Bilgola Beach is a

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...

in northern

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, in the state of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, Australia 33 kilometres north-east of the

Sydney central business district The Sydney central business district (CBD) is the historical and main Central business district, commercial centre of Sydney. The CBD is Sydney's city centre, or Sydney City, and the two terms are used interchangeably. Colloquially, the CBD or c ...

, in the

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a State (administrative division), state, province, divi ...

Northern Beaches Council The Northern Beaches Council is a local government area located in the Northern Beaches region of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The council was formed on 12 May 2016 after the amalgamation of Manly, Pittwater and Warringa ...

. It is part of the

Northern Beaches The Northern Beaches is a region within Northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, near the Pacific coast. This area extends south to the entrance of Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour), west to Middle Harbour and north to the entra ...

region. It and

Bilgola Plateau Bilgola Plateau is a suburb in Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The suburb is mainly residential, with two small rows of shops, a small park and a primary school located on the top of the plateau. Bilgola Beach on the eastern ...

were gazetted as suburbs in 2012 dividing the previous suburb of Bilgola.

Location

Bilgola Beach is located on the

Tasman Sea The Tasman Sea (Māori: ''Te Tai-o-Rēhua'', ) is a marginal sea of the South Pacific Ocean, situated between Australia and New Zealand. It measures about across and about from north to south. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abe ...

side of the Barrenjoey Peninsula between Avalon Beach to the north and

Newport Newport most commonly refers to: *Newport, Wales *Newport, Rhode Island, US Newport or New Port may also refer to: Places Asia *Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay Europe Ireland *Newport, County Mayo, a town on the ...

to the south. The land rises steeply behind Bilgola Beach to

and then descends to

Clareville Clareville is a suburb in northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Clareville is 36 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Northern Beaches Council. Clareville is p ...

on the western side of the peninsula.

History

The name "Bilgola" is derived from an

Aboriginal Aborigine, aborigine or aboriginal may refer to: *Aborigines (mythology), in Roman mythology * Indigenous peoples, general term for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area *One of several groups of indigenous peoples, see ...

term ''Belgoula'' meaning "swirling waters", or perhaps "a pretty beach with steep slopes, studded with cabbage palms". The word ''Belgoula'' was noted in Surveyor James Meehan's records of 1814. Robert Henderson received a grant of in 1822 which he named "Belgoola". The district eventually adopted the simplified name "Bilgola". The area was owned by the McLurcan family from the start of the early 1900s. Mrs McLurcan was famous for her cookery book, 'Mrs McLurcan's Cookery Book'. The large family home was surrounded by cabbage tree palms, for which the area is noted. There were plans during the 1960s to build a bridge bypass of the twisting road ('Bilgola Bends') between the north and south headlands of Bilgola. The bridge was not built but a small amount of landfill was added to remove a sharp bend in the southern end of the road in preparation for construction. The bend still remains, with the landfill now providing a small grassy area, with an excellent view of Newport Beach.

Demographics

According to the 2011 census of Population, there were 3,863 residents in Bilgola (now the suburbs of Bilgola Beach and Bilgola Plateau). 71.7% of people were born in Australia. The most common other countries of birth were England 9.4%, New Zealand 1.7%, United States of America 1.4%, South Africa 1.0% and Germany 1.0%. 89.7% of people only spoke English at home. Other languages spoken at home included German 1.5%, Italian 0.6%, French 0.6%, Swedish 0.4% and Dutch 0.4%. The most common responses for religion in Bilgola were No Religion 27.8%, Anglican 24.9%, Catholic 21.2%, Uniting Church 4.1% and Presbyterian and Reformed 3.6%.

Transport

The main road connecting the northern part of the Barrenjoey Peninsula to the rest of Sydney,

Barrenjoey Road Barrenjoey Road is a main urban road along the northern coast of the Northern Beaches suburbs of Sydney, Australia. In 1978, the Barrenjoey Road area came to national attention due to the unsolved disappearance of Trudie Adams. Route Barrenjoe ...

, runs through Hewitt Park along the cliff line between Bilgola headland and Bilgola South headland. The road separates Bilgola Plateau from Bilgola Beach.

Sport and recreation

Bilgola

Surf Life Saving Club Surf Life Saving Clubs (or SLSCs) are volunteer institutions at Australia's beaches.{{cite news, last1=Moody, first1=Sherele, title=Surf Life Saving Australia: Safety at the beach isn't cheap, url=https://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/news/Being-sa ...

is located at Bilgola Beach. It was formed in the summer of 1949 with construction of the club house beginning in 1950. Avalon Bilgola Amateur Swimming Club swims at the Bilgola Rock Pool on Saturday mornings during the summer months. The club was formed in 1961.

References

External links

Bilgola, from Beachnet

Bilgola Surf Lifesaving Club

Avalon Bilgola Amateur Swimming Club
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bilgola Beach, New South Wales Suburbs of Sydney Beaches of New South Wales Northern Beaches Council