Hamilton Collins Sempill was the first settler in the New England area when he took up the 'Wolka' run in 1832, establishing slab huts where 'Langford' now stands close to Walcha. During the 1830s further squatters moved their sheep flocks onto the Northern Tablelands as they had been displaced by the Australian Agricultural Company, which dominated resources in the Hunter Valley. When the area was opened up for settlement in the 1830s, this led to the gazetting of nine pastoral districts. These districts had a small police force and a Commissioner of Crown Lands.