Kurnell, New South Wales
Encyclopedia
Kurnell is a suburb
in southern
Sydney
, in the state of New South Wales
, Australia
. Kurnell is located 22 kilometres (13.7 mi) south of the Sydney central business district
, in the local government area of the Sutherland Shire
.
Kurnell
is on the southern headland of Botany Bay. Cronulla and Woolooware are the only adjacent suburbs. La Perouse
is located opposite, on the northern headland of Botany Bay
.
The eastern side of the peninsula is part of Botany Bay National Park
, with sheer sandstone cliffs dominating the coastline. Towra Point Nature Reserve
is located on the western side of the suburb.
There are two theories for the origin of the name Kurnell. It is either a deviation of an Aboriginal word "collonel" or a deviation of the name of an early settler, John Connell.
Aborigines whilst navigating his way up the East Coast of Australia on Endeavour
. Captain Cook along with his crew stayed at Kurnell for a period of eight days. During their visit they collected botanical specimens, mapped the area and tried to make contact (unsuccessfully) with the indigenous population. When Cook reported back to England he said that the land was suitable for agriculture and was lightly wooded.
Captain Arthur Phillip
, arriving in H.M.Armed Tender Supply on the 18th. January 1788, before the First Fleet
arrived, following Cook’s advice. They began to clear land and dig wells, near modern day LaPerouse but a week later, Phillip decided to abandon the site and moved north to Sydney Cove at Port Jackson
.
Cook's landing place is located on the north-eastern part of the national park. Sutherland Point
is named in honour of a crew member, Scotsman Forby Sutherland, who died of tuberculosis during their eight days here and was buried on the shore. Cape Solander is named after Swedish botanist Daniel Solander
, a colleague of Joseph Banks
. Inscription Point was named by the Australian Philosophical Society in 1822 when they secured a plaque to the cliff face to mark the point of the Endeavour’s crew first landing.
Dampier
Street, Tasman Street and Torres Street commemorate other navigators in Australia’s history.
The first land grant of 700 acres (2.8 km²) was made in 1815, to Captain James Birnie, who established Alpha Farm. 'Alpha' is the first letter in the Greek alphabet and the name was thought appropriate for the first farm in the area. In 1821 John Connell Junior was also granted land here and used it for timber getting. His father purchased Alpha Farm from Birnie and by 1842 the Connell family's estate was over one thousand acres (4 km²) in size. In 1860, Alpha Farm was sold to Thomas Holt (1811–88), who owned most of the land that stretched from Sutherland
to Cronulla. The area was known as Birniemere for a time and Holtmere was once a locality.
Before the 1920s, Kurnell was used by fisherman as schools of several varieties of fish inhabited the Botany Bay
foreshore and the open sea. Fishermen built numerous huts and shacks which sheltered them for the weekend fishing. During the Great Depression
, from the late 1920s, many severely affected low-income families took up residence there, in a shantytown.
The northern part of the peninsula is a historic site known as Captain Cooks Landing Place with a number of memorials located here:
The Discovery Centre provides information and displays relics from the early days in Kurnell’s history. Endeavour Heights is a recreation area in the Botany Bay National Park. The Kurnell Lookout provides brilliant views of Botany Bay and the northern headland of Botany Bay at La Perouse
.
Cape Solander is popular amongst whale watchers during the migration season.
, provides much of the rest of Sydney with an alternative water supply. It has been criticised on environmental grounds (greenhouse gases and impact of large amounts of deoxygenated brine), and was shelved, but was resumed after the March 2007 N.S.W. state elections. Continued widespread protest by residential, environmental, and community groups was declared to be irrelevant. Immediate work began on a pipeline under Botany Bay to carry desalinated water to northern suburbs and the size of the desalination plant was doubled.(source, smh.com.au-search. Desalination). Total water stored in the Sydney catchment was at a low of 36.9% on 7 June 2007 but rainfall increased volume stored to 64% as of 7 Feb 2008. The water supply of Kurnell is supplemented with bore water.
Sand mining
on the peninsula has depleted the area of much of the sand that was originally there. It has been said that 40 metre deep pools now form in the dunes. Pools are clearly visible in view from Google Earth. The remaining sand dune is used as a recreational off-road area for 4 wheel drives. The Cronulla sand dunes
formed part of the location for the films Forty Thousand Horsemen
, directed by Charles Chauvel in 1940 and Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
. Sand dunes are currently being replaced with domestic and industrial waste. The only road to Kurnell Peninsula is also flanked by a sewerage treatment plant.
Boat Harbour Beach
is the location of a 4WD park. Access can be gained via Captain Cook Drive. People are permitted to drive on the beach with their 4WDs. An entry fee is required and one may drive along the beach for at least two kilometres.
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...
in southern
Southern Sydney
This article refers to an area the same as a combination of St George and SutherlandSouthern Sydney is a general term which is used to describe the southern metropolitan area of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia....
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...
. Kurnell is located 22 kilometres (13.7 mi) south 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 the Sutherland Shire
Sutherland Shire
The Sutherland Shire is a Local Government Area in the Southern Sydney region of Sydney, Australia. Geographically, it is the area to the south of Botany Bay and the Georges River...
.
Kurnell
Cronulla sand dunes, Kurnell Peninsula
The Cronulla sand dunes are located on the Kurnell Peninsula in the local government area of Sutherland Shire, Sydney Australia.The Cronulla sand dunes are a protected area that became listed on the NSW State Heritage Register on 26 September 2003.-History:...
is on the southern headland of Botany Bay. Cronulla and Woolooware are the only adjacent suburbs. La Perouse
La Perouse, New South Wales
Lapérouse is a suburb in south-eastern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The suburb of Lapérouse is located about 14 kilometres south-east of the Sydney central business district, in the City of Randwick....
is located opposite, on the northern headland of Botany Bay
Botany Bay
Botany Bay is a bay in Sydney, New South Wales, a few kilometres south of the Sydney central business district. The Cooks River and the Georges River are the two major tributaries that flow into the bay...
.
The eastern side of the peninsula is part of Botany Bay National Park
Botany Bay National Park
Botany Bay National Park is a national park in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia located approximately 16 km south east of the Sydney central business district, on the northern and southern headlands of Botany Bay...
, with sheer sandstone cliffs dominating the coastline. Towra Point Nature Reserve
Towra Point Nature Reserve
Towra Point Nature Reserve is a nature reserve of in southern Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is located on the southern shores of Botany Bay at Kurnell, within the Sutherland Shire. It is a Ramsar site , as it is an important breeding ground for many vulnerable, protected, or endangered...
is located on the western side of the suburb.
There are two theories for the origin of the name Kurnell. It is either a deviation of an Aboriginal word "collonel" or a deviation of the name of an early settler, John Connell.
History
Kurnell is considered to be ‘the birthplace of modern Australia’, as it is the place where Captain James Cook landed on 29 April 1770, making first contact with the original inhabitants of the area, the GweagalGweagal
The Gweagal are a clan of the Tharawal tribe of Indigenous Australians, who are traditional custodians of the southern geographic areas of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....
Aborigines whilst navigating his way up the East Coast of Australia on Endeavour
HM Bark Endeavour
HMS Endeavour, also known as HM Bark Endeavour, was a British Royal Navy research vessel commanded by Lieutenant James Cook on his first voyage of discovery, to Australia and New Zealand from 1769 to 1771....
. Captain Cook along with his crew stayed at Kurnell for a period of eight days. During their visit they collected botanical specimens, mapped the area and tried to make contact (unsuccessfully) with the indigenous population. When Cook reported back to England he said that the land was suitable for agriculture and was lightly wooded.
Captain Arthur Phillip
Arthur Phillip
Admiral Arthur Phillip RN was a British admiral and colonial administrator. Phillip was appointed Governor of New South Wales, the first European colony on the Australian continent, and was the founder of the settlement which is now the city of Sydney.-Early life and naval career:Arthur Phillip...
, arriving in H.M.Armed Tender Supply on the 18th. January 1788, before the First Fleet
First Fleet
The First Fleet is the name given to the eleven ships which sailed from Great Britain on 13 May 1787 with about 1,487 people, including 778 convicts , to establish the first European colony in Australia, in the region which Captain Cook had named New South Wales. The fleet was led by Captain ...
arrived, following Cook’s advice. They began to clear land and dig wells, near modern day LaPerouse but a week later, Phillip decided to abandon the site and moved north to Sydney Cove at Port Jackson
Port Jackson
Port Jackson, containing Sydney Harbour, is the natural harbour of Sydney, Australia. It is known for its beauty, and in particular, as the location of the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge...
.
Sutherland Point
Forby Sutherland was a member of the crew of the Endeavour during Captain Cook's voyage to New South Wales. He died while the ship was in Botany Bay, making him the first British subject to die in Australia and the first European to die in New South Wales....
is named in honour of a crew member, Scotsman Forby Sutherland, who died of tuberculosis during their eight days here and was buried on the shore. Cape Solander is named after Swedish botanist Daniel Solander
Daniel Solander
Daniel Carlsson Solander or Daniel Charles Solander was a Swedish naturalist and an apostle of Carl Linnaeus. Solander was the first university educated scientist to set foot on Australian soil.-Biography:...
, a colleague of Joseph Banks
Joseph Banks
Sir Joseph Banks, 1st Baronet, GCB, PRS was an English naturalist, botanist and patron of the natural sciences. He took part in Captain James Cook's first great voyage . Banks is credited with the introduction to the Western world of eucalyptus, acacia, mimosa and the genus named after him,...
. Inscription Point was named by the Australian Philosophical Society in 1822 when they secured a plaque to the cliff face to mark the point of the Endeavour’s crew first landing.
Dampier
William Dampier
William Dampier was an English buccaneer, sea captain, author and scientific observer...
Street, Tasman Street and Torres Street commemorate other navigators in Australia’s history.
The first land grant of 700 acres (2.8 km²) was made in 1815, to Captain James Birnie, who established Alpha Farm. 'Alpha' is the first letter in the Greek alphabet and the name was thought appropriate for the first farm in the area. In 1821 John Connell Junior was also granted land here and used it for timber getting. His father purchased Alpha Farm from Birnie and by 1842 the Connell family's estate was over one thousand acres (4 km²) in size. In 1860, Alpha Farm was sold to Thomas Holt (1811–88), who owned most of the land that stretched from Sutherland
Sutherland, New South Wales
Sutherland is a suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Sutherland is located 26 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local government area of the Sutherland Shire....
to Cronulla. The area was known as Birniemere for a time and Holtmere was once a locality.
Before the 1920s, Kurnell was used by fisherman as schools of several varieties of fish inhabited the Botany Bay
Botany Bay
Botany Bay is a bay in Sydney, New South Wales, a few kilometres south of the Sydney central business district. The Cooks River and the Georges River are the two major tributaries that flow into the bay...
foreshore and the open sea. Fishermen built numerous huts and shacks which sheltered them for the weekend fishing. During the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, from the late 1920s, many severely affected low-income families took up residence there, in a shantytown.
Places of interest
- Captain Cook Memorial Obelisk
- Sir Joseph Banks Memorial
- Solander Monument
- Sutherland Monument
The Discovery Centre provides information and displays relics from the early days in Kurnell’s history. Endeavour Heights is a recreation area in the Botany Bay National Park. The Kurnell Lookout provides brilliant views of Botany Bay and the northern headland of Botany Bay at La Perouse
La Perouse, New South Wales
Lapérouse is a suburb in south-eastern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The suburb of Lapérouse is located about 14 kilometres south-east of the Sydney central business district, in the City of Randwick....
.
Cape Solander is popular amongst whale watchers during the migration season.
Commercial areas
The small residential area with a population of 2600 (as at 30/06/07 source ssec.org.au) is located to the north with a small group of shops in the village of Kurnell. Kurnell is dominated by an industrial area, which includes the Caltex Oil Refinery. Refined petrol is piped to the other side of Botany Bay in an underwater pipeline. The Kurnell Desalination PlantKurnell Desalination Plant
The Sydney Desalination Plant is a drinking water supply project operated by Veolia Water Australia Pty Ltd on behalf of Sydney Water, Sydney's State-owned water supply corporation. It is located in the Kurnell industrial estate area, in Sydney's southern suburbs. The desalination plant itself was...
, provides much of the rest of Sydney with an alternative water supply. It has been criticised on environmental grounds (greenhouse gases and impact of large amounts of deoxygenated brine), and was shelved, but was resumed after the March 2007 N.S.W. state elections. Continued widespread protest by residential, environmental, and community groups was declared to be irrelevant. Immediate work began on a pipeline under Botany Bay to carry desalinated water to northern suburbs and the size of the desalination plant was doubled.(source, smh.com.au-search. Desalination). Total water stored in the Sydney catchment was at a low of 36.9% on 7 June 2007 but rainfall increased volume stored to 64% as of 7 Feb 2008. The water supply of Kurnell is supplemented with bore water.
Sand mining
Sand mining
Sand mining is a practice that is becoming an environmental issue as the demand for sand increases in industry and construction. Sand is mined from beaches and inland dunes and dredged from ocean beds and river beds. It is often used in manufacturing as an abrasive, for example, and it is used to...
on the peninsula has depleted the area of much of the sand that was originally there. It has been said that 40 metre deep pools now form in the dunes. Pools are clearly visible in view from Google Earth. The remaining sand dune is used as a recreational off-road area for 4 wheel drives. The Cronulla sand dunes
Cronulla sand dunes, Kurnell Peninsula
The Cronulla sand dunes are located on the Kurnell Peninsula in the local government area of Sutherland Shire, Sydney Australia.The Cronulla sand dunes are a protected area that became listed on the NSW State Heritage Register on 26 September 2003.-History:...
formed part of the location for the films Forty Thousand Horsemen
Forty Thousand Horsemen
Forty Thousand Horsemen is a 1940 Australian war film directed by Charles Chauvel. The film tells the story of the Australian Light Horse cavalry which operated in the desert at the Sinai and Palestine Campaign during World War I. It follows the adventures of three rowdy heroes in fighting and...
, directed by Charles Chauvel in 1940 and Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome is a 1985 Australian post-apocalyptic film directed by George Miller and George Ogilvie, written by Miller, Doug Mitchell and Terry Hayes, and starring Mel Gibson and Tina Turner. It is the third installment in the action movie Mad Max franchise...
. Sand dunes are currently being replaced with domestic and industrial waste. The only road to Kurnell Peninsula is also flanked by a sewerage treatment plant.
Sport and recreation
Triathlons are held in Kurnell annually. There are running tracks through Botany Bay National Park, as well as running along the beach and swimming in the netted area of Silver Beach. This location also offers fishing, sailing, scuba diving and windsurfing activities. There is a free shuttle bus service during whale watching season, departing from the parking area of the office of the National Park.Boat Harbour Beach
Boat Harbour (Kurnell)
Boat Harbour is a small beach located on the north-eastern side of the Kurnell Peninsula in Sydney, Australia. Boat Harbour has been classed as one of the most polluted beaches in Sydney.-History:...
is the location of a 4WD park. Access can be gained via Captain Cook Drive. People are permitted to drive on the beach with their 4WDs. An entry fee is required and one may drive along the beach for at least two kilometres.