Nineteen Counties

They were defined by the Governor of New South Wales Ralph Darling in 1826 in accordance with a government order from Lord Bathurst, the Secretary of State.

The area covered by the limit extended to Taree in the north, Moruya River in the south and Wellington to the West.

[1] Despite the uncertainty of land tenure, squatters ran large numbers of sheep and cattle beyond the boundaries.

In January 1819, John Bigge was appointed a special commissioner to examine the government of the colony of New South Wales.

In 1825, Secretary of State Lord Bathurst instructed Governor Brisbane to survey the territory to allow for more planned settlement.

Darling proclaimed the division of the settlement into nineteen counties[2] in the Sydney Gazette of 17 October 1829.

"The South Eastern Portion of Australia; compiled from the Colonial Surveys, and from details furnished by Exploratory Expeditions". Detailed map of New South Wales, issued in the London Atlas by John Arrowsmith . The "newly formed" counties are marked, as are the inland expeditions made 1817–1840.
1838 map by Surveyor-General, Thomas Mitchell of Victoria and New South Wales showing towns, major rivers and the limits of the Colony at the time. The map also shows the routes taken by Mitchell's expedition and camps.
Nineteen counties, New South Wales, Australia, 1832