Digging up Sydney Cove

In Chapter 1 you learned about convict life in the penal settlement at Sydney Cove. You explored where convicts lived, worked ... and caused trouble. 

Now let’s look at a different part of town – where the governor lived.

Government House

There was one home in the Sydney Cove penal settlement that was a lot fancier than the convict ones. It was high up too so everyone could see it. 

The building was Government House. It was where the governor of the colony lived with his family and servants.

Activity: Artworks as historical sources

This is what Government House looked like in 1800. Can you spot it in the artwork below?

Click on the image to make it bigger and look carefully.

What happened at Government House?

Government House was an important place. It was where the governors made decisions about the colony. These decisions affected everyone in NSW – convicts, free settlers and Aboriginal people. It was also a place where special events were held for important people.

What happened to the house?

The building started as a small house in 1788. Over time, different governors made it bigger. By 1845 the house was old and falling down. It was knocked down and the bricks were sold. The governor went to live in a new Government House that was even fancier than the old one. Governors of NSW still live in this house today!

Lost, but not forgotten

Over time, the city of Sydney grew up and over the site where the house had been. But people remembered that it had been there. In the 1980s archaeologists wanted to see if they could find any remains of the old house. They dug up the site and found around 140,000 artefacts – including the foundations of the house!

What is an artefact?

An artefact is something that has been made (or changed) by humans in the past – for example, a tool, a plate, a weapon or even a building.

Time to get digging!

Now it’s time for you to become an archaeologist and get digging. See what you can unearth.

Then go to Chapter 3 to learn more about what you’ve found and the stories these objects can tell you.

This game is best experienced on a large desktop display. Alternatively, you can launch the game in a new window.

Dig it! was developed by Museums of History NSW in collaboration with Junior Major.