever happened to Arthur Bridge? He made a fortune, moved to Sydney and led a luxurious life in the Eastern Suburbs before being caught up in a scandalous divorce. Bridges Hill - this beautiful green space has a fascinating history.
Would you like to know more about Bridges Hill and its intriguing hidden stories?
Join us on a free local history walk on Friday, June 17.
To book call Cessnock Library phone: 4993 4399, or book yourself into the walk via Eventbrite on the Library website: https://www.cessnock.nsw.gov.au/libraries/Home.
