Homebush West
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Homebush West 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 the
Inner West The Inner West of Sydney is an area directly west of the Sydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia. The suburbs that make up the Inner West are predominantly located along the southern shore of Port Jackson (Parramatta River) ...
of
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 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 ...
. Homebush West is located 13 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
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 ...
of the
Municipality of Strathfield The Municipality of Strathfield, also known as Strathfield Council, is a local government area in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Strathfield Council was incorporated on 2 June 1885. The Council area was ...
, with a small unpopulated strip in the northwest in
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 ...
. The suburb is commonly referred to as Flemington, even in official contexts. This was the old name of the suburb before the establishment of
Sydney Markets The Sydney Markets are a group of wholesale and retail markets in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The Sydney Markets are located in the Inner West locality of Flemington, New South Wales, 16 kilometres west of the Sydney central business dist ...
in 1975. Subsequently, " Flemington" was confined to the area occupied by the markets, whereas the residential part of the suburb was renamed "Homebush West", after the suburb of
Homebush Homebush is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located 12 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the Local government in Australia, local government area of the Municipali ...
immediately to the east. Both the railway station and various organisations and businesses in the suburb still carry the name "Flemington". Homebush Bay was formerly a separate suburbs to the north.


History

The area was called Flemington by John Fleming, who was granted here in 1806. A loosely defined area in the vicinity had earlier been called "Liberty Plains", because it was granted to the first free settlers "Liberty Plains" survives as the name of the
Parish of Liberty Plains Liberty Plains Parish is one of the 57 parishes of Cumberland County, New South Wales, a cadastral unit for use on land titles. It is bounded by Parramatta Road in the north; the boundary between Flemington and Homebush, a small part of Cooks ...
, a cadastral unit for land titles. Homebush West is at the eastern extremity of the Parish of Liberty Plaints - neighbouring Homebush is in the
Parish of Concord Concord Parish is one of the 57 parishes of Cumberland County, New South Wales, a cadastral unit for use on land titles. It is located to the south of the Parramatta River between Homebush Bay and Iron Cove; and to the north of Cooks River. It i ...
. The neighbouring suburb of Homebush is named after a nearby estate called "Home Bush", around today's
Sydney Olympic Park Sydney Olympic Park is a suburb of Greater Western Sydney, located 13 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Parramatta Council. It is commonly known as Olympic Park but officially na ...
, established in the 1800s by the colony's then assistant surgeon
D'arcy Wentworth D'Arcy Wentworth (14 February 1762 – 7 July 1827) was an Irish surgeon, the first paying passenger to arrive in the new colony of New South Wales. He served under the first seven governors of the Colony, and from 1810 to 1821, he was ''great a ...
. According to local government historian Michael Jones, "Wentworth is popularly credited with having called the area after his 'home in the bush', although Homebush is also a place in
Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
." Wentworth's estate did not include the village of "Homebush" south of the railway: the name came to the village indirectly, via
Homebush railway station Homebush railway station is a heritage-listed railway station located on the Main Suburban line in Homebush in the Municipality of Strathfield local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It was designed and built by the New South Wa ...
, built in 1855 and named after Wentworth's estate further to the north. The part of the Fleming estate south of the railway was acquired by the Underwood Estate and subdivided in 1882, with streets laid out in a grid pattern that survives to this day.Strathfield Heritage - Homebush West and Flemington
/ref> The streets in the grid are named after various locations in southern England, such as
Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...
, Henley,
Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...
,
Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...
,
Tavistock Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town within West Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy from which its name derives. At the 2011 census the three electoral wards (North, South and South West) had a population of 13,028 ...
and
Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...
.


Flemington markets

North of the railway, the bush was turned into paddocks and from 1883 was the site of a cattle saleyard, relocated from North Homebush, further east. In 1892, Strathfield Municipality expanded west, taking in a large area including the part of Flemington south of the railway, after which homes in this part of the suburb became listed in directories under "Strathfield". The part of the suburb north of the railway was incorporated into the Municipality of Homebush (which also covered the part of modern-day Homebush north of the railway), which was eventually incorporated into Strathfield Municipality in 1947. In the early 1970s, the Sydney Markets were built at Flemington to relieve the Paddy's Markets at
Haymarket Haymarket may refer to: Places Australia * Haymarket, New South Wales, area of Sydney, Australia Germany * Heumarkt (KVB), transport interchange in Cologne on the site of the Heumarkt (literally: hay market) Russia * Sennaya Square (''Hay Squ ...
, in the city. Since the establishment of
Sydney Markets The Sydney Markets are a group of wholesale and retail markets in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The Sydney Markets are located in the Inner West locality of Flemington, New South Wales, 16 kilometres west of the Sydney central business dist ...
at Flemington in 1975, the residential part of the suburb, south of the railway line became known as Homebush West. The Chinese community in Sydney has long had a strong presence in the market gardening sector in Sydney as well as the fruit and vegetable trade, which resulted in the development of a Chinatown at Haymarket. A number of these trading firms owned by members of the Chinese community developed into international conglomerates operating across the Asia-Pacific. When the markets, together with these trading firms, moved to Flemington, it brought a large ethnically Chinese presence to Homebush West in the form of Chinese grocery stores, restaurants and Chinese-speaking doctors and pharmacists to service the market traders and their customers. The move of the markets coincided with the start of the wave of
Vietnamese migration Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia ** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam. * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Over ...
to Australia in the 1970s. Many of these immigrants also moved into the market garden trade. With a concentration of Chinese, Vietnamese-Chinese and Vietnamese businesses, Homebush West village centre acquired a cosmopolitan character with a southeast Asian flavour which it has retained to this day.


Ford factory site

West of Flemington markets, separated from the rest of the suburb by the A3 arterial road and the railway, the Ford car factory was built in 1935 and closed in 1994. The residential area around the factory site were originally mostly built for Ford employees. The Ford factory site was part of the Borough of Rookwood, which became the Municipality of Lidcombe, which merged in turn into Auburn Council. In 1992, this area was transferred to Strathfield Council in exchange for an area to the north that was transferred to Auburn Council, in anticipation of the development of
Sydney Olympic Park Sydney Olympic Park is a suburb of Greater Western Sydney, located 13 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Parramatta Council. It is commonly known as Olympic Park but officially na ...
. A small, unpopulated strip of land in the northwest of the suburb immediately to the north of the Ford factory site, which lies between Parramatta Road and the M4 motorway, remained in Auburn Council and (after the abolition of Auburn Council) is now in Cumberland Council.


Transport

Homebush West is serviced by Flemington railway station, on the
Inner West & Leppington Line The Inner West & Leppington Line (numbered T2, coloured light blue) is a commuter rail service currently operated by Sydney Trains, serving the inner west and south-western regions of Sydney, Australia. Consisting of 37 stops, the service comm ...
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.


Description

Homebush West is divided into five areas by the railway, the A3 arterial road, Parramatta Road and the M4 motorway, each with a distinctive pattern of land use.


Flemington village (southeast)

In the original, residential part of the suburb located south of the railway, the Flemington village centre is composed of a cluster of shops located on The Crescent and nearby Henley Road, beside Flemington railway station. The village is home to a variety of Asian restaurants and business reflecting the ethnic makeups of the suburb's residents as well as the large workforce involved in the fresh food trade at Flemington markets. Chinese, Vietnamese, Sri Lankan, Indian, Malaysian and Nepalese restaurants, businesses and food stores are found across the suburb. The village is now largely made up of low-to-medium rise apartment buildings, except for a small number of detached houses close to the boundaries with Homebush and Strathfield.


Flemington markets

The Flemington markets occupy the whole area north of the railway, south of Parramatta Road and east of the A3, and is serviced by a commercial complex called the Sydney Markets Plaza, which includes banks and a supermarket. Officially, the locality of "Flemington" refers only to the market complex and related facilities. This area has its own postcode, 2129, separate from the 2140 postcode used by the rest of the suburb.


Welfare Street area

Further north, a small part of the suburb lies between Parramatta Road and the M4 motorway. This area is largely industrial, with a small residential area around Welfare Street, which was originally housing built for state abattoir employees. The houses were inherited by the Olympic Park Authority, which controversially sold them in 2014 to private owners. The houses on Welfare Street form a heritage conservation area, but are cut off from all other residential areas and are increasingly surrounded by industrial construction.


Courallie Avenue area

The part of the suburb west of the A3 road and north of the railway, which was for many years the site of the Ford factory, is largely industrial, with a small residential area on Courallie Avenue which was originally housing built for Ford employees. A recent redevelopment of the industrial area has resulted in a large estate with almost 2000 residents sharing just six street numbers on Courallie Avenue.


Arthur Street industrial area

The part of the suburb west of the A3 road and south of the railway is now almost entirely industrial. The headquarters of the large Australian retailer,
Harvey Norman Harvey Norman is a large Australian-based, multi-national retailer of furniture, bedding, computers, communications and consumer electrical products. It mainly operates as a franchise, with the main brand and all company-operated stores owned ...
, is located in this area.


Nearby

Although not technically part of the suburb, the
DFO Homebush Direct Factory Outlet (DFO) is a brand of factory outlet shopping centres in Australia. They are large-floor warehouse buildings containing partitioned stores where retail outlets sell excess or previous seasons' stocks at reduced prices. Vicini ...
factory outlet shopping centre is located just to the north of the suburb.


Schools

The local school is Homebush West Public School servicing K-6. St Dominics Primary School closed in 2006.


Places of Worship

* St Dominic's Catholic Church * St Columba Anglican Church (closed in 1999, used later as Inner West Baptist Church, heritage-listed by Strathfield Council) * St Sava Serbian Orthodox Church * Sri Karphaga Vinayakar Hindu Temple


Population

At the 2021 census, there were 9,108 residents in Homebush West. 24.4% of people were born in Australia. The next most common countries of birth were India 17.1%, China 12.5%, Nepal 12.2%, South Korea 3.4% and Philippines 2.7%. The most common reported ancestries were Chinese 24.2%, Indian 14.6%, Nepalese 12.9%, English 7.7% and Australian 4.8%. 18.4% of people spoke only English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Mandarin 12.9%, Nepali 12.5%, Cantonese 7.4%, Telugu 6.2% and Tamil 5.1%. The most common responses for religion were Hinduism 30.3%, No Religion 26.0%, Catholic 10.6%, Not stated 8.8% and Buddhism 7.3%.


Residents

The following were either born or have lived at some time in the suburb of Homebush West: *
Greg Haddrick Gregory Bevan Haddrick (7 September 1960) is an Australian-born Logie Award winning screenwriter and film and television producer. Over the last decade he has won six AWGIE Awards as a writer, two AFI Awards as a producer, and an International ...
(born 1960), screenwriter and television producer *
Ron Haddrick Ronald Norman Haddrick (9 April 1929 – 11 February 2020) was an Australian actor, cricketer, narrator and presenter. In 2012, he received the Actors Equity Lifetime Achievement Award for his long and distinguished career in media, spanning s ...
AM
MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...
(1929–2020), theatre, television, film and voice actorLEADING MAN — IN ART AND LIFE
Retrieved 14 February 2020
* Bryan Palmer (1899–1990), Rugby Union player and coach of the Wallabies


References

{{Sydney Cumberland suburbs, state=autocollapse Suburbs of Sydney Municipality of Strathfield Cumberland Council, New South Wales