North Ryde 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 ...
located in the
Northern Sydney
Northern Sydney is a large metropolitan area in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia on the north shore of Sydney Harbour and Parramatta River. The region embraces suburbs in Sydney’s north-east, north and inner north west. Northern Sydney is ...
region 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 ...
. North Ryde is located 15 kilometres north-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
City of Ryde
The City of Ryde is a local government area in the Northern Sydney region, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It was first established as the Municipal District of Ryde in 1870, became a municipality in 1906 and was proclaimed as the ...
.
One of Australia's major business districts, North Ryde is home to many multi-national corporations such as
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...
,
Hewlett Packard
The Hewlett-Packard Company, commonly shortened to Hewlett-Packard ( ) or HP, was an American multinational information technology company headquartered in Palo Alto, California. HP developed and provided a wide variety of hardware components ...
,
Oracle
An oracle is a person or agency considered to provide wise and insightful counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. As such, it is a form of divination.
Description
The word '' ...
,
Dimension Data
Dimension Data is a company specialising in information technology services. Based in Johannesburg, South Africa, the company maintains operations on every inhabited continent. Dimension Data focuses on services including IT consulting, technic ...
and
Honeywell
Honeywell International Inc. is an American publicly traded, multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. It primarily operates in four areas of business: aerospace, building technologies, performance ma ...
. The suburb is the site of
Macquarie University
Macquarie University ( ) is a public research university based in Sydney, Australia, in the suburb of Macquarie Park. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the metropolitan area of S ...
and its residents include those from the university academe and the research sector. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (
CSIRO
The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is an Australian Government
The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentar ...
) also has a major site on Delhi Road in the Riverside Corporate Park.
North Ryde shares the postcode of 2113 with adjacent suburbs
Macquarie Park
Macquarie Park () is a suburb in the Northern Sydney region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Macquarie Park is located 13 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Ryde.
Macqu ...
and
East Ryde
East Ryde is a suburb of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. East Ryde is in the Northern Sydney region and is located 12 kilometers north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City ...
. These suburbs were once part of North Ryde and many businesses and residences in these suburbs still advertise their address as being in North Ryde. Adjacent Macquarie University was issued with its own postcode, 2109, by
Australia Post
Australia Post, formally the Australian Postal Corporation, is the government business enterprise that provides postal services in Australia. The head office of Australia Post is located in Bourke Street, Melbourne, which also serves as a post o ...
in the late 1980s.
History
The earliest reference to the area being known as North Ryde appears to be after the district's first public school (which opened on 25 January 1878) changed its name from City View Public School to North Ryde Public School in 1879. North Ryde was mainly farming area, until in 1897, it was sold to a Catholic parish. North Ryde is an extension of the adjacent suburb of
Ryde
Ryde is an English seaside town and civil parish on the north-east coast of the Isle of Wight. The built-up area had a population of 23,999 according to the 2011 Census and an estimate of 24,847 in 2019. Its growth as a seaside resort came af ...
which was named after the 'Ryde Store', a business run by G.M. Pope. He adopted the name from his birthplace of
Ryde
Ryde is an English seaside town and civil parish on the north-east coast of the Isle of Wight. The built-up area had a population of 23,999 according to the 2011 Census and an estimate of 24,847 in 2019. Its growth as a seaside resort came af ...
on the
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...
, in the
UK.
[''The Book of Sydney Suburbs'', Compiled by Frances Pollon, Angus & Robertson Publishers, 1990, Published in Australia , page 189] Ryde was the name used from the 1840s and adopted as the name of the municipality in 1870.
Aboriginal culture
The whole area between the Parramatta and Lane Cove Rivers was originally populated by
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...
and known by its Aboriginal name
Wallumatta
Wallumatta was the original name given to the Ryde-Hunters Hill area of Northern Sydney, Australia. Prior to the time that the area was known as Kissing Point, Wallumatta was the formal title and was named in honour of the area's native inhabitan ...
. Contact with the first white settlement's bridgehead into Australia quickly devastated much of the population through epidemics of smallpox and other diseases. The Aboriginal name survives in a local reserve, the
Wallumatta Nature Reserve
Wallumatta Nature Reserve, also called the Macquarie Hospital Bushland, is a nature reserve bushland area, surrounded by the residential suburb of East Ryde, in suburban Sydney, Australia. Once part of the Field of Mars of 1804, the reserve is t ...
, located at the corner of Twin and Cressy roads, North Ryde. Very few remnants of
Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest
The Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest (STIF) is dry sclerophyll forest community of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, that is typically found in the Inner West and Northern region of Sydney. It is also among the three of these plant communitie ...
still exist. The most substantial undisturbed area is the Wallumatta Nature Reserve in North Ryde, which is owned and managed by the
National Parks and Wildlife Service. This small and critically endangered reserve, also known as the Macquarie Hospital Bushland, is one of the last remnants of the remaining 0.5% (as at 2007) of original and
endangered
An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inva ...
turpentine-ironbark forests on
Wianamatta shale
The Wianamatta Group is a geological feature of the Sydney Basin, New South Wales, Australia that directly overlies the older (but still Triassic in age) Hawkesbury sandstone and generally comprise fine grained sedimentary rocks such as shales an ...
soil in Sydney. See
Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest
The Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest (STIF) is dry sclerophyll forest community of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, that is typically found in the Inner West and Northern region of Sydney. It is also among the three of these plant communitie ...
.
European settlement
Ryde
Ryde is an English seaside town and civil parish on the north-east coast of the Isle of Wight. The built-up area had a population of 23,999 according to the 2011 Census and an estimate of 24,847 in 2019. Its growth as a seaside resort came af ...
is the third oldest settlement in Australia, after Sydney and Parramatta. The name 'Eastern Farms' was given to the district with the 10 initial land grants in 1792. This name remained in use for a few years before 'Kissing Point' became the common name. North Ryde was established in the mid 19th century as a farming district, in what was a heavily vegetated area, next to the already established district of Ryde. The Field of Mars Common was considered dangerous, as escaped convicts and bushrangers were known to frequent the area.
Early European settlers
The earliest settler to receive a land grant in the area bordered by the Field of Mars Common and Bridge/Twin and Badajoz Roads that is now North Ryde was Jane Wood in 1800. Following land grants were to David Brown in 1802, William Kent Jnr in 1803, "Tudor Farm" being the largest land grant in the district, which included all the land between Lane Cove, Herring, Bridge and Waterloo roads, James Weavers and Michael Connor in 1804, and Thomas Granger in 1809.
![Original Land Grants RYDE 1792-1809](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/Original_Land_Grants_RYDE_1792-1809.jpg)
Amongst the earliest settlers was James Weavers, a farm labourer born in 1752, who was sentenced to death at 28 March 1787 Bury St Edmunds (Suffolk) Assizes. His sentence was reduced to transportation for life and he arrived in the colony aboard the ship ''
Surprize'' on 26 June 1790. He was granted 30 acres of land in what is now
Putney
Putney () is a district of southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.
History
Putney is an ancient paris ...
. He married Mary Hutchinson (1765-1850) in 1792 and they had four children. James Weavers and his descendants were part of a remarkable pioneering family whose members variously survived the hardships of harsh conditions, disease, infant mortality and the tragic loss of many of its members in an isolated settlement. James Weavers did well as a farmer and in 1803 he purchased a 60-acre farm (originally granted to Jane Wood, now the site of the North Ryde Golf Course) and received a 100-acre grant of adjoining land in 1804. James Weavers is thought to have been killed by Aborigines on 3 April 1805 and although his burial was registered at St Philips Church, his descendants believe that he was buried on his own land. The earliest settlers to farm in the
Putney district were often related by marriages and this included the Weavers, Wicks, Benson, Cox, Hicks and Heard families of North Ryde.
Henry Heard came to Sydney from Devonshire and acquired four acres of land on Twin Road and planted an
orchard
An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees which are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of larg ...
. He and his wife Mary Jane had nine children, four sons and five daughters born between 1859 and 1876. Apart from the first child, William, who was born and died in 1859 and registered in
St Leonards St Leonards may refer to:
Places Australia
*St Leonards, New South Wales
**St Leonards railway station
*St Leonards, Tasmania, suburb of Launceston
*St Leonards, Victoria
Canada
*St. Leonard's, Newfoundland and Labrador
New Zealand
* St L ...
, all the other children were registered in Ryde. Therefore, the growing Heard family must have come to the district just before 1860. He continued to acquire more acreage and expand his orchards and vineyards. After his death one of his sons obtained a further 24 acres, bounded on the north and north-east by Joseph Cox's property, on the south and south-east by Wicks Road, on the south-west by Twin Road. In addition to this orchard he also obtained 12 acres of bush land which was further cleared to expand the farm. The Heard's orchard was named the Model Farm. Two of Heard's cottages survive to this day, the main house at 505 Twin Road and semi-detached Orchard House (1890) and Heards Cottage (1895) on the corner of Cox's and Wicks Roads, North Ryde and is listed on Ryde Council's Heritage List (No. 97).
![Joseph Cox's Farm North Ryde, c1882](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bb/Joseph_Cox%27s_Farm_North_Ryde%2C_c1882.jpg)
Around 1868 Joseph Cox and his brother William, originally from Kent in England, purchased 21 acres of land in North Ryde for £1425. William left to pursue farming on the other side of the Parramatta River. Joseph, along with his wife persevered and named their homestead "Pomona". They had six children. With extensive orchards and vineyards, Joseph was also a skilled winemaker. Around 1880 Joseph built an impressive three storey manor from locally quarried stone, and a private carriageway with entrance and exit to Cox's Road via ornate iron gates hinged on skillfully dressed stone pillars. From the upstairs verandah they had an excellent view of Sydney. "Pomona" was located near the North Ryde Public School on the opposite side of Cox's Road.
George Wicks was the Mayor of Ryde in 1876 and he and his wife Sarah Goulding had a total of 12 children. Henry William Watts (Sarah Weavers’ son from her second marriage to William Watts) served as an alderman on Ryde Council and was Mayor from 1886 to 1887. These descendants of James Weavers were orchardists with properties bordering the Field of Mars Common in North Ryde. They were among a few men and women who represented the sizeable proportion of Ryde's population who were small landholders based on family farms and who actively campaigned for a local school in what is now North Ryde.
Motorcycling
In 1928 the Chatswood Motorcycle Club built a course in the area now known as the Commandment Rock Picnic Area of Lane Cove National Park. The North Ryde circuit was an early version of off-road speedway. The first North Ryde meetings were held in May and October 1928. It was reported that the October meeting attracted 7000 spectators. The Commandment Rock course was closed and another circuit known as the North Ryde Speedway was developed on what is now part of North Ryde Golf Course (then known as Cox's Paddock), opposite from the present day School of Arts in Cox's Road. The track was located in a natural amphitheatre giving spectators an excellent view of the events. A typical meeting comprised 30 events of ten laps each. It closed in about 1935 when the golf course development began and the Chatswood Club merged with Willoughby Motor Cycle Club. One upcoming rider was Ray "Broadside" Taylor, who went on to become Australian Speedway Champion and an international speedway star of the 1930s and 1940s. His motorcycle was named "Daisy" after his wife. As a boy he moved with his family from
Dubbo
Dubbo () is a city in the Orana Region of New South Wales, Australia. It is the largest population centre in the Orana region, with a population of 43,516 at June 2021.
The city is located at the intersection of the Newell, Mitchell, and Gol ...
, NSW, to the Sydney suburb of
West Ryde
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some R ...
where he finished his education. His first dirt track race meeting was at North Ryde run by the Chatswood Motorcycle Club where he won five of the six races entered.
World War II
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
a substantial army base, the 3rd Australian Ordnance Army Vehicle Park was located in North Ryde, bounded by Epping, Wicks, Cox's and Blenheim Roads. Substantial numbers of Jeeps, tanks, transports, emergency motorcycles, generator sets and searchlights, and various military vehicles and equipment were located there, along with heavy transport workshops, personnel and barracks.
Post-World War II
North Ryde remained rural until after
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, with a small population whose main activity up until that time was farming.
Orchards
An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees which are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of lar ...
,
market gardens
A market garden is the relatively small-scale production of fruits, vegetables and flowers as cash crops, frequently sold directly to consumers and restaurants. The diversity of crops grown on a small area of land, typically from under to som ...
,
vineyards
A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineyards ...
and
poultry
Poultry () are domesticated birds kept by humans for their eggs, their meat or their feathers. These birds are most typically members of the superorder Galloanserae (fowl), especially the order Galliformes (which includes chickens, quails, a ...
predominated the landscape. In the 1950s and 1960s the State Government purchased and subdivided much of the land for Defence Service Homes and
public housing
Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is usually owned by a government authority, either central or local. Although the common goal of public housing is to provide affordable housing, the details, terminology, def ...
. During the postwar years the character of the district underwent a major change, from rural to suburban residential. The rapid development of North Ryde saw many of the older dwellings and buildings demolished.
After the war the huts previously used by the army on the southern side of Blenheim Road were utilised as a migrant hostel and for Australian families in urgent need of accommodation due to the acute housing shortage.
A large pig farm was located at the northern end of Wicks Road and was operational until the late 1960s.
An outdoor theatre had operated in Khartoum Road for many years showing silent and then "talkie" movies and was known locally as "the Shack".
In 1956 the North Ryde Skyline Drive-In Theatre was opened on the southern corner of Waterloo and Lane Cove Roads, on land that was previously an orange orchard. It had capacity for 639 cars, a fully equipped restaurant with facilities which also housed the projection booths, and a large children's playground was located under the huge screen. It showed its final movies, Rocky IV and Conan The Destroyer, on 5 February 1986.
Cox's Road
![Thompsons Shop in Cox's Road was built in 1904](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c5/Thompsons_Shop_in_Cox%27s_Road_was_built_in_1904.jpg)
North Ryde's main street is Cox's Road (the lower part of which was previously Coomassie Street). and was originally sandstone-lined to make it easier to haul goods up and down from the wharf on the Lane Cove River to the top of the hill. Cox's Road was named after Joseph Cox who owned land and lived in the area. Coxs Road was spelled with an apostrophe (Cox's) until recent times, though local street signs and Ryde Council still call it Cox's Road. The original North Ryde Post Office on Lane Cove Road was opened in 1885 and in 1908 was moved to Cox's Road, and has since relocated premises within the Cox's Road Shopping precinct at least six times. The North Ryde School of Arts and Literary Institute, built in 1901 on land donated by William Cox of Pomona, became the venue for the annual ball, community meetings,
fetes
''Nocturnes'', L 98 (also known as ''Trois Nocturnes'' or Three Nocturnes) is an impressionist orchestral composition in three movements by the French composer Claude Debussy, who wrote it between 1892 and 1899. It is based on poems from ''Poè ...
, art exhibitions, dances and culture. Extensions were built in 1907 with the North Ryde Library Branch located here. Cox’s Road has 2 schools a Public and Catholic school, they are both primary schools.The original building was demolished in 1980 and a new Community Centre, School of Arts and Library complex was built.
![Children outside Hortons Shop 1943](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/Children_outside_Hortons_Shop_1943.jpg)
J. Thompson's Shop (1904) in Cox's Road was the general store and post office for many years, and apart from the schoolhouse and a couple of heritage listed cottages nearby are the only remaining original buildings still standing from those early years. Three gas street lamps were installed in Cox's Road in the 1920s. One has been restored and is in front of the schoolhouse. The Cox's Road Shopping Centre was destroyed by a suspicious fire around 1990 and a new shopping mall was built with improved amenities.
S.M.C Electric Lighting Substation No. 79
With the electrification of the district the S.M.C (Sydney Municipal Council) Electric Lighting Substation No. 79 located at 293 Pittwater Road, North Ryde, directly opposite North Ryde Park, was completed in 1916. However, it was never used for its intended purpose to supply the Ryde area with electricity and was simply used as a storehouse for many years. It has come to be known as "the electricity substation that never was". Now a heritage listed building, approval was given to redevelop the site into residential townhouses. The substation sits at the front of the site, with its full original S.M.C Electric Lighting Sub-Station signage still intact, with the newer developments towards the rear of the site.
Population
In the 2016 Census, there were 10,860 people in North Ryde. 57.1% of people were born in Australia. The most common countries of birth were China 7.2%, India 2.7%, England 2.3%, Philippines 2.0% and Hong Kong 1.9%. 57.4% of people only spoke English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Mandarin 8.1%, Cantonese 5.1%, Armenian 4.4%, Korean 2.1% and Italian 1.9%. The most common responses for religion were Catholic 27.8%, no religion 25.4% and Anglican 11.5%.
Commercial areas
North Ryde features many commercial and industrial developments. The Cox's Road Shopping Centre is a small
shopping mall
A shopping mall (or simply mall) is a North American term for a large indoor shopping center, usually anchored by department stores. The term "mall" originally meant a pedestrian promenade with shops along it (that is, the term was used to refe ...
that features a supermarket, the post office, and specialty shops. The Public School, Community Centre, Library and School of Arts are all located nearby. Another commercial development is located opposite featuring a number of cafes, and eateries. Another row of shops is located in Blenheim Road, including the Adwill Place Arcade. There is also another row of shops in Avon road which feature hairdressing salons, a cafe and specialist health providers.
![View from Blenheim Road of apartment towers on the former Channel 10 site](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/52/View_from_Blenheim_Road_of_apartment_towers_on_the_former_Channel_10_site.jpg)
In 1961 the
CSIRO
The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is an Australian Government
The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentar ...
Division of Food Preservation moved from
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 ...
to its new buildings at North Ryde. Although it has undergone several name changes since then, the Division now located at 11 Julius Avenue in the Riverside Corporate Park. The mid-1960s saw the combined establishment of the North Ryde Industrial Area and Macquarie University to emulate the industrial areas surrounding and associated with Stanford University near San Francisco, California.
Industries were originally limited to being "light", science related, and include research activities. The area has seen massive growth since the 1960s with the precincts in Macquarie Park and the Riverside Corporate Park now having the reputation as the leading high-tech industrial areas in Australia, attracting major information technology, communication, electronic, computing, scientific, medical, and pharmaceutical companies.
In 1994, Datacom opened its first office in Australia to expand its NZ-based services to Microsoft Australia. Datacom is a 50 year old IT company that designs, builds and runs IT systems and processes for business.
The neighbouring suburb of
Macquarie Park
Macquarie Park () is a suburb in the Northern Sydney region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Macquarie Park is located 13 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Ryde.
Macqu ...
, still considered a part of North Ryde, includes the regional
shopping centre
A shopping center (American English) or shopping centre (Commonwealth English), also called a shopping complex, shopping arcade, shopping plaza or galleria, is a group of shops built together, sometimes under one roof.
The first known collec ...
Macquarie Centre
Macquarie Centre is a shopping centre in the suburb of Macquarie Park on the North Shore of Sydney and is located opposite the main campus of Macquarie University.
Transport
The Metro North West Line offers frequent services to Macquarie ...
,
Macquarie University
Macquarie University ( ) is a public research university based in Sydney, Australia, in the suburb of Macquarie Park. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the metropolitan area of S ...
,
ARN (WSFM and The Edge 96.1 studios),
Sony
, commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...
,
Foxtel
Foxtel is an Australian pay television company—operating in cable television, direct broadcast satellite television, and IPTV streaming services. It was formed in April 2018, superseding an earlier company from 1995. The service was establi ...
,
Optus
Singtel Optus Pty Limited (commonly referred to as Optus) is an Australian Telecommunications in Australia, telecommunications company headquartered in Macquarie Park, New South Wales, Australia. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore, Si ...
,
CA, Rexel Group Australia and many corporate headquarters.
Network Ten had its headquarters and Sydney television production studios in North Ryde from 1965 until 1991, after which Global Television was located on the site until 2007. The site is now occupied by
North Ryde railway station
North Ryde railway station is located on the Metro North West Line, serving the Sydney suburb of North Ryde, New South Wales, Australia. Formerly part of the Sydney Trains T1 Northern Line, the station started operating under the Sydney Metro ...
and apartment towers.
North Ryde Station Precinct Concept Plan
The North Ryde Station Precinct Concept Plan is a concept plan currently underway to determine the future of the areas in the vicinity of
North Ryde railway station
North Ryde railway station is located on the Metro North West Line, serving the Sydney suburb of North Ryde, New South Wales, Australia. Formerly part of the Sydney Trains T1 Northern Line, the station started operating under the Sydney Metro ...
. On 4 December 2013 approval was given for the Development Control Plan (DCP) setting out vision, objectives and controls for future development of the North Ryde Station Precinct.
Construction began in 2015 and the Ryde Gardens apartment tower blocks on the old Channel 10 site, with access to North Ryde Railway Station, are occupied. The next stage of apartment towers, Lachlan's Line is also underway, with a pedestrian and cycleway bridge to be constructed over Delhi Road to give direct access to the North Ryde Railway Station.
Schools
The district's first public school, City View Public School, opened on 25 January 1878 with 45 pupils but changed its name to North Ryde Public School in 1879, which is the earliest reference to the name North Ryde. It was originally called City View as the city of Sydney was visible from the roof. The original building in Cox's Road is a brick and sandstone building built in 1877 on one acre of land donated by Richard Wicks which now houses the
New South Wales Schoolhouse Museum of Public Education. It is one of the oldest school buildings in New South Wales.
A second primary school, Truscott Street Public School, opened on 21 May 1958 to cater for the children of WWII veterans. In 1988 the Truscott Street school incorporated a "Special Unit" for children with special needs.
A large and modern senior school, North Ryde High School, was built on land between Epping, Wicks and Waterloo Roads and opened in January 1962. It was later renamed
Peter Board High School, which many residents felt took away its local identity. The school was subsequently phased out and closed in December 1998, demographics being used as justification for the decision. This move left North Ryde without a high school, with
Ryde Secondary College
Ryde Secondary College is a government-funded co-educational dual modality partially academically selective and comprehensive secondary day school, located in Ryde, a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Established in 1965 as M ...
being the nearest alternative.
A Catholic school, Holy Spirit Primary School, is located in Coxs Road, slightly further down from North Ryde Public School, on the opposite side of the road. Ryde East Primary School is located on Twin Road, with 350 students.
Arndell School is located in Badajoz Road on the Macquarie Hospital campus.
Hospitals
Macquarie Hospital
The Macquarie Hospital is bounded by Cox's, Wicks, Twin and Badajoz Roads. The Hospital commenced functioning in 1959. It was originally known as the North Ryde Mental Asylum but has undergone several other name changes from North Ryde Psychiatric Centre to Gladesville-Macquarie Hospital, following an amalgamation of services with
Gladesville Mental Hospital
The Gladesville Mental Hospital, formerly known as the Tarban Creek Lunatic Asylum, was a psychiatric hospital established in 1838 in the Sydney suburb of Gladesville. The hospital officially closed in 1993, with the last inpatient services ce ...
. Due to confusion caused by the inclusion of Gladesville in the Hospital's name, on 22 October 1999 notification was published that the Hospital was to be known as Macquarie Hospital. Macquarie Hospital is an important 195 bed specialist mental health facility offering acute admission, non-acute recovery and extended care programs for adults with a mental illness/disorder who reside within the Northern Sydney Central Coast Health catchment area. The hospital works collaboratively with a range of community mental health and specialist non-government organisations and has a catchment population of approximately 1,110,000 residents. The hospital is gazetted under the New South Wales Mental Health Act 1990. Macquarie Hospital is involved in a major planning project to develop an evidence-based service model for the future delivery of mental health services involving Northern Sydney and Central Coast catchment areas for the next ten years. This includes the development of a Procurement Feasibility Plan for a proposed Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit which may be developed on the Macquarie campus. New Horizons Enterprises, part of the Macquarie Hospital North Ryde Auxiliary, operates an acute aged care facility in Badajoz Road, on the site of the former New Horizons Service Station, with sheltered workshops and Head Office in Twin Road. Arndell Special School (Disturbed Children's Ward) is located in the Macquarie Hospital campus, along with other specialist providers and an Education Centre for training and evaluation.
There are no emergency services at Macquarie Hospital. The nearest emergency departments are at Ryde Hospital,
Concord Hospital, or
Royal North Shore Hospital
The Royal North Shore Hospital (RNSH) is a major public teaching hospital in Sydney, Australia, located in St Leonards. It serves as a teaching hospital for Sydney Medical School at the University of Sydney and has over 600 beds. It is the prin ...
.
Macquarie University Hospital
The
Macquarie University Hospital
The Macquarie University Hospital (abbreviated MUH) is a private teaching hospital owned by Macquarie University.
The hospital is located within Macquarie University and is the first private hospital to be located on a university campus in Aust ...
is a specialist private hospital that opened on 15 June 2010 located on the Campus of
Macquarie University
Macquarie University ( ) is a public research university based in Sydney, Australia, in the suburb of Macquarie Park. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the metropolitan area of S ...
in Macquarie Park, North Ryde. It is now the primary teaching hospital affiliated with the University's
Australian School of Advanced Medicine. The Hospital features some of the most advanced medical facilities in Australia, including the first
gamma knife
Radiosurgery is surgery using radiation, that is, the destruction of precisely selected areas of tissue using ionizing radiation rather than excision with a blade. Like other forms of radiation therapy (also called radiotherapy), it is usually u ...
in Australia.
There are no emergency services at Macquarie University Hospital. The nearest emergency departments are at Ryde Hospital,
Concord Hospital, or
Royal North Shore Hospital
The Royal North Shore Hospital (RNSH) is a major public teaching hospital in Sydney, Australia, located in St Leonards. It serves as a teaching hospital for Sydney Medical School at the University of Sydney and has over 600 beds. It is the prin ...
.
Cemeteries and crematoria
Field of Mars Cemetery
One of the oldest cemeteries in Sydney, the Field of Mars Cemetery in Quarry Road, Ryde, then part of the Field of Mars, was proclaimed on 3 December 1887, and opened in 1890. There are currently approximately 66000 people buried there.
Macquarie Park Cemetery and Crematorium
The Macquarie Park Cemetery and Crematorium (formerly known as the Northern Suburbs General Cemetery) North Ryde opened in 1922 . The cemetery is situated on 59 hectares of Crown land on Delhi Road directly opposite the entrance to the underground metro
North Ryde railway station
North Ryde railway station is located on the Metro North West Line, serving the Sydney suburb of North Ryde, New South Wales, Australia. Formerly part of the Sydney Trains T1 Northern Line, the station started operating under the Sydney Metro ...
. It was also originally part of the Field of Mars Common.
Northern Suburbs Crematorium
Nowadays officially named the Northern Suburbs Memorial Gardens and Crematorium, the New South Wales state government made the Delhi Road site at North Ryde available for development into a crematorium in December 1931. The crematorium was opened on 28 October 1933, and the first cremation took place two days later. Located at 199 Delhi Road, North Ryde, it is the second oldest crematorium in Sydney, after Rookwood.
Transport
![North Ryde Railway Station](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/North_Ryde_Railway_Station.jpg)
The
M2 Hills Motorway
The Hills Motorway (also known as the Hills M2 Motorway, M2 Motorway or simply M2) is a tollway in north-western Sydney, Australia, owned by toll road operator Transurban. It forms majority of Sydney's M2 route and part of the 110 km Sydn ...
passes through North Ryde en route to the
Lane Cove Tunnel
The Lane Cove Tunnel is an A$1.1 billion, 3.6 km twin-tunnel tollway in Sydney, Australia, which connects the M2 Motorway at North Ryde with the Gore Hill Freeway at Artarmon. It is owned by toll road operator Transurban and forms part ...
motorway, and then the Gore Hill/
Warringah Freeway
The Warringah Freeway (also known as the Warringah Expressway) is a divided freeway located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The freeway forms part of the M1, the Sydney Orbital Network, and the Highway 1 network. The primary fun ...
,
Sydney Harbour Bridge
The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a steel through arch bridge in Sydney, spanning Port Jackson, Sydney Harbour from the Sydney central business district, central business district (CBD) to the North Shore (Sydney), North Shore. The view of the bridg ...
, and
Sydney CBD
The Sydney central business district (CBD) is the historical and main 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 city centre is often refer ...
.
Lane Cove Road
Lane Cove Road is a major suburban arterial road in Sydney, Australia. It forms part of A3 and is located in the Ryde local government area.
The southern end of Lane Cove Road connects with Devlin Street at Blaxland Road at Top Ryde, about ...
(
A3), traverses North Ryde from north to south, linking Sydney's
North Shore to
Homebush Bay and
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 ...
.
Epping Road
Epping Road is a arterial road located on the North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Epping Road is a major route linking the lower North Shore and Sydney central business district to the north western suburbs of the upper Nor ...
runs west to east and crosses the Lane Cove River Bridge to link the
City of Ryde
The City of Ryde is a local government area in the Northern Sydney region, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It was first established as the Municipal District of Ryde in 1870, became a municipality in 1906 and was proclaimed as the ...
to the
Municipality of Lane Cove
The Lane Cove Council is a local government area located on the Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The administrative seat of Lane Cove is located north-west of the Sydney central business district.
The Mayor of Lane ...
.
North Ryde is serviced by public buses, primarily the Routes 285-297, 506, and 533-535 which criss-cross the district. Private shuttle buses provide local and Airport services.
North Ryde railway station
North Ryde railway station is located on the Metro North West Line, serving the Sydney suburb of North Ryde, New South Wales, Australia. Formerly part of the Sydney Trains T1 Northern Line, the station started operating under the Sydney Metro ...
is an underground railway station on the
Epping to Chatswood railway line
The Epping to Chatswood rail link (ECRL) (originally a part of the Parramatta Rail Link (PRL) proposal) is a railway line in the northern suburbs of Sydney, Australia, which connects Epping station on the Northern line with Chatswood on the ...
that opened on 29 February 2009. It is located close to the intersection of Epping Road and Delhi Road, near the M2 Motorway. North Ryde station closed in September 2018 for seven months for conversion to a
Sydney Metro
The Sydney Metro is a fully automated rapid transit system serving the city of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Currently consisting of one line that opened on 26 May 2019, it runs from Tallawong to Chatswood and consists of 13 stations ...
station on the
Sydney Metro Northwest
Sydney Metro Northwest was a rapid transit project involving the construction of a rail line through the north-western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The line included the conversion of the existing Epping to Chatswood Ra ...
line, which included the installation of
platform screen doors
Platform screen doors (PSDs), also known as platform edge doors (PEDs), are used at some train, rapid transit and people mover stations to separate the platform from train tracks, as well as on some bus rapid transit, tram and light rail syste ...
. It reopened 26 May 2019. It is serviced by automated Metro driverless trains terminating at
Chatswood for connections to the city until
Sydney Metro City & Southwest
Sydney Metro City & Southwest is a rapid transit project currently under-construction in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The project will extend the Metro North West Line from on the North Shore, to in the city's south-west via the Sydn ...
opens in 2024.
The area once known as North Ryde now has three underground railway stations, North Ryde,
Macquarie Park
Macquarie Park () is a suburb in the Northern Sydney region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Macquarie Park is located 13 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Ryde.
Macqu ...
, and
Macquarie University
Macquarie University ( ) is a public research university based in Sydney, Australia, in the suburb of Macquarie Park. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the metropolitan area of S ...
.
A major transport interchange is planned at Macquarie.
Parks and reserves
![NorthRyde](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/NorthRyde.JPG)
North Ryde has many beautiful parks and reserves, including North Ryde Common, and the adjacent
Lane Cove National Park
The Lane Cove National Park is a protected national park that is located within metropolitan Sydney, in New South Wales, Australia. The national park is situated about north-west of the Sydney central business district and features variou ...
, the
Field of Mars Reserve
The Field of Mars Reserve is a protected nature reserve located on the northern suburbs of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The 50 Hectare (123.5 acres) reserve is a remnant of bushland situated between the Lane Cove and Parra ...
, and access to the
Great North Walk
The Great North Walk is a walking track which runs from Sydney to Newcastle in New South Wales, Australia. The main track, in length, runs between the Obelisk in Macquarie Place in Sydney to Queens Wharf in Bicentennial Park in Newcastle and ...
and the
Lane Cove River
The Lane Cove River, a northern tributary of the Parramatta River, is a tide-dominated, drowned valley estuary west of Sydney Harbour, located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The river is a tributary of the Parramatta River, winding throu ...
, once home to the famous Fairyland picnic grounds, when boatloads of people would come up the river from Sydney for the regular Saturday Dances. Today very little remains of Fairyland and it is almost completely overgrown.
North Ryde Park received a major upgrade in 2009 with fully refurbished amenities block and a new children's play area.
Blenheim Park is a multi-functional family park and features an off-leash area for dogs.
The
Lane Cove River Tourist Park
Lane Cove River Tourist Park is a caravan park and campground in the Australian state of New South Wales located in the suburb of
Macquarie Park within the boundaries of the Lane Cove National Park and about north of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. ...
is a (paid/for a fee) caravan park nestled in a bush setting in the Lane Cove National Park, just a few minutes walk from the North Ryde underground railway station.
Sport and recreation
* Macquarie University Theatre has winter programs of classical concerts and other performances, by invitation from the University Vice-Chancellor.
* North Ryde Golf Club is an 18-hole par 69 golf course, with quality dining, wedding and corporate function facilities. It was previously a site for motorcycle racing in the late 1920s.
* North Ryde RSL Community Club
North Ryde RSL Community Club
/ref> has various dining venues, live entertainment, gift shop and various sporting clubs.
* Australia Day
Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Observed annually on 26 January, it marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove and raising of the Union Flag by Arthur Phillip following days of exploration of Port Ja ...
Concerts and Carols by Candlelight are held each year at North Ryde Common, adjacent to Macquarie Hospital. The grounds are open now after the removal of the original hospitals gates and fences, leased to Ryde Council for 99-years.
* Ryde Hunters Hill Hockey Club is on the grounds of the former Peter Board High School has over a 50-year history in the area providing Field Hockey for Juniors, Women's and Men's.
* North Ryde Junior Rugby League Football Club (The Hawks) have been running for over 50 years. Their training ground is at ELS Hall and in 2009 they moved their home games to TG Millner Field when North Ryde RSL Club took over the running of the Eastwood Rugby Club facilities there.
Politics
North Ryde is in the State of New South Wales electorates of Lane Cove
Lane Cove is a suburb on the Lower North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Lane Cove is nine kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local governmen ...
and Ryde
Ryde is an English seaside town and civil parish on the north-east coast of the Isle of Wight. The built-up area had a population of 23,999 according to the 2011 Census and an estimate of 24,847 in 2019. Its growth as a seaside resort came af ...
, and the Federal electorate of Division of Bennelong
The Division of Bennelong is an Australian electoral division in the state of New South Wales. The division was created in 1949 and is named after Woollarawarre Bennelong, an Aboriginal man befriended by the first Governor of New South Wale ...
Gallery
File:Heard's Cottages.jpg, Heard's Cottages
File:Heard's Cottage old chimney closeup.jpg, Heard's Cottage old chimney closeup
File:Thompson's Shop in March 2019.jpg, Thompson's Shop in March 2019
File:View of Cox's Road shopping precinct.jpg, View of Cox's Road shopping precinct
File:Cox's Road Mall.jpg, View of Cox's Road Mall
File:Cox's Rd Mall.jpg, Main entrance to Cox's Rd Mall
File:North Ryde Library and School of Arts Community Centre.jpg, North Ryde Library and School of Arts Community Centre
File:View of apartment towers under construction from Corner of Cutler and Chauvel Streets in March 2019.jpg, View of apartment towers under construction from Corner of Cutler and Chauvel Streets in March 2019
File:View from Cutler Parade of apartment towers on tthe former Channel 10 site.jpg, View from Cutler Parade of apartment towers on the former Channel 10 site
File:Wallumatta 03.jpg, entrance to Wallumatta Nature Reserve
Wallumatta Nature Reserve, also called the Macquarie Hospital Bushland, is a nature reserve bushland area, surrounded by the residential suburb of East Ryde, in suburban Sydney, Australia. Once part of the Field of Mars of 1804, the reserve is t ...
File:FourFrogmouths.jpg, Group of four tawny frogmouth
The tawny frogmouth (''Podargus strigoides'') is a species of frogmouth native to the Australian mainland and Tasmania and found throughout. It is a big-headed, stocky bird, often mistaken for an owl, due to its nocturnal habits and similar colour ...
s
See also
* Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest
The Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest (STIF) is dry sclerophyll forest community of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, that is typically found in the Inner West and Northern region of Sydney. It is also among the three of these plant communitie ...
References
External links
North Ryde Shopping Centre – Coxs Road Mall
City of Ryde – Council site
Ryde District Historical Society
Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest
(Ryde Council website, with list of local endangered plant species that residents should give preference to when making new plantings in their gardens)
{{Use dmy dates, date=October 2018
Suburbs of Sydney
City of Ryde