Stories of Thompson Square & Windsor Bridge

An unfortunate workplace tragedy took place in Windsor 144 years ago. The incident occurred when a young boy who was working on the Windsor Bridge inadvertently fell into the river and drowned in 1874. Humphrey Albert Douglass, who was almost ten years old, was employed working on the bridge being built over the Hawkesbury River at Windsor. The boy was “walking along the foot board of one of the large punts, when he fell into the water” on 21 January 1874. Before he could be pulled from the water he unfortunately drowned. Humphrey was the son of James and Mary Douglass. An inquest was held the following day at the Sir John Young Hotel in Windsor. James Douglas gave the following evidence, which was reported in the newspaper Australian, Windsor, Richmond, & Hawkesbury Advertiser 24 January 1874 : James Douglas stated that he was a carpenter, and the father of the deceased, he saw him last alive on Wednesday morning at 7 o'clock; he was engaged on the Windsor Bridge wo

The township of Windsor is recorded as one of our country's foremost heritage spaces with Thompson Square, located on a ridge between the Hawkesbury River and South Creek, contributing to the town’s unique character. The distinctive blending of both the open space with its historic surroundings have made it one of the Hawkesbury’s prized assets.  It is well-known that European settlement was established at the Hawkesbury by 1794 when Lt. Governor Francis Grose selected a group of settlers to take up 30 acre grants to farm along the confluence of the Hawkesbury River and South Creek. The experiment succeeded with more grants distributed and by 1795 over 500 people recorded in residence. The small settlement, which became known as The Green Hills, took on an air of permanence with the construction of the wharf and several public buildings. Constructed in an area above the river and forming a town square, they included a storehouse, granary for grain storage and barracks used to