Mount Irvine is a small village and a
mountain located in the
Blue Mountains region in the state of
New South Wales,
Australia. The village is situated in the
City of Blue Mountains
The City of Blue Mountains is a local government area of New South Wales, Australia, governed by the Blue Mountains City Council. The city is located in the Blue Mountains range west of Sydney.
The Mayor of Blue Mountains City Council is coun ...
. As of the 2016 Census, Mount Irvine has a population of 28.
At an elevation of
above sea level
Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''.
The comb ...
, the mountain is approximately west northwest from
Sydney CBD
The Sydney central business district (CBD) is the historical and main commercial centre of Sydney. The CBD is Sydney's city centre, or Sydney City, and the two terms are used interchangeably. Colloquially, the CBD or city centre is often refer ...
and more than two hours by car. The area has a wet
micro climate
A microclimate (or micro-climate) is a local set of atmospheric conditions that differ from those in the surrounding areas, often with a slight difference but sometimes with a substantial one. The term may refer to areas as small as a few squa ...
and rich
basalt
Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90% of a ...
soils, weathered from ancient volcanics. Rainfall is in excess of a year and vegetation is predominantly
temperate rain forest. The area is typified by some spectacular temperate gardens, similar to those in the neighbouring area of
Mount Wilson.
There are only twenty or so properties with a small amount of commercial activity; mainly
walnut
A walnut is the edible seed of a drupe of any tree of the genus '' Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, '' Juglans regia''.
Although culinarily considered a "nut" and used as such, it is not a true ...
and
chestnut groves. There is no large-scale commercial farming, and
organic
Organic may refer to:
* Organic, of or relating to an organism, a living entity
* Organic, of or relating to an anatomical organ
Chemistry
* Organic matter, matter that has come from a once-living organism, is capable of decay or is the product ...
methods are widely used.
History
Mt Irvine Road was first surveyed in 1897 by government surveyor
Charles Scrivener
Charles Robert Scrivener (2 November 1855 – 26 September 1923) was an Australian surveyor, and the person who surveyed numerous sites in New South Wales for the selection of a site for the Australian Capital Territory and Australia's capital ...
. Later the same year he returned with his son, Charles Passevile Scrivener, who brought two of his fellow graduates from
Hawkesbury Agricultural College
Hawkesbury Agricultural College was the first agricultural college in New South Wales, Australia, based in Richmond. It operated from 1891 to 1989.
It was established on 10 March 1891, and formally opened by Minister for Mines and Agricultur ...
. The elder Scrivener proposed to designate the area as a national reserve. When this failed and 400 hectares of land was released for sale, Scrivener's son and his two friends bought up the first three grants. Scrivener himself settled in Mt. Irvine upon his retirement in 1915. Their families remain in Mt. Irvine to this day.
See also
*
List of mountains in New South Wales
References
Towns in New South Wales
Suburbs of the City of Blue Mountains
I
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