Coasters Retreat, New South Wales
Encyclopedia
Coasters Retreat is a locality in northern Sydney
, in the state of New South Wales
, Australia
. Coasters Retreat is located 42 kilometres north of the Sydney central business district
, in the local government area of Pittwater Council
.
, on the western shores of Pittwater looking northward toward the Basin. Coasters is made up of fifty holiday houses set in the bush and beside the beach. Two of them date from settlement in 1922-1924. Coasters Retreat has no road or land access and is entirely dependent on transport via the Palm Beach Ferry Service. Coasters Retreat is serviced by two wharves, and a rural fire brigade.
In 1770 Captain Cook, sighted Broken Bay, naming it for its rugged terrain. Pittwater was first explored by Governor Arthur Phillip in 1788, who named Pittwater after British Prime Minister William Pitt. Pittwater was again charted in 1789 by Captain John Hunter. In 1842 Coasters Retreat was first granted to a former soldier of the NSW Army Corps by Governor Gipps, who gave his name to "Soldiers Point" on the western extremity of the south headland, with agriculture beginning on a small scale. A farmhouse was built at The Basin in 1881.
Coasters Retreat became enclosed by national park following the establishment of the Ku-Ring-Gai Chase National Park in 1896. In 1914 Bonnie Doon Wharf was built by the Ku-Ring-Gai Chase National Park to provide access for campers and visitors.
The oldest house, Negunya, was built by the Russell family in 1922, and the second oldest house, built by the Alldrit Family in 1926, following a 1921 Subdivision of the original land grant. The area underwent subtle growth during the 20th century with the construction of holiday houses. In 1944 Bennetts Wharf was constructed, following further subdivisions. After the Coasters Retreat Progress Association succeeded in connecting to the electricity supply in 1967, the Association became dedicated to the preservation of the unique coastal environment at Coasters Retreat. Electricity lines were hidden underground, road building never initiated, fences not allowed, and communal postal services maintained in order to promote a tranquil non-suburban environment. Subsequently, a Rural Fire Brigade was formed, protecting the community in 1994 from bushfires.
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...
. Coasters Retreat is located 42 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...
, in the local government area of Pittwater Council
Pittwater Council
Pittwater Council is a Local Government Area on the Northern Beaches of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The suburbs which comprise the Pittwater LGA were detached from the Warringah local government area in 1993...
.
Location
Coasters Retreat is located in Ku-ring-gai Chase National ParkKu-ring-gai Chase National Park
Ku-ring-gai Chase is a national park in New South Wales, Australia, 25 km north of Sydney located largely within the Ku-ring-gai, Hornsby, Warringah and Pittwater municipal areas. Ku-ring-gai Chase is also officially classed as a suburb by the Geographical Names Board of New South Wales...
, on the western shores of Pittwater looking northward toward the Basin. Coasters is made up of fifty holiday houses set in the bush and beside the beach. Two of them date from settlement in 1922-1924. Coasters Retreat has no road or land access and is entirely dependent on transport via the Palm Beach Ferry Service. Coasters Retreat is serviced by two wharves, and a rural fire brigade.
History
The area was first inhabited by Indigenous Australians, the Kuringgai (also spelt Ku-ring-gai, Kuring-gai, Guringai). The Kuringai were hunters and gatherers. The Basin, adjoining Coasters Retreat has particularly rich Aboriginal Heritage sites including The Basin Track Engraving Site, featuring petroglyphs of hunters, kangaroos, fishing and Wallabies. On the headland north of Coasters Retreat, is the Red Hands Cave, featuring a hand print in red ochre. Other hand prints, and pictographs, middens and carvings can be found in the locality. On the foreshore at Coasters retreat is an Aboriginal carving of a Dolphin.In 1770 Captain Cook, sighted Broken Bay, naming it for its rugged terrain. Pittwater was first explored by Governor Arthur Phillip in 1788, who named Pittwater after British Prime Minister William Pitt. Pittwater was again charted in 1789 by Captain John Hunter. In 1842 Coasters Retreat was first granted to a former soldier of the NSW Army Corps by Governor Gipps, who gave his name to "Soldiers Point" on the western extremity of the south headland, with agriculture beginning on a small scale. A farmhouse was built at The Basin in 1881.
Coasters Retreat became enclosed by national park following the establishment of the Ku-Ring-Gai Chase National Park in 1896. In 1914 Bonnie Doon Wharf was built by the Ku-Ring-Gai Chase National Park to provide access for campers and visitors.
The oldest house, Negunya, was built by the Russell family in 1922, and the second oldest house, built by the Alldrit Family in 1926, following a 1921 Subdivision of the original land grant. The area underwent subtle growth during the 20th century with the construction of holiday houses. In 1944 Bennetts Wharf was constructed, following further subdivisions. After the Coasters Retreat Progress Association succeeded in connecting to the electricity supply in 1967, the Association became dedicated to the preservation of the unique coastal environment at Coasters Retreat. Electricity lines were hidden underground, road building never initiated, fences not allowed, and communal postal services maintained in order to promote a tranquil non-suburban environment. Subsequently, a Rural Fire Brigade was formed, protecting the community in 1994 from bushfires.