Wahroonga, New South Wales
Encyclopedia
Wahroonga is a suburb on the Upper North Shore of Sydney
, in the state of New South Wales
, Australia
. Wahroonga is located 22 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district
, in the local government area of Ku-ring-gai Council
and Hornsby Shire
.
, the main activity was cutting down the tall trees which grew there. Wahroonga was first settled in 1822 by Thomas Hyndes, a convict who became a wealthy landowner. Later there were many orchards. After the North Shore railway line was opened in 1890 it became a popular place for businessmen to build out-of-town residences with large gardens. Much of this development occurred in the 1920s and 1930s.
A common misspelling is 'Wahroongah'. This can be seen in the captions of the Broadhurst postcards of Wahroonga available on the State Library of NSW website. Note the correction on the railway station image to match the station sign.
is in Wahroonga, as is Globalstar
's Australian office, and the offices of the South Pacific Division of Seventh-day Adventists
.
of the City Rail network. Wahroonga is the Sydney end of the F3
Freeway to Newcastle
.
s such as: Knox Grammar School
and Abbotsleigh
, Pacific Highway, as well as several other schools, including St Leo's Catholic College and Wahroonga Adventist School. Wahroonga Public School
is a government school, founded in 1944 and commonly known as "The Bush School", as well as Prouille Catholic Primary School and Wahroonga Preparatory School in East Wahroonga.
The Rose Seidler House
, in Clissold Road, built by Harry Seidler
between 1948 and 1950, was one of the first examples of modern residential architecture in Australia. Highlands, in Highlands Avenue, is a timber house designed by John Horbury Hunt
and built in 1891 for Alfred Hordern. Hunt was a Canadian architect who used the Arts and Crafts style
and the Shingle Style popular in North America. Highlands is now on the Register of the National Estate
. Architect William Hardy Wilson
designed and built his own home, Purulia, on Fox Valley Road. Built in 1913, the home is in the Colonial Revival style and became, according to some observers, a prototype for North Shore homes. It is listed on the Register of the National Estate.
Berith Park, in Billyard Avenue, was designed by F. Ernest Stowe for Alfred Smith, who bought the land in 1897. The house was finished circa 1909. Westholme, in Water Street, was designed by Howard Joseland
in the Arts and Crafts
style for John Bennett, one of the pioneer developers of Wahroonga. Bennett came from England but migrated to Australia with his wife and acquired property at Wahroonga in 1893. Westholme was built in 1894. Another house was added at the other end of the block, but this was demolished in 1991 after changing hands several times.
Craignairn, in Burns Road, was also designed in the Arts and Crafts
style by Howard Joseland for Walter Strang.
trees, and a children's playground. The Glade, located near Abbotsleigh, has two tennis courts, a half basketball court and a large circular oval where Football and Cricket can be played. There is also small rainforest and fern forest, next to the tennis courts.
Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park
is located north of Wahroonga. It is the second oldest national park in Australia and is very popular, offering many walking tracks, picnic spots and Aboriginal sites with rock carvings. The park has a large proportion of the known Aboriginal sites in the Sydney area.
(82.0%), Cantonese
(3.1%), Mandarin
(1.4%), Korean
(0.9%) and Italian
(0.7%).
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...
. Wahroonga is located 22 kilometres north-west 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 Ku-ring-gai Council
Ku-ring-gai Council
Ku-ring-gai Council is a Local Government Area in the North Shore region of Sydney. It includes the suburbs of Lindfield, Killara, Gordon, Pymble, St Ives, Turramurra, Warrawee, and parts of Roseville, and Wahroonga. The region is named after the Kuringgai tribe who once inhabited the area...
and Hornsby Shire
Hornsby Shire
Hornsby Shire is a Local Government Area in the Northern region of Sydney, Australia. The Shire stretches from the suburb of Eastwood in the south to the Hawkesbury River town of Wisemans Ferry, some to the north...
.
History
Wahroonga is an Aboriginal word meaning our home. In the early days of British settlement in New South WalesNew 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...
, the main activity was cutting down the tall trees which grew there. Wahroonga was first settled in 1822 by Thomas Hyndes, a convict who became a wealthy landowner. Later there were many orchards. After the North Shore railway line was opened in 1890 it became a popular place for businessmen to build out-of-town residences with large gardens. Much of this development occurred in the 1920s and 1930s.
A common misspelling is 'Wahroongah'. This can be seen in the captions of the Broadhurst postcards of Wahroonga available on the State Library of NSW website. Note the correction on the railway station image to match the station sign.
Commercial area
Wahroonga has several small shopping villages, such as Wahroonga shopping village with several small restaurants and Hampden Avenue shopping centre in East Wahroonga. The Sydney Adventist HospitalSydney Adventist Hospital
Sydney Adventist Hospital, commonly known as the San, is a large private hospital in Sydney, Australia, located on Fox Valley Road in Wahroonga. Established on January 1, 1903, as a not-for-profit organisation, it was originally named the Sydney Sanitarium from which its colloquial name was derived...
is in Wahroonga, as is Globalstar
Globalstar
Globalstar is a low Earth orbit satellite constellation for satellite phone and low-speed data communications, somewhat similar to the Iridium satellite constellation and Orbcomm satellite systems.-History:...
's Australian office, and the offices of the South Pacific Division of Seventh-day Adventists
South Pacific Division of Seventh-day Adventists
The Seventh-day Adventist Church in the South Pacific, , is formally organised as the South Pacific Division of Seventh-day Adventists , also abbreviated as the South Pacific Division or simply "the Division". It is one of 13 world divisions of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists in...
.
Transport
Wahroonga railway station is on the North Shore lineNorth Shore Line
North Shore Line could refer to one of several railway lines:* Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad, United States* North Shore railway line, Sydney, Australia* North Shore Line , a former trolley line on the north shore of Long Island...
of the City Rail network. Wahroonga is the Sydney end of the F3
Sydney-Newcastle Freeway
The Sydney-Newcastle Freeway is a stretch of motorway linking Sydney to the Central Coast, Newcastle and Hunter regions of New South Wales. It is part of the AusLink road corridor between Sydney and Brisbane, carrying the route designation....
Freeway to 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...
.
Schools
Wahroonga has private schoolPrivate school
Private schools, also known as independent schools or nonstate schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students' tuition, rather than relying on mandatory...
s such as: Knox Grammar School
Knox Grammar School
Knox Grammar School is an independent, Uniting Church, day and boarding school for boys, located in Wahroonga, an upper North Shore suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....
and Abbotsleigh
Abbotsleigh
Abbotsleigh School for Girls is an independent, Anglican, day and boarding school for girls, located in Wahroonga, on the Upper North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....
, Pacific Highway, as well as several other schools, including St Leo's Catholic College and Wahroonga Adventist School. Wahroonga Public School
Wahroonga Public School
Wahroonga Public School is a public school located in Wahroonga, New South Wales and is known as "The Bush School". The school is one of the only schools with two swimming pools in New South Wales.- History :...
is a government school, founded in 1944 and commonly known as "The Bush School", as well as Prouille Catholic Primary School and Wahroonga Preparatory School in East Wahroonga.
Streets
Wahroonga is known for its tree lined, shady streets. Typically streets on the east side of the rail line command stronger property values. Notable streets include Burns Road, Billyard Avenue, Water Street, Braeside Street and Kintore Street.Houses
Rose Seidler House
Rose Seidler House is a Bauhaus-styled home designed by Harry Seidler located at 71 Clissold Road, Wahroonga, a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is managed by the Historic Houses Trust of New South Wales as a museum that has been open to the public since 1991. Built in 1949-1950, it...
, in Clissold Road, built by Harry Seidler
Harry Seidler
Harry Seidler, AC OBE was an Austrian-born Australian architect who is considered to be one of the leading exponents of Modernism's methodology in Australia and the first architect to fully express the principles of the Bauhaus in Australia.Harry Seidler designed more than 180 buildings and he...
between 1948 and 1950, was one of the first examples of modern residential architecture in Australia. Highlands, in Highlands Avenue, is a timber house designed by John Horbury Hunt
John Horbury Hunt
John Horbury Hunt was a Canadian-born architect who worked in Sydney, Australia and rural New South Wales from 1863.-Life and career:...
and built in 1891 for Alfred Hordern. Hunt was a Canadian architect who used the Arts and Crafts style
Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts was an international design philosophy that originated in England and flourished between 1860 and 1910 , continuing its influence until the 1930s...
and the Shingle Style popular in North America. Highlands is now on the Register of the National Estate
Register of the National Estate
The Register of the National Estate is a listing of natural and cultural heritage places in Australia. The listing was initially compiled between 1976 and 2003 by the Australian Heritage Commission. The register is now maintained by the Australian Heritage Council...
. Architect William Hardy Wilson
William Hardy Wilson
William Hardy Wilson was an Australian architect, artist and author. He "is regarded as one of the most outstanding architects of the twentieth century".-Early years:...
designed and built his own home, Purulia, on Fox Valley Road. Built in 1913, the home is in the Colonial Revival style and became, according to some observers, a prototype for North Shore homes. It is listed on the Register of the National Estate.
Berith Park, in Billyard Avenue, was designed by F. Ernest Stowe for Alfred Smith, who bought the land in 1897. The house was finished circa 1909. Westholme, in Water Street, was designed by Howard Joseland
Howard Joseland
Howard Joseland was an English architect who migrated to Australia and pursued a successful and influential career there.-Early life:...
in the Arts and Crafts
Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts was an international design philosophy that originated in England and flourished between 1860 and 1910 , continuing its influence until the 1930s...
style for John Bennett, one of the pioneer developers of Wahroonga. Bennett came from England but migrated to Australia with his wife and acquired property at Wahroonga in 1893. Westholme was built in 1894. Another house was added at the other end of the block, but this was demolished in 1991 after changing hands several times.
Craignairn, in Burns Road, was also designed in the Arts and Crafts
Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts was an international design philosophy that originated in England and flourished between 1860 and 1910 , continuing its influence until the 1930s...
style by Howard Joseland for Walter Strang.
Churches
Wahroonga is home to a number of churches including Holy Name Catholic Church, St. John's Uniting Church, St. Andrew's Anglican Church, Wahroonga Presbyterian Church and the Wahroonga Seventh Day Adventist Church.Parks
Wahroonga Park is located north of the railway station, and features a significant number of well established introducedIntroduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
trees, and a children's playground. The Glade, located near Abbotsleigh, has two tennis courts, a half basketball court and a large circular oval where Football and Cricket can be played. There is also small rainforest and fern forest, next to the tennis courts.
Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park
Ku-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...
is located north of Wahroonga. It is the second oldest national park in Australia and is very popular, offering many walking tracks, picnic spots and Aboriginal sites with rock carvings. The park has a large proportion of the known Aboriginal sites in the Sydney area.
Demographics
According to the 2006 Census, the most common languages spoken at home in Wahroonga were EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
(82.0%), Cantonese
Cantonese
Cantonese is a dialect spoken primarily in south China.Cantonese may also refer to:* Yue Chinese, the Chinese language that includes Cantonese* Cantonese cuisine, the cuisine of Guangdong province...
(3.1%), Mandarin
Mandarin
-Officials:* Mandarin , a bureaucrat of Imperial China , Vietnam, and by analogy, any senior government bureaucrat-Language:...
(1.4%), Korean
Korean language
Korean is the official language of the country Korea, in both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing...
(0.9%) and Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
(0.7%).
Notable residents
- William Hardy WilsonWilliam Hardy WilsonWilliam Hardy Wilson was an Australian architect, artist and author. He "is regarded as one of the most outstanding architects of the twentieth century".-Early years:...
, architect, artist and author - Adam GarciaAdam GarciaAdam Garcia is an Australian actor and tap dancer of partial Colombian descent .-Career:...
, actor - Hugh JackmanHugh JackmanHugh Michael Jackman is an Australian actor and producer who is involved in film, musical theatre, and television.Jackman has won international recognition for his roles in major films, notably as action/superhero, period and romance characters...
, actor - Richard ClaptonRichard ClaptonRichard Clapton is an Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist from Sydney, New South Wales. His solo top 20 hits on the Kent Music Report Singles Chart are "Girls on the Avenue" and "I Am an Island"...
, musician - Nicholas FitzgeraldNicholas FitzgeraldNicholas Fitzgerald , is an Australian football player currently playing for Brisbane Roar FC in the Hyundai A-League.-Club career:...
, footballer currently playing for the Central Coast Mariners in the Hyundai A-LeagueA-LeagueThe A-League is the top Australasian professional football league. Run by Australian governing body Football Federation Australia , it was founded in 2004 following the folding of the National Soccer League and staged its inaugural season in 2005–06. It is sponsored by Hyundai Motor Company... - Martin FloodMartin FloodMartin Flood is an Australian quiz show contestant who competed in the show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, and participated in the short-lived program The Master. Flood was an I.T. analyst for Westpac bank at the time of winning 'Millionaire'...
, Australian quiz champion - Mel GibsonMel GibsonMel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
, actor - Yvette Wilkinson, Australian basketball representative
External links
- Information on Wahroonga at Ku-ring-gai council's website
- Rose Seidler House
- Heritage Homes of Wahroonga