Former long-time Leura resident Mary Moody is selling her Glenray Park farm and historic homestead at Yetholme and moving back to the Blue Mountains at Blackheath.
After 15 years in the Bathurst region, Ms Moody made the difficult decision following the death last year of her filmmaker husband David Hannay.
Yetholme is a quiet and beautiful hamlet, nestled in the western foothills of the Mountains, 20 minutes from Bathurst. Originally called Frying Pan Hill, Yetholme became the halfway stopover between Lithgow and Bathurst when the road from Sydney was put through in 1836. In those days it was believed the village would prosper, with a new school and plans for shops and other facilities. However this didn't eventuate and Yetholme remained a sleepy hamlet. In autumn the roadside trees turn brilliant shades of red and orange and there are dramatic views of the western plains from the now defunct trig station up the escarpment.
The homestead of Glenray Park was built by Mabel Walshaw and her family some time between 1908-1912 and was originally called Ickleton after the small English village their ancestors had left behind. Ms Moody and her late husband were immediately attracted to the house, which is spacious yet has cosy rooms with open fireplaces, wide verandahs edged with marble and ornate plaster ceilings that remain in fantastic condition.
"From my first visit I could picture myself cooking on the fuel stove and I loved the old-fashioned features including a massive walk-in pantry and small servery through which the housekeeper would have handed platters of food to the family seated in the formal dining room," she said.
The original housekeepers quarters have been converted into a comfortable family room with a slow combustion wood stove and charming window seat.
The property has a hidden treasure in the form of a community dance hall that was built in 1923. Mabel Walshaw was a very public spirited woman and, perceiving the lack of a gathering place for the farming community, she erected a hall with a stage, open fireplace and those quaint timber shelves above head height where, no doubt, beers were left while neighbours stepped the barn dance.
The final open day for viewing of Glenray Park is this Saturday, April 18 between 1-2pm. The auction will be held on Friday, April 24 at 10.30am, Level 17, 135 King Street, Sydney. Contact Patrick Bird 0438 361 109 or Sam D'Arcy 0401 612 996.
