Some may be obvious – think Bathurst Court House and Abercrombie House – while others might take a bit more looking to notice.

Bathurst man Graham Lupp has long been interested in the city’s heritage and he vividly remembers snapping photos of the city’s historic buildings decades ago while studying architecture.

In the years since his studies, he has become a well known artist of paintings and drawings that depict the city’s built and natural environments, but architecture has always remained a passion.

His debut book Building Bathurst 1815-1915 is a definitive architectural history of the built heritage of Australia’s oldest European inland settlement.

Far from being a book for the experts or architects, Mr Lupp was determined that it would be readable and relatable to anyone with an interest in Bathurst’s history.

“It's meant for people generally to appreciate the town a bit more,” he said.

While much has been written about Bathurst’s people, its gold, its settlement, the crossing of the Blue Mountains and its Chinese population, Mr Lupp said there was a lack of information on the city’s buildings and architects.

“It serves as a biographic about the architects and builders and all the work they did,” he said.

The two-volume book has a combined 844 pages featuring 1172 images, and while it took Mr Lupp five years to write, it features photos and information he has collated for decades.

“I’ve been photographing Bathurst since 1968,” he said.

To say it has been a labour of love is an understatement.

Mr Lupp has trawled through rates notices, council records, library records, other books, talked to people and most importantly, he said, searched old newspapers for information about architects and builders who worked in Bathurst.

“I discovered that the architects and builders of the state didn't just work in Bathurst, they worked all over the state so I've been to places like Maitland, Queanbeyan and Dubbo,” he said of his research for the book.

“I lived on Trove, it [the database] goes right back to 1093.”

Just collating the architectural history of Bathurst’s famous Abercrombie House took a more than a month, Mr Lupp said.

“I really love the heritage architecture because of the craftsmanship and symbolism,” he said.

“No one does that now, it’s all about clean lines.”

While undertaking his architectural studies all those years ago, Mr Lupp completed a thesis on Edward Gell who was a major architect in Bathurst in the late 1800s.

Mr Gell designed St Stanislaus’ College and helped supervise the construction of the Cathedral of St Michael and St John.

“I’ve never forgotten this and I wanted to do more,” he said.

“I was trained as an architect and I've always loved history of architecture.”

Mr Lupp originally wanted Building Bathurst 1815-1915 to be released during the city’s bicentenary in 2015, however he admits it has run a little over time.

Bathurst Regional Council has supported Mr Lupp in his writing of the book and contributed towards the printing costs.

Building Bathurst 1815-1915 is a limited edition with only 1500 copies printed, numbered and signed by Mr Lupp.

It is available for purchase though Bathurst Regional Council’s civic centre or by contacting Graham Lupp on email at enquiries@grahamlupp.com.au.