Petersham Park is an urban park located 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) ...

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 ...

, New South Wales, Australia. The park is characterised by well established avenues of Brush Box and

Camphor Laurel ''Camphora officinarum'' is a species of evergreen tree that is commonly known under the names camphor tree, camphorwood or camphor laurel. Description ''Camphora officinarum'' is native to China south of the Yangtze River, Taiwan, southern ...

trees. Facilities in Petersham Park include a

cricket oval A cricket field is a large grass field on which the game of cricket is played. Although generally oval in shape, there is a wide variety within this: some are almost perfect circles, some elongated ovals and some entirely irregular shapes with l ...

, a rotunda, a children's

playground A playground, playpark, or play area is a place designed to provide an environment for children that facilitates play, typically outdoors. While a playground is usually designed for children, some are designed for other age groups, or people ...

, and the Fanny Durack Aquatic Centre. The oval is used for cricket in the summer months and baseball in winter. There are weekly visits to the park by the

Inner West Council Inner West Council is a local government area located in the inner western region of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The council makes up the eastern part of this wider region, and was formed on 12 May 2016 from the merger o ...

initiative called the Magic Yellow Bus, which offers free activities for kids 6 and under.

History

Previously a part of William Charles Wentworth's estate, Petersham Park was officially opened on 28 September 1887. Petersham Cricket Club has played at the park since the 1880s. Originally part of the Petersham Town Hall, the

ANZAC Memorial The Anzac Memorial is a heritage-listed war memorial, museum and monument located in Hyde Park South near Liverpool Street in the CBD of Sydney, Australia. The Art Deco monument was designed by C. Bruce Dellit, with the exterior adorned wit ...

gates at the Brighton Street entrance to the park were re-erected in their current location in 1921. On 27 November 1926, Cricket legend

Donald Bradman Sir Donald George Bradman, (27 August 1908 – 25 February 2001), nicknamed "The Don", was an Australian international cricketer, widely acknowledged as the greatest batsman of all time. Bradman's career Test batting average of 99.94 has bee ...

scored his first century in grade cricket at Petersham Park as an 18 year old playing for St George against Petersham. The D. Seddon Pavilion on the west side of the oval commemorates Dudley Seddon, and the T.J.E. Andrews scoreboard is named after local player Tommy Andrews. Petersham Park Swimming Pool opened to the public in September 1962 and named after

Fanny Durack Sarah Frances "Fanny" Durack (27 October 1889 – 20 March 1956), also known by her married name Fanny Gately, was an Australian competition swimmer. From 1910 until 1918 she was the world's greatest female swimmer across all distances from f ...

in 1999. Between 2012 and 2014 the pool was closed for a refurbishment which included replacement of the six lane, 33 metre pool with an eight lane, 25 metre pool. In February 2015, local residents and community action group Save Petersham Park organised a picnic and hundreds of signed complaints to protest an UrbanGrowth proposal to remove approximately 80 houses and build WestConnex exit roads into the park area.

Gallery

File:Petersham Park Gate.jpg, Petersham Park Gate on Brighton Street File:Plaque on Petersham Park gates (left hand side).jpg, Plaque 1 File:Plaque on Petersham Park gates (right hand side).jpg, Plaque 2 File:Petersham Park.jpg, Petersham Oval File:Petersham Park Pathway.jpg, Petersham Park Pathway File:Historical information sign in Petersham Park.jpg, Historical information sign File:Petersham Park Trees & Rotunda.jpg, Petersham Park Trees & Rotunda

References

External links

Randwick Petersham Cricket Club

Fanny Durack Aquatic Centre
Parks in Sydney Buildings and structures completed in 1887 Parks established in the 1880s Protected areas established in 1887 1887 establishments in Australia {{Sydney-geo-stub