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Several names are closely associated with the early settlement of Cottage Point. Cowan Creek Terrey. Anderson, Dixon, Overall. Windy bank, McCreadie and Notting.
Henry Eustace Notting was one of the first Europeans to set foot on the land subsequently given the name of Cottage Point. Before the place was named, and before there were any permanent habitations Henry and several of his friends spent their weekends and holidays camping and fishing there. Then in 1878 they built a log cabin for themselves on a spot which overlooked the waterways each side of the Point. There was a rumour current at the time that a certain Mr. Terrey was operating an illegal still,hidden somewhere in the bushland near there, and was making "bootleg" alcohol. This was probably just that - a rumour. In 1885 Mr. Joshua Terrey obtained a Government Land Grant of 140 acres, which included the site where Henry and his friends had erected their log cabin. Henry had liked the site so much that he had desired to purchase the land on which die cabin had been built, Since he was now unable to purchase this land he hastened to acquire the land next to it on the south side. This was in the early 1900s. On his own land he pitched a tent and spent his holidays there, generally accompanied by his wife Martha and two young daughters. As the family increased a more lasting shelter was required. When permanent buildings were allowed on the Point (which was originally part of the Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park), Henry and Martha built the first house there. The year was 1906. The house was named, appropriately, "Riverview". The Notting family now with two daughters and live young sons, spent much of their holiday time in this house.
 The next house to be built was that of Mr. George McCreadie of Guildford who built a house on the spot where the original log cabin had been. (In the early 1970s the McCreadie family sold the house to the Ku-ring-gai Motor Yacht Club and, with a few additions and alterations, it is now their clubhouse.) The third building on the Point, built higher up the slope than the Notting property, was owned by Sir Hugh Dixon; it was a handsome sandstone house and was named "Sunrise". In later years this became the home of the Windybank family, who lived there for many years. The Windy banks had many interests in the area, including the ferry "Lady Alicia" which ran regularly to Bobbin Head. Their name is still prominent in the district. When the Windybanks left "Sunrise" it was converted to holiday flats and a few years later was purchased by the National Parks and Wildlife organisation. The Andersons built a house, and later a large store, at the water line on the Bobbin Head side of the Point: this house is now the Cottage Point Inn and is right opposite Looking Glass Rock, well known in the area. The Overalls had a houseboat, for many years moored in the bay opposite the Notting property. In 1911 Mr. A.E. Bradley ("Old Brad") built two more cottages for Henry Notting, They were named "Creekmoor" and "Ensbury", Creekmoor was called after the Kemp home in Dorset where Henry's mother Caroline had lived as a child, and Ensbury was a nearby Dorset village. These cottages were built above the extensive boatshed near the pontoon where supplies and visitors for the Point were discharged from the ships and ferries which came from Brooklyn. ("Ensbury" now houses the "Cottage Point Kiosk" where cafe-type meals can be obtained, also souvenirs and the like.) In 1917 Mr. Bradley built a big house for Henry beside "Riverview". It had five bedrooms and a very large dining room. There were three wide verandahs and a kitchen with a massive fuel stove. This house was occupied by Henry and Martha and their unmarried sons, and also their frequent visitors. Mr. Bradley was highly regarded by the Nottings and he became a firm friend. One of Henry's grandsons bears his name. A stone wall with a movable "gate" was built on the shore line to enclose an area of safe water for a swimming pool. At low tide blue-bottle crabs appeared in the sandy mud on the exposed floor of the pool. At high tide the water reached or hid the top of the wall. A boatshed was built over one side of the pool and later was converted into a simple residence. Here lived for years Mr. A.E. Smith, a celebrated violin maker at that time. On hot summer days it was delightful to swim from the sun-warmed water of the open baths to the cool green shaded water under "Smithy's" quarters.
 An extension to "Riverview" was built, almost a mirror image of it, and this was named "Kiandra". As time went by a further house was built between the Big House and "Somerset". It was called "Carinya", which means "a happy home", and was first occupied by Jack and Anne and their young family. It later became home to Henry and Martha when their family decreased. Jack and Anne then moved into the Big House with their six children. Later still there were further buildings - erected in front of "Riverview" and "Kiandra", these were for holiday lettings. They were called "The Barracks", old "Touchie" probably lived in one of them for a time. All the building materials to construct these houses were shipped from Sydney through Broken Bay on the SS "Kallawatta" which was owned by the Hawkesbury River Steamship Company. At the time there was no other method of bringing in such heavy supplies to the Point. That part of Cowan Creek was much deeper in those days and large vessels could use it. Other large ships called occasionally at the Point to deliver heavy goods, eg. the "Hunter" and the "Gwydir". The cow which the Nottings owned at one time arrived by ship! As the years went by numbers of other people obtained land and built residences; many of them were of the shanty type, and most were occupied only at weekends and holidays. By reason of all this building the place acquired the name of Cottage Point. The first business to be established there was in 1914 when Stanley Notting, Henry's second son started a poultry farm. The Andersons opened a large general store in front of their house. The Nottings had a smaller store to service their own people. In 1919 the ferry service from Brooklyn to Cottage Point was started. A diesel powered generator was purchased to provide electricity and the "engine room" was built under "Ensbury" near the swimming pool. At its heyday during the nineteen twenties and thirties, the Notting family business consisted of holiday cottages, a general store, hire boats, a ferry service, slipway and boatshed, pontoons and rampways, a petrol bowser and the swimming baths. Henry Notting set up the first post office at Cottage Point; later this was taken over by the Windy banks and Anderson families. Henry also worked tirelessly with Sir Granville Ryrie to have the telephone connected to Cottage Point, and this came about in 1930. At first its hours were limited but it was a great advance in communication. Henry's number was Cottage Point 1.
 Access in the early years was by boat. Until the ferry service started in 1919 there was no other way to get there unless one was prepared to walk. There was a walking track which went from Cowan Railway Station along the mountain spurs to the Looking Glass Spur and ended at Looking Glass Bay near the Looking Glass Rock. It was then necessary to have someone row across from the Point to pick up the hikers from the end of the track. Several young swains used to do this at weekends in order to visit their lady-loves. Herb Yabsley did it on several occasions in order to visit Vera Notting. Usually a small group would come, and would signal their arrival from behind the rock, whereupon someone would go and get them. The return on Sunday afternoons was made in the same manner.
 Berry Yabsley and Kath Dale in a rowing boat at Looking Glass Rock. c. 1935 LOOKING GLASS ROCK Situated in Cowan Creek opposite Cottage Point. Best viewed in the early morning when the using sun glows on its eastern face. Legend has it that the Aborigines believed that when the water reached the top of the rock they should get rid of the white people. A more direct route by foot would have been from Terrey Hills direct to the Point, passing across the Saddle, a narrow neck of land with Smith's Creek on one side and Cowan Creek on the other, but this route had not yet been surveyed or traversed (unless by the Original Inhabitants). The ferry was still the only regular method of transport until 1926 when Henry Notting first wrote requesting that a road be built to Cottage Point. This was the beginning of years of correspondence between the Department of Roads and the Warringah Shire Council (as it was then). But Henry was not the first to think of the idea of a direct road to the Point. Years before, an unknown but enterprising young man had used a horse and dray to push through the virgin scrub to clear a rough track from West Head Road to Cottage Point a distance of about four kilometres. An attempt to start building a road there was made by covering the track with large pieces of rock, but the project did not continue. At this stage however it was possible to reach the Point by foot by following this track. The country was rugged but the scenery was stunning. In 1934 the route for a road from Terrey Hills to Cottage Point was surveyed but not until 1940 was permission given to clear the scrub by bulldozer to make a rough track. Kath Dale and Berry Yabsley once walked by one of these tracks down to the Point during this period. Later the surveyed road was constructed, roughly at first, but it was then possible to get to the place by vehicle - a very bumpy bone-shaking journey. (Many times the Nottings made the trip in their faithful old Hudson, a make of car not seen now.) Later still a good road was made giving ready vehicular access to the area. By the time the Second World War had broken out, Henry and Martha had retired and Jack and Anne were running the business at Cottage Point, with the help of their children. Because of its geographical position Cottage Point was regarded as a possible landing site for the enemy. It was known that the Germans had soundings of Cowan Creek and Coal and Candle Creek and a Japanese submarine had been seen near Green Point. (Coal and Candle Creek's English name came from Aboriginal attempts to pronounce the name of Colin Campbell, an early settler who fished in the creek.) General Blarney, in an attempt to circumvent any danger of enemy landing, ordered that all boats, houseboats and pontoons be removed from the area. Each family was allowed to keep one boat only, and had strict instructions not to venture more than sixty feet from the shoreline. Most of these craft were never returned. There were several severe floods of the Hawkesbury River during the war years, and the boats etc. were swept from their haven out to sea and lost. Those that were returned were so badly damaged that they were useless, being no longer sea-worthy. The army set up a camp on the hill overlooking the houses on Cottage Point. The track leading to the Point was mined in two places with tons of gelignite, ready to be blown up should the enemy arrive. Jack and Anne were told that it was safe to use the track in the meantime. They did use it but found it was rather nerve-wracking in the circumstances. Eventually the army ordered Jack (and others) to vacate the Point for the safety of their families. Jack even received a notice from Warringah Shire Council asking him to forward his new address so that they could send him the rate notice for the Point!
 Jack and Anne protested that they had nowhere to relocate to. They said that they desired the army to find them accommodation and to recompense them for the expense. The correspondence and meetings continued and in the end they remained where they were. The army personnel were very good to them and sent frequent supplies of potatoes and onions, and in return received the odd catch of fish! In the early 1970s Jack sold the Cottage Point property to the Yacht Club and he and Anne and youngest daughter Heather went to live in Blackheath, far from boats and water views.
Settlement at the Point has changed greatly since that time. The residences on the south side of the Notting property have become more and more grotty, neglected and overgrown with weeds. The Bobbin side, on the other hand, has "gone ahead". Houses are three deep on the slopes of the hillside and vie with one another in style and grandeur. The Cottage Point Inn, from being the normal, good quality restaurant it used to be is now suitable only for purses comparable with the Packers' and Murdochs'. Aircraft even bring patrons on occasion. "Sunrise" is still there. The McCreadies' property is now crowded with visitors and has a full carpark. Boats are visible stored on the actual headland of the Point, Yachts are moored all around.
Information from June Kerr (nee Notting),
 An early picture of Cottage Point, showing "Riverview", "Sunrise" and the McCreadie residence
"Camping out at Cowan" "Wonderland" at Cowan "Cowan" Original captions by Vera Notting  Jack (or John) Lawrence Notting was the youngest of Henry and Martha Notting's seven children. He was born on the first of April, 1902 in Prospect Road, Summer Hill.
At the age of 18 months he was stricken with poliomyelitis (infantile paralysis as it was called at the time). A number of children in Summer Hill and Ashfield were stricken at the same time. His mother, Martha, used to tell about the children in nearby streets who became ill, and how the houses where they lived were all in a straight line across the area, as though some evil spirit had flown directly over the place. Many of the children affected succumbed to the illness. Jack was one of the few who survived. Little was known about the treatment and management of the illness at that time and there were no vaccines as there are now. The illness left Jack Notting with severely deformed feet and legs. However, he learnt to ignore his disability and did not let it rule his life. It slowed his movements somewhat but did not stop him pursuing any activity he wanted to engage in. He grew up in Summer Hill and spent much time in activities at Cottage Point, as did his brothers and sisters. In spite of his disability, when he grew up he pursued a career as a dental mechanic. He married Anne Purves on the fourth of March 1930. After their marriage they took up residence at Cottage Point and raised a family of six, three sons and three daughters. They stayed for several years at Cottage Point, working there, running the ferry to Brooklyn, organising the hire boats, supervising the diesel engine and assisting with the store. The older children began school lessons by correspondence which their mother supervised. (When Brian, the oldest, was 10 years old the family moved to Terrey Hills so that the children could attend the local school. In 1940, their first year there, Brian came top of his class. Anne aged 8 came top of her class, and June aged 6 was second in hers, so they had been well taught during their correspondence days.) Henry and Martha remained at Cottage Point to run the business and Jack obtained a job in Hornsby working at his chosen profession. This involved a lot of tiring and time-consuming travel by bus and train to and from Hornsby. After several years he was forced to give up this work and leave the job in Hornsby because of several falls sustained while travelling. He then found work on a poultry farm at St. Ives. This was closer to home and he enjoyed the work. Later he left this job to return to Cottage Point where he again helped in running the place and where eventually he and Anne took over after Henry and Martha retired. They moved often between Terrey Hills and Cottage Point: these moves were dictated by various circumstances, but chiefly by water shortages. If the tanks were empty at Cottage Point they would come up to Terrey Hills; when the tanks were empty at Terrey Hills they returned to Cottage Point. In those days fish were plentiful in the waters around the Point. Sharks too were very-plentiful. All the children at Cottage Point learnt to fish, with line and sinker, from the pontoon and from a row bo at. When they were old enough they learnt how to steer a boat, how to put the oars in the rowlocks and how to row. They went frequently on short fishing trips to practise their skills. All were taught to beware of sharks and not to dabble their hands in the water as the boat sped along, Martha used to tell her grandchildren a story about some young children in a boat rowed by an adult. One of the children had brought with her a small celluloid doll with which she was playing. This doll was accidentally dropped over the side of the boat and soon was carried some little distance away by the current. While the children watched in horror, a shark suddenly surfaced, snapped its jaws over the doll and immediately disappeared, doll and all! This story, frequently repeated, was enough to keep most children's hands out of the "shark's water". No doubt Jack and Anne's children heard the story, and remembered the lesson. Cottage Point In those days was the place for an idyllic childhood. All Jack and Anne's children grew up there, it was an isolated place away from the bustle and traffic of a city, but there were plenty of things happening, plenty of things to do, plenty of people to talk to, especially at weekends and holidays. It was a busy life, with much work to be done, but the pace was relaxed and the schedule was flexible. There was no school at Cottage Point. The children learnt by correspondence (now called "distance education"). The lesson papers came regularly in the mail brought from Brooklyn and the children were expected to complete them on time. They were often allowed breaks in the regular routine, for swimming or picnics or unexpected events. But whenever this happened the children knew they had to make up the time by doing their schoolwork in the later afternoon or at weekends. That their education did not suffer is shown by their success in the local school when the family came to live at Terrey Hills. It was ironic that infantile paralysis should again visit this family. Three of the children, Anne, June and Bruce all contracted polio at the same time and all were hospitalised. Then followed a very stressful time, with daily visits to the young patients. For Anne Notting, their mother, it was a time of much worry. Auntie Eda helped with "hospital visiting", Grandma Notting held the fort, Jack kept on working to maintain the family income. Even when the children came home from hospital the stress continued for some months. Each of the children had to be exercised, using special exercises, for an hour daily. Anne had to spend three hours on this programme. But all the children recovered well, with minimum damage and no disability such as their father had suffered.
Jack and Anne both loved to go fishing and as a special treat for their family they would pack all the necessary items into the Ceduna and head out into one of the sheltered bays. Here they would spend the night camped out in the boat. The children would sleep on the seats, which were quite comfortable. Fish were plentiful, and so they always came home with a nice catch. All the family were amazed when one day a whale came swimming into the bay in front of the pontoons. It stayed in the area for several days and came in close to the boats. When June was in her teens, she and her mother used to work at the Illawong refreshment rooms at weekends. Illawong Bay was near the head of Coal and Candle Creek, As well as the refreshment rooms there were hire boats, a swimming pool, a shop, toilets and other buildings. There were usually numerous visitors to partake of the light refreshments. Illawong boatshed was only a short distance from Cottage Point by boat and so was a convenient place to work. Later on, Illawong's role was changed. All the buildings (except the toilet block) were removed - the boats, ramp, shops, kiosk, marina and the rest were transferred to nearby Akuna Bay, and the area was once more a quiet bushland retreat, suitable only for family picnics and children's play - not the slightest trace of its former buildings now remains. As the children grew older the family spent gradually more and more time at Terrey Hills. After Henry died and Martha grew old and tired, Jack and Anne looked after her at Terrey Hills for many months until her death in November 19^7* One by one the children married and left to set up their own homes. Only Heather still lived with her parents. In 1970 Jack sold the property at Cottage Point to the Yacht Club, and left both Terrey Hills and Cottage Point and moved to a completely different environment at Blackheath, in the Blue Mountains. He spent the last years of his life there with his wife Anne and the youngest daughter Heather, pottering about in his garden, painting the odd scene, and reading widely. He died in Katoomba Hospital on the twenty ninth of March 1988 after a short illness. Heather and her mother still live at Blackheath, Jack had a quiet unruffled personality, a mischievous sense of humour and a tenacious spirit. He was capable and practical in all that he undertook and he enjoyed his home and family, He looked forward each year to the annual "get together", which was a 25-year-old custom in his family. More than that of any other of Henry and Martha's children, Jack's name is connected with Cottage Point; his life was more closely involved with its activities, and his effort with its success.
His story is closely tied to the story of Cottage Point, and when he left there, the story of Cottage Point ended - at least as far as we are concerned.
One special memory of Jack remains. He is in the Ceduna on the hour-long journey from the Point to Brooklyn which he has done so many times. He is in the cabin with the mandatory framed certificates on the wall, and the big steering wheel with its peg-like projections in front of him. He is sitting, leaning back comfortably in his seat, occasionally chatting to a passenger, and seems to be idly watching the scenery, but all the while he is expertly steering the vessel and turning the big wheel with his bare feet.
All of Jack and Anne's children have married and are now widely scattered, some of them a long way from their early surroundings at Cottage Point and Terrey Hills.
H.E. NOTTING Henry Notting's parents were Joseph Notting and Caroline Jane Notting (nee Kemp). They were both bom in Poole, Dorset England in 1823. Both the Nottings and the Kemps were prominent Poole merchant families, engaged hi the profitable trade with the ports of Newfoundland. When she was five years old Caroline and her parents, Henry Kemp and Jane Crew, went to live in a grand house in Upton Road, Poole which had been left to them by Caroline's Grandfather Crew. This house was called "Creekmoor", named after a nearby village (originally Crickmoor). She lived there until her marriage to Joseph in 1850, after which they went to live in the little village of Ensbury about seven miles from Poole, where by the riverside Joseph carried on his tanning trade. (He was a leather worker and made goods such as shoes and belts for export.) Here their first two children Fred and Ellen (Nellie) were bom. When Fred was two years old and Nellie about three months, Joseph decided to emigrate to the Colony of New South Wales. They sailed from London by the ship Doctrina et Amicita (Learning and Friendship) in 1853 and landed in Sydney in March 1854. They lived in Sydney, Wollongong, Lane Cove and other suburbs before finally settling in Redfern, then a leafy suburb some distance from the main settlement. At Wollongong their first Australian baby was born (Hannah) who lived only seven weeks. In Redfern three more children were born; Henry, Jennie and William.
Henry was named Henry Eustace, "Henry" after his grandfather Henry Kemp and "Eustace" after the Rev. Eustace Cinders, who had officiated at their wedding. The children grew up hi Redfern and it was probably in Redfern that Henry met his future wife Martha Irish. The Irishes came from Somerset, the English county just north of Dorset. Charles Irish was born in 1817 at Chard, and in 1844 he married Martha Derriman at South Petherton. Martha was born in 1822 and after her marriage was reported to be in delicate health. It was recommended that she would prosper in a sunnier climate. Accordingly they emigrated to Australia in 1849 by the ship Harbinger with possibly two young children. Altogether they had thirteen children, although only eight of them lived to reach adulthood. The climate of Sydney certain suited Martha; she and her husband lived to celebrate 60 years of marriage. (Martha died in 1904 and Charles in 1905.) They settled in Redfern, where Joseph ran a wood and coal business, and their children grew up there. Their ninth child was named Martha Ann, ("Martha" after her mother). Martha Ann Irish was born on llth November 1856 and Henry Notting on 13th November 1856 (two days apart!) They were married on 8th January 1879 in the Burton Street Baptist Church at Redfern. Like Martha's parents, they too lived to celebrate their diamond wedding anniversary (60 years of marriage). Henry and Martha set up home in 63 Prospect Road, Summer Hill at a time when it was possible to look across the fields to see the trees of Redfem in the distance. Here their seven children were bom and grew up - Edith Isabel, known as Eda (b. 1879), Vera Winifred (b. 1882), Henry Gordon Kemp, known as Harry (b. 1885), Stanley Eustace (b. 1893), Roy Nelson (b. 1895), Russell Gladstone (b. 1899) and Jack Lawrence (b. 1902). Henry joined the civil service and worked in the auditing department, finally becoming Inspector of Public Accounts. He travelled all over N.S.W., auditing the accounts of railways, tramways, fire stations, post offices, hospitals, police stations and so on, and was frequently away from home. But it was a good job and he became increasingly well-off. His two brothers, Fred and William, also did well and contributed to the history of the Colony. Fred married and lived in Manly where he became a well-known figure. His son, also Fred, was the designer of Manly's first three surfboats (before his designs became general, whale boats were used for rescues, although not really suitable for work in the surf). He was an artist of some note, surfed with the famous Duke Kuhanamoku when the Duke visited Australia; he was a competent footballer, captaining Manly's Rugby Union team and later playing Rugby League for North Sydney 1908-09, and according to his family invented the slogan "Seven miles from Sydney, a thousand miles from care." Manly's present League captain (2004), Steve Menzies, is a descendant. Willie, the younger brother, was born with a slightly deformed hand and foot, but this handicap was not allowed to interfere with his activities. He became an accountant, and worked in an Estate and Property business. He was fond of sailing and frequently took part in Harbour races. He was Commodore of three Sailing Clubs. He owned a yacht named Iolanthe which he sailed for four years before selling it. In 1892 there was a tragedy known as the "lolanthe Affair". A party of 25 set out for a pleasant sail on the Harbour, a storm blew up, and the skipper tried to land on part of the foreshores near the present Watson's Bay but was prevented from doing so by the owners of the properties in the area. lolanthe was forced to make for shelter near South Head but the stormy winds capsized the boat and seven people were drowned. As a previous owner. Willie had to attend the inquest. The skipper was exonerated, but Willie was disgusted by the fact that so much of the Harbour foreshores were private property - he said the Harbour was becoming "a private pond". He began a sustained campaign to have the Government resume some of these shores for the public. He made speeches, wrote over a hundred poems, formed a vigilante committee, made posters and lobbied politicians. He had little success until the then Minister for Lands Niel Nielsen became interested. Nielsen succeeded in having a law passed resuming a number of foreshore properties. The most notable of these is now known as Nielsen Park - many people at the time thought it should have been called Notting Park. His two sisters Nellie and Jennie led quieter lives. Nellie married John Page and became the matriarch of a large family of children and grandchildren. Jennie did not marry but spent her adult years housekeeping and looking after her bachelor brother Willie and her aged mother Caroline who lived until the age of 98 (1817-1915). When all of Henry and Martha's children had grown up and left home, Henry sold the Prospect Road property and bought a house in nearby Rosemount Avenue (No, 16). Here they celebrated their Golden Wedding (1929) and their Diamond Wedding (1939). Their son Roy lived in the house next door (No. 14), after his marriage to Winifred Law.
Henry's original idea was to build a house for himself where the family could live for extended periods, and to which he could retire in his later years. In addition he intended to build seven residences, one for each of his adult children, where they could come for holidays with their wives and families whenever they wished. For instance Eda and Harry were to have the two houses built over the big boatshed, Vera was to have the one called "Somerset" near the swimming pool, and so on. But the scheme "fell through". Only Eda and Vera came regularly. Whether the in-laws disagreed, or whether the financial arrangements caused dissatisfaction or what the trouble was, 1 do not know. But when Henry saw that the cottages were largely unused and unoccupied he decided to fit them out for holiday letting so that there would be some financial return. He built a small general store for his tenants, he provided a ferry service to and from Brooklyn and there were rowing boats which could be hired for fishing trips. The project flourished and in its hey-day it was a popular resort. Henry died in 1939, six months or so after- the Diamond Wedding celebration. The house in Rosemount Avenue was sold and Martha came to live pennanently with Jack and Anne at Cottage Point and Terrey Hills. Martha died in 1947 aged 92.
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From the late 1880s to the mid 1970s the name of Notting was dominant in the history of the Point,
Henry liked camping and fishing and quiet bushland places. In the early days of his marriage he and a few friends would go on short holiday trips to his favourite place - the locality now known as Cottage Point, but at that time an unnamed part of Ku-ring-gai Chase. They used tents or built log cabins. Often Martha came too and his little daughters. Quite a considerable number of campers lived there permanently or for weekends by the time the area was annexed from the Chase and divided into lots for sale. Henry's favourite lot was right on the Point but the McCreadies of Guildford acted quickly and bought it first. Henry therefore hurried to buy the adjoining lot to the south of the McCready selection. The story of the building of the houses on the Notting allotment has already been told, and the names of other buyers mentioned.
