The concept of Terra Nullius was used by the British government to justify the settlement of Australia. It allowed colonists like Singleton to be wilfully blind to the obvious fact the land was owned, occupied and carefully tended.
Ben Singleton was a member of the first party of colonists who, guided by Darug warriors, found an overland route between Windsor and the Hunter River. It was a precursor to the wholesale invasion of the valley and the mass displacement and slaughter of Wonnarua.