Chatswood, New South Wales
Encyclopedia
Chatswood is a suburb
on the North Shore
of Sydney
, in the state of New South Wales
, Australia
. Chatswood is located 10 kilometres north of the Sydney central business district
and is the administrative centre of the local government area of the City of Willoughby
. Chatswood West
is a separate suburb. Chatswood has a predominantly Asian population.
Residential settlement of Chatswood began in 1876 and grew with the installation of the North Shore railway line in 1890 and also increased with the opening of the Harbour Bridge in 1932.
major commercial and retail districts. The Australian headquarters of Vodafone
, CSR Limited
and Carter Holt Harvey
as well as offices of Nortel Networks, Optus
, Smith's Snackfood
, IBM
, NEC, Leighton Holdings
and Cisco Systems
are located in Chatswood. A number of high-density residential towers are also located in Chatswood.
Chatswood has two major shopping centres, Chatswood Chase
and Westfield Chatswood
. There are also a few smaller shopping centres such as 'Lemon Grove' on the pedestrian mall and the 'Mandarin Centre' beside Westfield on the corner of Albert Avenue and Victor Street. 'Metro Chatswood' is a new shopping centre currently under construction above the Chatswood railway and bus interchange featuring retail, high rise office and apartment towers. The 'Interchange' was a small shopping centre and bus interchange built in the late 1980s which provided pedestrian access between the two halves of Victoria Avenue but was demolished to accommodate the construction of the Epping to Chatswood railway line and subsequently 'Metro Chatswood'.
'Chatswood Chase', completed in 1983, features a David Jones
store, K Mart, Coles
and 120 specialty stores, focusing on designer-label brands. 'Westfield Chatswood
', owned and managed by The Westfield Group
, originally opened on January 30, 1986 and was redeveloped in the late 1990s to incorporate a previously free-standing Grace Bros
store. It now features a Myer
department store, Target
, Coles supermarket, Toys 'R' Us, JB Hi-Fi
, Rebel Sport, Hoyts
cinema complex, and 300 speciality stores. There is also a second Hoyts cinema complex in the 'Mandarin Centre'.
The Melody Markets are held each Thursday and Friday in Chatswood Mall, Victoria Avenue and feature food and craft stalls, and live music. 'Civic Place' which includes the administrative offices of the City of Willoughby
will be redeveloped to provide retail, hotel, office space and arts facilities.
There are a number of Chinese
(including Cantonese
), Vietnamese and Greek restaurants and eateries. There are two hotels in Chatswood: The Mantra, near Chatswood railway station and The Sebel, near Westfield shopping centre. The Chatswood Club, located on Help Street adjacent to Pacific Highway, is a venue hall which caters to weddings, birthdays, cocktail parties, and other age-appropriate festivities.
of the CityRail
network. Rail services run south to the Sydney CBD and continue west to Strathfield
and beyond. Rail services run north to Hornsby
and peak hour services run to Gosford
, Wyong
and Newcastle
. The Epping to Chatswood railway line, opened in 2009, connects Chatswood to Epping
.
Chatswood is a major bus terminus with services to Bondi Junction, Sydney, North Sydney, Mosman, Balmoral Beach, Manly, Warringah Mall/Brookvale, UTS Ku-ring-gai, Belrose, Narrabeen, Mona Vale, Eastwood, Gladesville, West Ryde, North Ryde, Macquarie University, Macquarie Park, Parramatta and Dundas. An interstate bus service between Sydney and Brisbane via the North Coast stops at Chatswood.
Major roads through Chatswood include the Pacific Highway, Mowbray Road, Boundary Street, Willoughby Road and Eastern Valley Way and Victoria Avenue.The latter forms a pedestrian mall for the section running through the main retail area.
is located south of the railway station. Beauchamp Park, located on Beauchamp Avenue, features a playground, an oval, a fenced dog area and a bike track. It was named after William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp
, the Governor of New South Wales. Chatswood is close to Lane Cove National Park
.
In the 2006 Australian census
, the total population of Chatswood was 13,513 people; 6,256 (46%) were male and 7,257 (54%) were female. The number of residents born in Australia was 4,690. Of those born overseas, the most common countries were China (excluding Hong Kong
, Macau
, and Taiwan
) (1,465), Hong Kong (1,032), South Korea (991), the United Kingdom (404), and Japan (346). Based on country of birth of parents, the most common ancestry groups were Chinese (4,179), Australian (2,143), English (2,019), Irish (765), Scottish (572), and Italian (371). 1,474 people did not state their ancestry. 5,315 people speak English only and 6,927 can speak other languages, the most common being the Chinese languages (3,749), Korean (1,020), and Japanese (390). The largest religious affiliation was Christianity
(6,605); the most common included Catholicism
(3,054), Anglicanism
(1,410), and Presbyterianism
and Reformed (599). 3,326 people were categorised as no religion and 1,863 people did not state their affiliation.
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
on the North Shore
North Shore (Sydney)
The North Shore is an informal term used to describe the primarily residential area of northern metropolitan Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The term usually refers to the suburbs located on the north shore of Sydney Harbour between Middle Harbour and the Lane Cove River, up to...
of Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, in the state of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. Chatswood is located 10 kilometres north of the Sydney central business district
Sydney central business district
The Sydney central business district is the main commercial centre of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It extends southwards for about 3 kilometres from Sydney Cove, the point of first European settlement. Its north–south axis runs from Circular Quay in the north to Central railway station in...
and is the administrative centre of the local government area of the City of Willoughby
City of Willoughby
The City of Willoughby is a Local Government Area on the North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located 6 km north of the Sydney central business district....
. Chatswood West
Chatswood West, New South Wales
Chatswood West is a suburb on the lower North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Chatswood West is located 11 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government areas of the City of Willoughby and the City of Ryde on the western shore of...
is a separate suburb. Chatswood has a predominantly Asian population.
History
Chatswood was named after Charlotte Hartnett, wife of then Mayor of Willoughby, Richard Hartnett (a pioneer of the district) and the original "wooded" nature of the area. The moniker derives from her nickname "Chattie" and was shortened from Chattie's Wood to Chatswood.Residential settlement of Chatswood began in 1876 and grew with the installation of the North Shore railway line in 1890 and also increased with the opening of the Harbour Bridge in 1932.
Economy
Chatswood is one of the North Shore’sNorth Shore (Sydney)
The North Shore is an informal term used to describe the primarily residential area of northern metropolitan Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The term usually refers to the suburbs located on the north shore of Sydney Harbour between Middle Harbour and the Lane Cove River, up to...
major commercial and retail districts. The Australian headquarters of Vodafone
Vodafone
Vodafone Group Plc is a global telecommunications company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest mobile telecommunications company measured by revenues and the world's second-largest measured by subscribers , with around 341 million proportionate subscribers as of...
, CSR Limited
CSR Limited
CSR Limited is a major Australian industrial company, producing aluminium and building products. It is publicly traded on the Australian Securities Exchange. In 2009, it has approximately 10,000 employees and during a period of a major cyclical downturn the company made an after-tax profit of...
and Carter Holt Harvey
Carter Holt Harvey
Carter Holt Harvey Limited is an Australasian forest products company, with significant interests in wood products, pulp, paper and packaging. The company employs approximately 10,500 people across Australasia. Carter Holt Harvey's head New Zealand office is located at 173 Captain Springs Road in...
as well as offices of Nortel Networks, Optus
Optus
SingTel Optus Pty Limited is the second largest telecommunications company in Australia, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore Telecommunications...
, Smith's Snackfood
The Smith's Snackfood Company
The Smith's Snackfood Company is a company best known for producing and selling a range of snack food such as crisps. It is now owned by New York based company PepsiCo.-Smiths in the UK:...
, IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
, NEC, Leighton Holdings
Leighton Holdings
Leighton Holdings is Australia's largest project development and contracting group. It is active in the telecommunications, engineering and infrastructure, building and property, mining and resources, and environmental services industries...
and Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems, Inc. is an American multinational corporation headquartered in San Jose, California, United States, that designs and sells consumer electronics, networking, voice, and communications technology and services. Cisco has more than 70,000 employees and annual revenue of US$...
are located in Chatswood. A number of high-density residential towers are also located in Chatswood.
Chatswood Chase
Chatswood Chase is a large upscale shopping centre in Sydney's North Shore suburb of Chatswood. It is located at the eastern edge of the Chatswood CBD on Victoria Ave. The centre features a major 3 level David Jones department store, Kmart, Coles Supermarket, Harvey Norman plus over 120 specialty...
and Westfield Chatswood
Westfield Chatswood
Westfield Chatswood is a large shopping centre in the suburb of Chatswood in the North Shore area of Sydney. It is owned and managed by The Westfield Group. It originally opened in 1987 and was redeveloped in 1999 to incorporate a previously free standing Grace Bros store...
. There are also a few smaller shopping centres such as 'Lemon Grove' on the pedestrian mall and the 'Mandarin Centre' beside Westfield on the corner of Albert Avenue and Victor Street. 'Metro Chatswood' is a new shopping centre currently under construction above the Chatswood railway and bus interchange featuring retail, high rise office and apartment towers. The 'Interchange' was a small shopping centre and bus interchange built in the late 1980s which provided pedestrian access between the two halves of Victoria Avenue but was demolished to accommodate the construction of the Epping to Chatswood railway line and subsequently 'Metro Chatswood'.
David Jones Limited
David Jones Limited , colloquially known as DJs, is a high-end Australian department store chain.David Jones was founded in 1838 by David Jones, a Welsh immigrant, and is claimed to be the oldest continuously operating department store in the world still trading under its original name. It...
store, K Mart, Coles
Coles Supermarkets
Coles Supermarkets is an Australian supermarket chain owned by Wesfarmers. It has 741 stores nationally Coles Supermarkets is an Australian supermarket chain owned by Wesfarmers. It has 741 stores nationally Coles Supermarkets is an Australian supermarket chain owned by Wesfarmers. It has 741...
and 120 specialty stores, focusing on designer-label brands. 'Westfield Chatswood
Westfield Chatswood
Westfield Chatswood is a large shopping centre in the suburb of Chatswood in the North Shore area of Sydney. It is owned and managed by The Westfield Group. It originally opened in 1987 and was redeveloped in 1999 to incorporate a previously free standing Grace Bros store...
', owned and managed by The Westfield Group
The Westfield Group
The Westfield Group is an Australian shopping centre group undertaking ownership, development, design, construction, funds/asset management, property management, leasing and marketing activities...
, originally opened on January 30, 1986 and was redeveloped in the late 1990s to incorporate a previously free-standing Grace Bros
Grace Bros.
Grace Bros was an Australian department store chain, founded in 1885. It was bought by Myer in 1983. There were 25 stores across New South Wales and the ACT, until they were re-branded under the Myer name in 2004.-History:...
store. It now features a Myer
Myer
Myer is Australia's largest department store chain, retailing a broad range of merchandise including women's, men's and children's clothing, footwear and accessories; cosmetics and fragrance; homewares; electrical; furniture and bedding; toys; books and stationery; food and confectionery; and...
department store, Target
Target (Australia)
Target Australia Pty Ltd is an Australian department store chain owned by Wesfarmers . It operates 172 Target stores and 119 Target Country stores making 291 combined stores with its head office located in North Geelong, Victoria. It sells clothing, cosmetics, toys, homewares, electrical and...
, Coles supermarket, Toys 'R' Us, JB Hi-Fi
JB Hi-Fi
JB Hi-Fi is an Australian CD, DVD, Blu-ray disc, video game and consumer electronics chain store.-History:JB Hi-Fi was established in Melbourne suburb of Keilor East by John Barbuto in 1974...
, Rebel Sport, Hoyts
Hoyts
The Hoyts Group is an Australian company consisting of Hoyts Exhibition, Hoyts Distribution and Val Morgan.Hoyts Exhibition manages 450 screens across 40 Australian and 10 New Zealand cinema complexes; making it Australia's second largest cinema chain. Val Morgan, the cinema advertising arm of the...
cinema complex, and 300 speciality stores. There is also a second Hoyts cinema complex in the 'Mandarin Centre'.
The Melody Markets are held each Thursday and Friday in Chatswood Mall, Victoria Avenue and feature food and craft stalls, and live music. 'Civic Place' which includes the administrative offices of the City of Willoughby
City of Willoughby
The City of Willoughby is a Local Government Area on the North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located 6 km north of the Sydney central business district....
will be redeveloped to provide retail, hotel, office space and arts facilities.
There are a number of Chinese
Chinese cuisine
Chinese cuisine is any of several styles originating in the regions of China, some of which have become highly popular in other parts of the world – from Asia to the Americas, Australia, Western Europe and Southern Africa...
(including Cantonese
Cantonese cuisine
Cantonese cuisine comes from Guangdong Province in southern China and is one of 8 superdivisions of Chinese cuisine. Its prominence outside China is due to the great numbers of early emigrants from Guangdong. Cantonese chefs are highly sought after throughout the country...
), Vietnamese and Greek restaurants and eateries. There are two hotels in Chatswood: The Mantra, near Chatswood railway station and The Sebel, near Westfield shopping centre. The Chatswood Club, located on Help Street adjacent to Pacific Highway, is a venue hall which caters to weddings, birthdays, cocktail parties, and other age-appropriate festivities.
Transport
Chatswood railway station is on the North Shore Line and the Northern LineNorthern railway line, Sydney
The Northern Line is part of the metropolitan rail network in Sydney known as CityRail. It serves the northern suburbs of Sydney and the Lower North Shore, along with parts of the Inner West and the Hills District. The line utilises the Epping to Chatswood Line and parts of the Main Northern Line,...
of the CityRail
CityRail
CityRail is an operating brand of RailCorp, a corporation owned by the state government of New South Wales, Australia. It is responsible for providing commuter rail services, and some coach services, in and around Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong, the three largest cities of New South Wales. It is...
network. Rail services run south to the Sydney CBD and continue west to Strathfield
Strathfield, New South Wales
Strathfield is an Inner West suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Strathfield is located 14 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre of the local government area of the Municipality of Strathfield...
and beyond. Rail services run north to Hornsby
Hornsby, New South Wales
* Highest Maximum Temperature: 42 °C* Lowest Maximum Temperature: 4.9 °C* Warmest Month: January* Coolest Month: July* Highest Precipitation: February* Lowest Precipitation: July-Notable residents:...
and peak hour services run to Gosford
Gosford, New South Wales
Gosford is a city located on the Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia, approximately 76 km north of the Sydney central business district...
, Wyong
Wyong, New South Wales
Wyong was proclaimed a town in 1888 and is currently a major northern suburb of the Central Coast region of New South Wales, located approximately 89 km NNE of Sydney. It is the administrative centre for the Wyong Shire local government area.- History :...
and Newcastle
Newcastle, New South Wales
The Newcastle metropolitan area is the second most populated area in the Australian state of New South Wales and includes most of the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie Local Government Areas...
. The Epping to Chatswood railway line, opened in 2009, connects Chatswood to Epping
Epping, New South Wales
Epping is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Epping is located 18 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district in the local government areas of the City of Ryde, the City of Parramatta and Hornsby Shire and is located in the Northern...
.
Chatswood is a major bus terminus with services to Bondi Junction, Sydney, North Sydney, Mosman, Balmoral Beach, Manly, Warringah Mall/Brookvale, UTS Ku-ring-gai, Belrose, Narrabeen, Mona Vale, Eastwood, Gladesville, West Ryde, North Ryde, Macquarie University, Macquarie Park, Parramatta and Dundas. An interstate bus service between Sydney and Brisbane via the North Coast stops at Chatswood.
Major roads through Chatswood include the Pacific Highway, Mowbray Road, Boundary Street, Willoughby Road and Eastern Valley Way and Victoria Avenue.The latter forms a pedestrian mall for the section running through the main retail area.
Climate
Schools
Chatswood is home to private and public, primary and secondary schools. These include:- St Pius X CollegeSt Pius X CollegeSt Pius X College is a Roman Catholic, non-selective, independent high school for boys, located in Chatswood, a North Shore suburb of Sydney, Australia....
(years 5–12, Catholic boys school) - Mercy Catholic College (years 7–12, Catholic girls school)
- Our Lady of Dolours (years K–6, Catholic primary school)
- Chatswood Public SchoolChatswood Public SchoolChatswood Public School is a primary and public school that was founded in 1883, located in the suburb of Chatswood in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
(years K–6) - Chatswood HighChatswood High SchoolChatswood High School is a public, co-educational, semi-selective high school, located in Chatswood, a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....
(years 7–12). - Mowbray House SchoolMowbray House SchoolMowbray House School was an independent, day and boarding school for boys, located in Chatswood, on the North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.-History:...
operated in Chatswood from 1906 until its closure in 1954.
Parks
Chatswood OvalChatswood Oval
Chatswood Oval is located south of the Chatswood railway station in northern Sydney, Australia. It has four small pavilions and seating surrounding the oval. It is one of the Lower North Shore's largest sportsgrounds, and the home ground of the Gordon Rugby Football Club and Gordon District Cricket...
is located south of the railway station. Beauchamp Park, located on Beauchamp Avenue, features a playground, an oval, a fenced dog area and a bike track. It was named after William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp
William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp
William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp KG, KCMG, PC , styled Viscount Elmley until 1891, was a British Liberal politician. He was Governor of New South Wales between 1899 and 1901, a member of the Liberal administrations of Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman and H. H...
, the Governor of New South Wales. Chatswood is close to Lane Cove National Park
Lane Cove National Park
Lane Cove National Park is a small national park located within metropolitan Sydney. The park islocated about ten kilometres north-west of the Sydney CBD...
.
Demographics
Census in Australia
The Australian census is administered once every five years by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The most recent census was conducted on 9 August 2011; the next will be conducted in 2016. Prior to the introduction of regular censuses in 1961, they had also been run in 1901, 1911, 1921, 1933,...
, the total population of Chatswood was 13,513 people; 6,256 (46%) were male and 7,257 (54%) were female. The number of residents born in Australia was 4,690. Of those born overseas, the most common countries were China (excluding Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
, and Taiwan
Republic of China
The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...
) (1,465), Hong Kong (1,032), South Korea (991), the United Kingdom (404), and Japan (346). Based on country of birth of parents, the most common ancestry groups were Chinese (4,179), Australian (2,143), English (2,019), Irish (765), Scottish (572), and Italian (371). 1,474 people did not state their ancestry. 5,315 people speak English only and 6,927 can speak other languages, the most common being the Chinese languages (3,749), Korean (1,020), and Japanese (390). The largest religious affiliation was Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
(6,605); the most common included Catholicism
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
(3,054), Anglicanism
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
(1,410), and Presbyterianism
Presbyterianism
Presbyterianism refers to a number of Christian churches adhering to the Calvinist theological tradition within Protestantism, which are organized according to a characteristic Presbyterian polity. Presbyterian theology typically emphasizes the sovereignty of God, the authority of the Scriptures,...
and Reformed (599). 3,326 people were categorised as no religion and 1,863 people did not state their affiliation.
Willoughby Spring Festival
The Willoughby Spring Festival is an annual event in Chatswood. The festival is the second-largest in Lower Northern Sydney and is intended as testimony to a modern, multicultural and prosperous Chatswood. For more information visit Spring Festival.External links
- Willoughby City Council
- Chatswood/Roseville - community profile
- Chatswood West/Lane Cove North - community profile
- Chatswood Directory - Business and services directory