The Crescent

Phillip named this place "the Crescent" because of the alluvial flats contained in a bend in the river. He named the hill above it Rose Hill in honour of George Rose, a Secretary of the English Treasury. At one end of the Crescent stands Old Government House and at the other end, the Governor's Dairy.

The Crescent's natural ridgeline once framed a billabong and it was the location for fruit, vegetable and horticultural specimen experimentation for the growth of imported plant species under Australian conditions. These plants were a valuable source distributed to the early colonists to assist their agricultural efforts.

Before European cultivation however, the Crescent was home to the local clan of the Dharug, the Burramattagal who had occupied the area for thousands of years. There is evidence of their occupation in the area in the form of scarred trees and artefact scatters.