The Lower North Shore is an informal term for the lower northern suburbs of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia which are located on the north shore of Sydney Harbour. The area includes suburbs in the local government areas of Hunter's Hill, Lane Cove, Mosman, North Sydney, Ryde and Willoughby.
Geography and demographics
Lower Northern Sydney has a population of approximately 250,000 people (around 5% of Sydney). The region is over 80 square kilometers (20,000 acres) in area and encompasses all of the North Shore's northern shore of Sydney Harbour stretching from the Ryde Bridge (Ryde) in the west to Middle Head (Mosman) in the east and includes Hunter's Hill, Mosman, Kirribilli and Longueville.
The region is home to hundreds of parks and reserves, the main two being the Sydney Harbour National Park and the Lane Cove National Park. Local sportsgrounds include North Sydney Oval, the region's largest in capacity, followed by Chatswood Oval and Christie Park.
Major waterways in the region include Port Jackson Harbour which is where the famous Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House are located, the Lane Cove River, the Parramatta River, Middle Harbour and the many creek systems that branch out from these main aquatic lifelines. Besides its people, the water is the most characteristic feature of the region, giving Lower Northern Sydney its unique character and evident affluence.
History
Before European settlement, the Lower North Shore was home to the Gorualgal (Mosman & Southern Willoughby), Cammeraygal (North Sydney & Eastern Lane Cove) and Wallumettagal (Ryde-Hunters Hill & Western Lane Cove) tribes. The first settlement on the North Shore and in fact the third-earliest in Australia (behind Sydney and Parramatta) was at Ryde; then known by the Aboriginal name Wallumetta. Long before the establishment of Sydney-style local government, Lower Northern Sydney was divided into parishes.
The six local governments that stand today were derived from two: the Parish of Willoughby and the Parish of Hunters Hill (Kissing Point). From Hunters Hill came the modern-day Municipality of Hunters Hill and the Municipality of Ryde (now the City of Ryde). From the Parish of Willoughby came the Municipality of Willoughby (now the City of Willoughby) and the municipalities of Mosman, Lane Cove and North Sydney. North Sydney was formerly known as St. Leonards and at one time the entire North Shore went by the name of "Huntershill".
As Sydney grew, areas such as North Ryde and Lane Cove began to be more costly to move into. Lower Northern Sydney's real success stories however lie at the water's edge as suburbs to the likes of Tennyson Point, Cremorne Point, Balmoral, Woolwich, Longueville, Castle Cove and McMahons Point skyrocketted in price.
Local landmarks
Lower Northern Sydney has many unique landmarks, on an international level these include: The Sydney Harbour Bridge, Taronga Zoo in Mosman, Kirribilli House (Residence of the Prime Minister of Australia), Luna Park, Balmoral Beach and the Macquarie University. At a Sydney or local level however, landmarks are more plentiful and include: The Lane Cove Azalea Beds, the Ryde Civic Plaza, Blues Point Tower, Eden Gardens, the Balmoral Rotunda, Brush Farm House in Eastwood, the Gladesville and Ryde Bridges, the Stanton Library in North Sydney, Lane Cove Mall, Zenith Towers at Chatswood, Microsoft Australian HQ in North Ryde, Northpoint (Hyundai) Tower in North Sydney, Northbridge suspension bridge at Northbridge, Echo Point Park in Roseville Chase, the Royal North Shore and Ryde Hospitals, the 'Forum' in St Leonards, Macquarie Centre & Ice Skating Rink, Curzon Hall in Marsfield and North Sydney Oval.
Landmark Churches and Cathedrals in the area include St. Mary's in North Sydney, St. Annes in Top Ryde (Australia's 3rd oldest), Cliffton Gardens in Mosman, Christ's Church in Lavender Bay, the Gladesville-Macquarie Chapel, |St. Pauls in Chatswood and St. Andrews in Eastwood. :)
Lower Northern Sydney's role in Global Sydney
"Global Sydney" or the "Sydney Global Corridor", is often used to describe a geographical 'arch' of Sydney home to international corporations and interests. Lower Northern Sydney has three large commercial centres located at North Sydney, North Ryde and Chatswood and it is because of these three of the region's areas that Lower Northern Sydney is an important part of Global Sydney. Many global companies have there Asia Pacific or Australian Headquarters in this part of Sydney. The region's largest CBD, North Sydney, is home to a beautiful and modern urban skyline. Although North Sydney has none of Sydney's major shopping centres, it is home to scores of specialty stores and has an abundance of Cafès. Lower Northern Sydney's three tallest buildings are located in the North Sydney CBD; Optus Tower, Berry Square and Northpoint Tower.
North Ryde is undisputedly Australia's hi-tech hub and is home to scores of international corporations including Microsoft, Boeing, Fujitsu, HP, Avaya and Optus. North Ryde also has the Ryde-Hunters Hill Equestrian Club, a quality golf course, an Olympic field hockey venue, the Macquarie University and Macquarie Centre.
Chatswood is sometimes described as the city in the hilltops and is the shopping heart of Northern Sydney with a cosmopolitan and vivacious city atmosphere. The busiest of the region's main centres, Chatswood is home to many apartment towers, perhaps the most prominent being The Sebel.
Regional traditions
Lower Northern Sydney's largest annual event is the Granny Smith Festival held in the suburb of Eastwood usually in October of each year. The festival's attendance record set in 2004 currently stands at approximately just over 90,000. Many are attracted each year by the live bands, shows, stores, rides, the main street parade down Rowe Street and of course the massive fireworks display in the skies over Eastwood.
The region's second-biggest annual event is the Willoughby Spring Festival held in the suburb of Chatswood usually in September or October of each year. The festival lasts for about a month and includes live music/entertainment, shops, speeches and many community activities & events.
Lower Northern Sydney's other main festivals/events include: Tartan Day at Lane Cove, the Ryde Aquatic Festival & Bridge to Bridge run, the Guringgai Festival honoring northern Sydney's Aboriginals, the Moocooboola Festival at Hunters Hill, the Mosman Festival, Lane Cove's Cammeraygal Festival, Chinese New Year at Chatswood, and the Ryde Summer Festival which mainly includes outdoor cinemas. Mosman, North Sydney, Ryde and Willoughby also hold annual art prizes. All local government areas in the region and around the country celebrate Australia Day, which is the 26th of January.
Famous people
Lower Northern Sydney is home to various famous Australian identities. These include: Prime Minister John Howard, Olympian and Paralympian Louise Sauvage, NSW Deputy Premier and current Transport Minister John Watkins, author Ruth Park, Australian Federal Minister for Human Services Joe Hockey, former World No. 1 tennis player Pat Rafter, Veteran Wallaby (Australian Rugby Union) players Matthew Burke, George Gregan, and Phil Kearns artist Ken Done and actress Nicole Kidman and many more.
Localities of Lower Northern Sydney
Adwill Place, Artarmon, Balmoral, Beauty Point, Blaxlands Corner, Blenheim Road, Blues Point, Boronia Park, Brush Farm, Cammeray, Castle Cove, Castlecrag, Chatswood, Chatswood West, Clifton Gardens, Cremorne, Cremorne Junction, Cremorne Point, Crows Nest, Denistone, Denistone East, Denistone West, East Ryde, Eastwood, Flat Rock, Fullers Bridge, Georges Heights, Gladesville, Gore Hill, Greenwich, Henley, Hunter's Hill, Huntleys Point, Kirribilli, Kurraba Point, Lane Cove, Lane Cove West, Lavender Bay, Linley Point, Longueville, Macquarie Park, Macquarie University, Marsfield, McMahons Point, Middle Cove, Milsons Point, Monash Park, Morrisons Bay, Mosman, Mosman Bay, Naremburn, Neutral Bay, Neutral Bay Junction, North Ryde, North Sydney, Northbridge, Northwood, Osborne Park, Putney, Riverview, Riverside, Roseville, Roseville Chase, Ryde, Shepherds Bay, Spit Junction, St Leonards, Tarban, Tennyson Point, The Spit, Top Ryde, Waverton,West Ryde, Willoughby, Willoughby North, Wollstonecraft, Woolwich.
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| List of Sydney suburbs | edit box |
External links
- Hunters Hill Municipal Website - [1]
- Lane Cove Municipal Website - [2]
- Mosman Municipal Website - [3]
- North Sydney Municipal Website - [4]
- City of Ryde Website - [5]
- City of Willoughby Website - [6]
- Australian Bureau of Statistics - [7]
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This page uses content from Lower North Shore (Sydney) at the English Wikipedia, which is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. |