In 1973, a small group of locals met in Paterson's School of Arts building to look into the possibility of forming a group to preserve the local region's history. None had been involved in such a group before. They had no real guidelines to work on, except to collect photographs of Paterson as it was in the early days, old stories, papers and any other memorabilia from Paterson’s past. Meetings were held in the School of Arts, and material was stored in the Secretary’s home.
The young society was very lucky that the Dungog Shire Council at this time offered the Court House to any group in Paterson willing to use it and take care of the building. The Court House was built in the 1860s and run for its original judicial purpose until 1967, but was no longer needed and was empty. The Court House provided a place to display the mounting number of items which were being donated, and a location for historical interest in the area.
The first name chosen for the organisation was the “Paterson Preservation Society”, but this was changed to the “Paterson Historical Society” when it became apparent that the first name led people to believe that there was a pool of free labour and money available to preserve their old homes!
On Saturday 4 November 1974, the local Parliamentary representative – Mr Milton Morris – and his wife arrived by vintage car to officially open the museum. They were greeted by gentlemen in formal attire from days gone by – complete with top hats and beards – and ladies in bustles and crinoline gowns (courtesy of Maitland Reportary Society). Two bottle-brush trees at the front of the building were planted by Mr Morris and Mr John Hawley, the then President of the Dungog Shire Council.
The ambition of the Society has always been a simple one: to col
lect Paterson’s written, oral and photographic history and present it to others; and to help people in their search for information about their forebears from the district. Over the years the Society has received several government grants for maintenance on the Court House building, and after lots of hard work by members and professionals, the building itself is now a landmark in its own right as well.
Visitors and new members are always welcome. Meetings are held in the Court House Museum at 7.30pm on the first Thursday of each month (except December and January).
The museum is located in the former Court House (c1860s) in the village of Paterson, Hunter Valley, New South Wales. The building was run as a court house until 1967. It is now operated by the Paterson Historical Society and holds extensive collections including special displays on Dorothy MacKellar, Rev Rupp (orchids) and the Tocal murder of 1874.
