Hillview, Sutton Forest

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Hillview, Sutton Forest

Hillview is a heritage-listed former governor’s residence on the Old Illawarra Highway, Sutton Forest, in New South Wales’ Southern Highlands. It sits on a large hilltop estate (about 149 acres) and was the official country residence of the Governor of New South Wales from 1882 to 1957. The house was previously known as Prospect and was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.

A brief history
- Early land: In the early 1800s, the land was granted to settlers as part of the colony’s growth. By the 1860s it was owned by Richard Richardson, who built a house named Prospect on the site.
- Hillview is built: Around 1872–75, Richardson added a substantial two-storey stone house with stables and outbuildings. He expanded the property and the grounds over the following years.
- Government ownership: The New South Wales Government bought the property in 1882 to serve as the governor’s country residence. From 1882 to 1957, Hillview was used by sixteen governors as a summer retreat.
- A grand expansion: In the 1880s–1890s the house and gardens were extensively remodeled and enlarged, creating a large, varied complex with many rooms and extensive grounds designed to suit its vice-regal role.
- After the governors: In 1957 the government sold Hillview. Edwin Klein bought it in 1958 and landscaped the gardens, added features, and used part of the property as his residence. He gifted Hillview back to the state in 1985 with a life tenancy for himself.
- Modern era: The garden and house were restored in the 1990s–2000s. In 2005 a long-term lease was granted to a private operator who opened Hillview as a boutique hotel in 2011. In 2023 the leasehold was offered for sale for the first time in about 24 years, and in 2024 The King’s Trust Australia acquired the lease.

What Hillview is like today
- The main complex includes a large, two-storey house with 38 habitable rooms (about 27 bedrooms) plus staff wings, a caretaker’s house, garages and stables. The property’s 3 acres of formal and informal gardens were laid out to provide views, shelter, and spaces for contemplation.
- The gardens feature a long elm- and pine-lined approach (originally pines, later replaced with elms), rose gardens, terraces, and a variety of plants from New Zealand and China, all arranged to harmonize with the hilltop setting and surrounding views.
- Hillview remains a landmark in the Southern Highlands, notable for its intact late 19th-century layout, its mix of building styles, and its well-preserved contents that reflect the governors’ lives from 1882 to 1957.

Heritage significance
Hillview is considered highly significant because it was the governors’ country residence for 75 years and remains the most intact Governor’s summer home in Australia. The site, buildings, gardens, and contents together illustrate how government, architecture, and landscape design evolved in New South Wales from the late 19th century through the mid-20th century. Its intact furnishings and garden designs provide rare insights into the leisure and daily life of NSW’s governors, beyond what is seen at Government House in Sydney.