Booloominbah

Booloominbah was designed by architect John Horbury Hunt for the pastoralist Frederick Robert White and constructed on the outskirts of Armidale in the 1880s. White intended the grand home to serve as a headquarters for his extensive properties and as a family residence in what was considered the healthier New England climate. After its completion, the White family moved into the house in 1888, and it remained their family home for decades, with Frederick's wife, Sarah, living there until her death in 1933.

Following Sarah White's death and during the Great Depression, the property's future was uncertain. The campaign for a university in Armidale, championed by local member D.H. Drummond, gained a pivotal asset when T.R. Forster, White's son-in-law, offered to purchase Booloominbah and donate it to the University of Sydney. This generous offer was conditional on the local community raising £10,000 to secure government support. After a dramatic, last-minute fundraising effort, the target was met in June 1937, paving the way for the establishment of the New England University College, which officially opened its doors within Booloominbah in 1938.