On arrival at Botany Bay, Captain Arthur Phillip had claimed all of the land for the British Crown. As the first Governor of New South Wales, he was able to grant parcels of land to free settlers, soldiers and former convicts. These land grants were usually small, and required the grantee to live on and work the land. This was beneficial because it enabled the grantee to sustain himself, his family and his convict workers and perhaps make some profit by selling his produce. It also meant that fewer people needed to be supported by the Government stores.
Governor Phillip’s 1787 instructions were to “proceed to the cultivation of the land” immediately, using convict labour resulted in the early establishment of government farms. The First Government Farm (1788) was located at Rose Hill, and the Second Government Farm (1791) at Toongabbie.
Due to the rapid increase of Irish convict numbers after the Irish Rebellion of 1798, most of the Irish transported between 1797 and 1801 were sent to the Second Government Farm. However, they were regarded as a disruptive element, threatening to desert at harvest time. Several planned Irish uprisings were foiled at Toongabbie.
The Third Government Farm was established in 1801 and the Irish convicts were moved to the new Third Government Farm established at Castle Hill. In 1840, the colony experienced its first uprising at farm known as the Castle Hill Rebellion.
In April 1811, Governor Macquarie instructed the farm be converted into an asylum to accommodate 30 persons, with a fenced garden at the rear of the granary for exercise of inmates.