Chester Hill, 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 ...
of the
City of Canterbury-Bankstown
The City of Canterbury Bankstown (also known as Canterbury-Bankstown Council) is a local government, local government area located in the South Western Sydney, South Western region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The council was formed on ...
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 ...
, is located 19 kilometres west 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 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
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
, and is part of
Western Sydney
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
, Chester Hill shares the
postcode of 2162 with the neighbouring suburb of
Sefton.
History
An early market garden and orchard area north-west of Bankstown, it developed into a residential and light industrial area after the Regents Park railway line came through in 1924. The construction site of the station was known as ''Boroya'', an aboriginal word of unknown meaning, but when the station opened on 8 October 1924, it carried the name ''Chester Hill''.
A local resident, Miss H. A. McMillan first suggested that the new railway station should be called Hillcrest (after an estate near
Regent's Park
Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies of high ground in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the Borough of Camden (and historically betwee ...
), but many objections were raised and the name was discarded. Miss McMillan then suggested Hillchester, after a quaint town in England, but this also was not well received by the community (it was later learnt that McMillian created the story of an English town to gain support for the name, as no such locality with the name Hillchester exists). Suggesting yet another name, McMillian recommended Chester Hill which was received far better than her previous suggestions.
The area that became Chester Hill was originally the southern part of John Thomas Campbell's ''Campbell Hill'' estate, which covered in 1815 between Parramatta, Liverpool and Woodville Roads. Much of this land remained undeveloped until the first subdivision was made in the 1920s when the first shops were also built. The post office opened in July 1934, and the first public school in January 1945.
[''The Book of Sydney Suburbs'', Compiled by Frances Pollon, Angus & Robertson Publishers, 1990, Published in Australia , page 60]
A significant tract of land between Priam and Hector Streets had been occupied by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) from the 1960s. This area was used for accommodation and mess facilities for the nearby 2 Stores Depot (Regents Park) and the Ground Equipment Maintenance Squadron (Villawood). These properties were disposed of and subsequently acquired first by the Southern Cross Bible College and then by Salamah (Muslim) College.
In March 2021, the suburb was impacted by a tornado causing minor damage.
Commercial area
![Chester Hill shops](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Chester_Hill_shops.JPG)
Chester Square in Chester Hill is the main shopping centre, catering for the catchment of Chester Hill, Sefton,
Birrong
Birrong, a suburb of local government area City of Canterbury-Bankstown, is located 22 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney reg ...
and
Bass Hill
Bass Hill, () a suburb of local government area City of Canterbury-Bankstown, is located 23 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydne ...
, and directly situated behind the main road of Waldron Road. Amenities in the suburb include the Chester Hill branch of the Bankstown City Library, Chester Hill Fire Station and a community centre.
Transport
*
Chester Hill railway station
Chester Hill railway station is located on the Main South line, serving the Sydney suburb of Chester Hill. It is served by Sydney Trains T3 Bankstown line services.
History
Chester Hill station opened on 8 October 1924 when the Main South li ...
is on the
Bankstown Line
The Bankstown Line (numbered T3, coloured orange) is a commuter rail line operated by Sydney Trains in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It serves Canterbury-Bankstown and parts of the Inner West and Western Sydney. The Bankstown railway ...
of the
Sydney Trains
Sydney Trains is the operator of the suburban passenger rail network serving the city of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The network is a hybrid urban- suburban rail system with a central underground core that covers over of track and 170 ...
network.
* Bus links to
Parramatta
Parramatta () is a suburb and major Central business district, commercial centre in Greater Western Sydney, located in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located approximately west of the Sydney central business district on the ban ...
and
Bankstown
Bankstown is a suburb south west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 16 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is located in the local government area of the City of Canterbury-Bankstown, hav ...
Schools
There are five schools in Chester Hill:
Chester Hill Public School
Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
and Chester Hill North Public School, which cater for Years K-6,
Chester Hill High School
Chester Hill High School is a high school located in Chester Hill, New South Wales, Australia. It caters for students from years 7 to 12. Classes began on 4 February 1962 with 325 students. The school was officially opened on 1 March 1965 by Ja ...
catering for Years 7–12, Sefton High School which is a partially selective high school also catering for Years 7-12 and
Salamah College
Salamah College is an independent Islamic co-educational primary and secondary day school, located in Chester Hill, a south-western suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The school motto is ''Education. Faith. Discipline''.
Salamah C ...
(sister school of
Al Amanah College
, motto_translation = Success Through Knowledge
, city = Bankstown and Liverpool, South Western Sydney
, state = New South Wales
, country = Australia
, coordinates =
, pushpin_m ...
) established in 2012.
Parks and recreation
Parks in Chester Hill include Campbell Hill Reserve, Everley Park, Nugent Park, the
Terry Lamb Complex
The Terry Lamb Complex is a series of grass sporting fields located on the corner of Waldron and Miller Roads, , Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The complex is the home ground of the Chester Hill Hornets who compete in the Canterbury-Banksto ...
, which incorporates Frank Bamfield Oval, and Abbott Park which is home to the Chester Hill Youth
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...
Club and Chester Hill Hornets Junior
Rugby league
Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...
Club. Recreational amenities also include an RSL Club,
bowling
Bowling is a target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a ball toward pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). The term ''bowling'' usually refers to pin bowling (most commonly ten-pin bowling), though ...
club and
community garden
A community garden is a piece of land gardened or cultivated by a group of people individually or collectively. Normally in community gardens, the land is divided into individual plots. Each individual gardener is responsible for their own plo ...
.
Churches
Churches in the suburb include St John Mark's Parish Church (Anglican), Proctor Parade (that replaced St Mark's Church, Chester Hill and St John's Church, Sefton), Immaculate Heart of Mary Roman Catholic Church, Proctor Parade (Sefton – but including Chester Hill within its parish), Hope Central Church (formerly Priam, now Christina Road) Campbell Hill Road, St Columba's Presbyterian Church, Baptist Church (both in Priam Street) and Hope Harvest Centre: Christian Mission Fellowship.
Population
Demographics
According to the
2016 census, there were 12,814 residents in Chester Hill. 50.7% of people were born in Australia. The next most common countries of birth were Vietnam 9.9%, Lebanon 7.1%, China 4.1%, New Zealand 1.7% and Iraq 1.4%. In Chester Hill 32.9% of people spoke only English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Arabic 23.3%, Vietnamese 12.1%, Cantonese 4.5%, Mandarin 4.1% and Italian 1.1%. The most common responses for religion were Islam 27.1%, Catholic 20.1%, No Religion 13.3% and Buddhism 10.7%. The median household weekly income in Chester Hill was $1,125, lower than the national median of $1,438.
Chester Hill is officially the gun capital of Sydney, with one registered firearm for every 3.8 residents according to 2015 police data.
Notable residents
*
Christian Heim – composer and medical researcher who grew up in Chester Hill
*
Terry Lamb
Terence John Lamb (born 15 September 1961), also nicknamed "Baa", is an Australian former rugby league footballer and coach. He played 350 games, with the Western Suburbs (1980–1983) and Canterbury (1984–1996).
Lamb was known for his su ...
– former professional
rugby league
Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...
footballer with the
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs
The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the NRL Telstra Premiership, as well as competitions facilita ...
and Australian Test side
*
Rebecca Rippon
Rebecca Marie Rippon (born 26 December 1978) is an Australian water polo player. She represented Australia as a member of the Australia women's national water polo team at the 2004 Summer Olympics and the 2008 Summer Olympics, where she won ...
– Australian women's water polo player and 2008
Beijing Olympic Games bronze medallist
*
Melissa Rippon
Melissa Alison Rippon (born 20 January 1981 in Sydney) is an Australian water polo player. Her sister is Rebecca Rippon and her step-sister is Kate Gynther, both of whom have been members of Australia's national water polo team and competed at ...
– Australian women's water polo player winner of a 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games bronze medal
*
Ivan Milat
Ivan Robert Marko Milat (27 December 1944 – 27 October 2019) was an Australian serial killer who was convicted in the backpacker murders in 1996. Commonly known as the Backpacker Murderer, Milat captured, assaulted, robbed and murdered two me ...
– serial killer known for the
Backpacker Murders
*
Michael McCann (field hockey)
Michael McCann OAM (born 26 September 1977) is a field hockey striker from Sydney, Australia, who won the gold medal with the Australia national field hockey team at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. He was included in the national squad for ...
– Australian Men's hockey Olympic gold medal (2004 Athens)
Politics
Chester Hill is part of the
City of Canterbury-Bankstown
The City of Canterbury Bankstown (also known as Canterbury-Bankstown Council) is a local government, local government area located in the South Western Sydney, South Western region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The council was formed on ...
. The area to the north of the pipeline is part of the
Cumberland Council
Cumberland Council is the local authority for Cumberland in England. It is a unitary authority, the structural change order names the new Cumberland Council as only a district council. It will operate as a shadow authority until taking up its pow ...
. For state elections, Chester Hill is split between the electorates of Bankstown and Auburn. Federally, it lies in the
division of Blaxland
The Division of Blaxland is an Australian electoral division in the state of New South Wales.
Blaxland runs from the North Shore and Western railway line in the north to Marion Street and the Bankstown railway line in the south, between Wood ...
.
References
{{City of Canterbury-Bankstown topics, state=collapsed
Suburbs of Sydney
Muslim enclaves