The boat shed at the bottom of Hilly Street, looking towards Green Point, taken from the top of Montgomery’s Palace Hotel c1920s. The Mortlake-Putney Punt now crosses the Parramatta River from this spot. Nearby is a small beach, known as Fairmile Cove, where naval boats were assembled during World War II.
In the middle distance is Green Point, previously called Bachelor’s Point, which was refurbished in 2019 and renamed Wangal Reserve, in recognition of the traditional owners whose lands stretched along the southern shore of the Parramatta River (Burramattagal) from Blackwattle Bay to Silverwater.
At the northern end of the reserve was a community dance hall, a popular venue on a Saturday night. In the distance can be seen the Dutch-style gatehouse marking the entrance to “Rivendell”, formerly Thomas Walker Hospital, completed in 1893 by Dame Eadith Walker in memory of her father.
In the opposite direction, taken from the same vantage point is Tennyson Road, formerly Wharf Road and once part of Burwood Road that snaked its way across country to link with the current Burwood Road. At the top of the hill the AGL works can be made out with one of its gasholders visible on the left.
Cows can be seen grazing near the tramway about halfway up the hill. The village of Mortake is scattered about with houses and a few stores well-spaced out. Many of the workers at the gas works came to work on the tram that ran between Enfield and Mortlake via Burwood.
What you never knew about top-secret facility. From employing hundreds of Aussies to playing a key role in the US defence missile shield. Pine Gap’s secrets are slowly starting to emerge. It is considered one of the country’s most secretive and strategically important sites. But unless you work at Pine Gap, or have spent decades…
When the 20th century was new, Australians took active part in most of their amusements. At home they would play musical instruments, or they would play cards or other games, they would watch magic lantern shows, or they would read. If they went out it was likely to be to a dance, unless it was…
Have you ever looked at the date on the War Memorial in Burwood Park? It’s worth looking at carefully because it reveals an interesting fact . . the dates of the First World War are given as 1914-1919. This is in contrast to most modern sources which give the dates as 1914-1918. On researching the…
Coin Tester & Sorting Machine This is a brown metal container approximately 300mm high, 300mm wide and 300mm deep. There are two slots at the top, with different widths, which, one could assume, would take the one shilling and two shilling coins. There is another opening at the bottom just above the long tray which,…
The ‘world’s fastest man on water”, Ken Warby (83), died this month four decades after establishing his record-breaking speed of 411km/h. This was achieved by strapping a fighter jet engine onto the back of his speedboat Spirit of Australia. This record, set in 1978, has still not been broken. What many people don’t know is…
On Christmas Day 1914 there was an unofficial ceasefire along the Western Front. In the week before German and British soldiers crossed the trenches to exchange seasons’ greetings, gifts and even prisoners. There were joint burial ceremonies and some meetings ended with the singing of Christmas carols. One of the most enduring images of the…