Glen Innes, in the area first known as Beardy Plains, was not the first choice for the town.
It was originally intended that Wellingrove 24 kilometres to the northwest should be the first official administrative centre.
George Polhill, owner of Wellingrove Station had requested that the town be built on his isolated property.
A Court House was built, troopers were stationed there, and a store was opened by Mrs McMaster, etc.
However, common-sense prevailed – Wellingrove was just too far away from the main thoroughfare – a north south rough winding track, known as the Great North Road – the forerunner of our New England Highway.
In December 1849 when Surveyor Galloway was officially instructed to prepare a design for the town of Wellingrove, he argued that the centre:
“did not have any of the natural advantages of a town, being out of the way of traffic and located on an area too circumscribed to permit of development in any great extent….”
He insisted that the natural and logical position for a town was at Beardy Plains, and an excellent and in every way a convenient site, with good soil, abundant water and suitable land for building.
So, Wellingrove lost its claim to be the principal town and Glen Innes started to develop.
In 1838 the earliest white settlers seeking land to run cattle and sheep and grow crops were coming north from Sydney, sailing up the Hunter River to Morpeth near Maitland and from there travelling by bullock drays.
With all their worldly possessions on the dray, they had to bring enough food to last them until they could return to Morpeth to replenish their stocks,
The first stores in the district were those on private properties – supplying the employees with the essentials and some of their main commodities were flour, tea, sugar, salt, boots, candles, matches and tobacco.
In 1848 there was just one store here – owned by Mather and Gilchrist.
Glen Innes was gazetted in 1852, and named after Major Archibald Clunes Innes who was a former owner of Furracabad station, on which was situated Mather and Gilchrist’s slab hut store – and this store became the nucleus of commerce in the town.
That original store is commemorated with a plaque, on Bourke Street at the back of Coles supermarket.
