Summer Hill, New South Wales
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Summer Hill 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 ...
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 ...
. Summer Hill is located 7 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
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 ...
. Summer Hill is a primarily residential
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 Sydney's
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) ...
, adjoining two of Sydney's major arterial roads,
Parramatta Road Parramatta Road is the major historical east-west artery of metropolitan Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, connecting the Sydney CBD with Parramatta. It is the easternmost part of the Great Western Highway. Since the 1990s its role has been a ...
and
Liverpool Road Liverpool Road is a street in Islington, North London. It covers a distance of between Islington High Street and Holloway Road, running roughly parallel to Upper Street through the area of Barnsbury. It contains several attractive terraces o ...
. The first land grant was made in 1794 to former convict and
jailor A prison officer or corrections officer is a uniformed law enforcement official responsible for the custody, supervision, safety, and regulation of prisoners. They are responsible for the care, custody, and control of individuals who have been ...
Henry Kable Henry Kable (1763–16 March 1846), born in Laxfield, Suffolk, England, was an Englishman transported to Australia in the First Fleet and became a prominent business man. Conviction and transport to Australia On 18 March 1783, Kable was convi ...
, and the suburb began growing following the opening of the railway station on the
Main Suburban railway line The Main Suburban railway line is the technical name for the trunk railway line between Redfern railway station and Parramatta railway station in Sydney, Australia, but now generally refers to the section between Redfern and where the Old Main ...
, in 1879. By the 1920s, the suburb had become relatively
upper class Upper class in modern societies is the social class composed of people who hold the highest social status, usually are the wealthiest members of class society, and wield the greatest political power. According to this view, the upper class is gen ...
, with large estates and mansions built throughout the suburb. Some of these still exist today. Following a transition to a
working-class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...
suburb in the mid-20th century, when many of the large estates were demolished or subdivided, the suburb today has a "village" character and a mix of medium-density apartment blocks and federation houses.


Characteristics

Summer Hill's boundaries are Parramatta Road and Liverpool Road to the north, the rear of the properties on the west side of Prospect Road (with a detour around Trinity Grammar School) to the West, Old Canterbury Road to the south, and the Inner West Light Rail to the east. North of Summer Hill is the suburb of Haberfield, to the east is
Lewisham Lewisham () is an area of southeast London, England, south of Charing Cross. It is the principal area of the London Borough of Lewisham, and was within the Historic counties of England, historic county of Kent until 1889. It is identified i ...
, to the south is
Dulwich Hill Dulwich Hill is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 7.5 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Inner West Council. Dulwich Hill str ...
, and to the west is Ashfield."Summer Hill boundary map"
Geographical Names Board of New South Wales The Geographical Names Board of New South Wales, a statutory authority of the Department of Customer Service in the Government of New South Wales, is the official body for naming and recording details of places and geographical names in the sta ...
. Retrieved 18 September 2007.
Summer Hill has a mix of Federation-era houses, with medium density apartment blocks near the railway station. Local
independent business A privately held company (or simply a private company) is a company whose shares and related rights or obligations are not offered for public subscription or publicly negotiated in the respective listed markets, but rather the company's stock is ...
people run most of the shops. The local council has defined a village character for the suburb. Summer Hill is a suburb rich in heritage. More than one hundred properties are heritage listed, and the strong feelings of some residents of the suburb towards protecting the local architecture has seen the introduction of a heritage review, which is expected to add more properties to the heritage register."Summer Hill Precinct Heritage review"
Ashfield Municipal Council. Retrieved 7 July 2007.
Despite formerly being working class, Summer Hill and many of the surrounding suburbs have gradually undergone
gentrification Gentrification is the process of changing the character of a neighborhood through the influx of more Wealth, affluent residents and businesses. It is a common and controversial topic in urban politics and urban planning, planning. Gentrification ...
over recent years. Culturally, Summer Hill is a blend of medium-density European Sydney suburbia, with Italian influences (which are most evident in Leichhardt to the east and Haberfield to the north), Asian (mainly Chinese) influences (which are most strongly evident in Ashfield to the West), and smaller influences from many other cultures.Pratten, Chris, ''Summer Hill''. Ashfield & District Historical Society: Australia, 1999. .


History


Aboriginal Anthropology

Before the
First Fleet The First Fleet was a fleet of 11 ships that brought the first European and African settlers to Australia. It was made up of two Royal Navy vessels, three store ships and six convict transports. On 13 May 1787 the fleet under the command ...
arrived at
Port Jackson Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is the ria or natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman Sea (p ...
in 1788, what is now known as Summer Hill was part of a larger area where people of the
Wangal The Wangal people ( Wanegal or Won-gal,) are a clan of the Dharug ( ?) Aboriginal people whose heirs are custodians of the lands and waters of what is now the Inner West of Sydney, New South Wales, centred around the Municipality of Strathfie ...
and
Cadigal The Cadigal, also spelled as Gadigal and Caddiegal, are a group of Indigenous people whose traditional lands are located in Gadi, on Eora country, the location of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The Gadigal originally inhabited the area that ...
nations lived. There is research to show in the greater Sydney region 8000 - 10000 Aboriginal people were resident, fluctuating on seasons and during tribal conflicts."A Short Walk Through Ashfield's past" booklet, a collaboration between Ashfield Municipal Council and the Ashfield & District Historical Society, circa 1996. What is now called the
Hawthorne Canal The Hawthorne Canal, a southern tributary of the Parramatta River, is a New South Wales State Heritage Register, heritagelisted canal, artificial waterway located in the western reaches of Port Jackson, Sydney Harbour, in the Inner West (Sydney) ...
(originally Long Cove Creek) appears to have been the boundary between the Cadigal and Wangal Aboriginal nations. Today there is a small park in Summer Hill, called Cadigal Reserve, located at 1-4 Grosvenor Crescent. A bronze plaque placed by Ashfield Council names the reserve after the Cadigal (Eora) group of Koori people."Ashfield Heritage Study Review - Cadigal Reserve"
Ashfield Municipal Council. Retrieved 18 September 2007.
Iron Cove and the mangrove-lined estuaries of the Long Cove and Iron Cove Creeks would have provided a good source of fish and molluscs, the most common food of the coastal tribes in the
Sydney Basin The Sydney Basin is an interim Australian bioregion and is both a structural entity and a depositional area, now preserved on the east coast of New South Wales, Australia and with some of its eastern side now subsided beneath the Tasman Sea. ...
. In the early days of the colony, the land between
Iron Cove Iron Cove is a bay on the Parramatta River, in the inner-west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is approximately due west of Sydney's central business district. It is surrounded by the suburbs of Birchgrove, Balmai ...
and the
Cooks River The Cooks River, a semi-mature tide-dominated drowned valley estuary, is a tributary of Botany Bay, located in south-eastern Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The course of the long urban waterway has been altered to accommodate various deve ...
was known as the Kangaroo Ground. This suggests that the land was open terrain favoured by kangaroos, that they were common in the area and may have formed a significant part of the Aboriginal diet.


European settlement

The first land grant in this area was for a farm in 1794, to former convict and
jailor A prison officer or corrections officer is a uniformed law enforcement official responsible for the custody, supervision, safety, and regulation of prisoners. They are responsible for the care, custody, and control of individuals who have been ...
Henry Kable Henry Kable (1763–16 March 1846), born in Laxfield, Suffolk, England, was an Englishman transported to Australia in the First Fleet and became a prominent business man. Conviction and transport to Australia On 18 March 1783, Kable was convi ...
. The land in the eastern corner of Summer Hill was an additional grant of made to Henry Kable in 1804. This eastern corner would subsequently become part of the estate of James Underwood. Underwood died in 1844 and left a will so complicated that it required special legislation before it could be subdivided. An early known use of the name "Summer Hill" was on Saturday 8 December 1849 when The Bathurst Free Press reported it as the residence of James and Ann Bennett who were tried and convicted of participation in the Wellington Mail Robbery. However, the location reported most likely refers to the place now known as Summer Hill Creek, near Orange, New South Wales. The name was used in 1876, for a land subdivision adjacent to the present-day St Andrew's Anglican Church. The name Summer Hill is thought to be a name chosen by the land sub-divider, presumably based on an attachment for England. Local historians regard the suggestion that the name is a derivation of "Sunning Hill" as a dubious story which has no substance. Summer Hill's largest mansion, ''Carleton'' (now the Grosvenor Hospital's main building), was built in the early 1880s on Liverpool Road for Charles Carleton Skarrat. The suburb boomed with the opening of the
railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
in 1879, and was followed by subdivision of much of the surrounding area. Between 1880 and 1910, the area became an
upper-class Upper class in modern societies is the social class composed of people who hold the highest social status, usually are the wealthiest members of class society, and wield the greatest political power. According to this view, the upper class is gen ...
suburb, and was a popular choice for professionals in banking and insurance who worked in the city. Subdivision of gardens for housing continued in the 1920s and 1930s, and socioeconomically the suburb changed as some of the wealthier inhabitants moved to the North Shore. Demolition of most of the surviving mansions in the 1970s allowed erection of home units, especially within walking distance of the railway station.


Heritage listings

Summer Hill has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: * Grosvenor Crescent: Lewisham Sewage Aqueduct


Climate

The nearest site to Summer Hill is the Canterbury Racecourse AWS which is located several km to the south west of Summer Hill town centre.


Churches and other places of worship

There are a number of
places of worship A place of worship is a specially designed structure or space where individuals or a group of people such as a congregation come to perform acts of devotion, veneration, or religious study. A building constructed or used for this purpose is somet ...
in Summer Hill. St Patrick's
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
was built in 1874, and is the oldest known building in the suburb. There is also a small
primary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...
associated with the church and located next to it. The building was originally a private home known as ''Kelvin Grove'', and owned by Mrs Jane Drynan. Much of the exterior of the church is original but none of the internal walls were retained when the building was converted into a church. Following Drynan's death, Kelvin Grove was owned or leased by a succession of different people, including the Haberfield
real-estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...
developer Richard Stanton, Croydon brick-maker William Downton, and two sisters named Freeman (one of whom was a nurse). In the 1920s and 1930s Kelvin Grove may have been used as a nursing home. The first
mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...
was celebrated in Kelvin Grove on
St Patrick's day Saint Patrick's Day, or the Feast of Saint Patrick ( ga, Lá Fhéile Pádraig, lit=the Day of the Festival of Patrick), is a cultural and religious celebration held on 17 March, the traditional death date of Saint Patrick (), the foremost patr ...
1946, giving the church its name. St Andrew's Anglican Church has three distinctive internal
transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building withi ...
arches, and was designed by a Presbyterian, Alexander Leckie Elphinstone Junior. The foundation stone was laid in 1883, and the top of the spire completed in 1906. The fast construction period, unusual for that time, was indicative of the area's affluence. Recent Asian influences in Summer Hill have brought about the introduction of non-Christian places of worship. The Wong Tai Sin (or Kwan Yin Kur) temple is located on the corners of Kensington Road and Liverpool Road in a building that was a Masonic temple in the 1920s. The same building was converted into the current temple; the lower floor houses the
Taoist Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the ''Tao'' ...
deity of
Wong Tai Sin Wong Tai Sin or Huang Daxian () is a Chinese Taoist Deity popular in Jinhua, Zhejiang, and Hong Kong with the power of healing. The name, meaning the "Great Immortal Wong (Huang)", is the divine form of Huang Chuping or Wong Cho Ping (; c. 32 ...
, and the upper floor houses the
Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
Bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood. In the Early Buddhist schools ...
of Kwan Yin.


Schools

Trinity Grammar School in Prospect Road is a
private school Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...
catering for students from PreK to Year 12. The schools's site has been in continuous use for education for 120 years. The headmaster's house at Trinity was erected circa 1877. The site operated as several different teaching institutions until it was purchased by the
Anglican Church Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of the ...
, becoming known as Trinity Grammar School in 1925. Trinity Grammar is one of many wealthy
schools in New South Wales {{Use Australian English, date=June 2020 The New South Wales Department of Education is a department of the Government of New South Wales. In addition to other responsibilities, it operates primary and secondary school A secondary school des ...
, and has previously received some of the largest government subsidies, when comparing total government subsidies per school. An expansion plan by Trinity involving the demolition of houses in nearby Seaview Street caused controversy in 2007. The development was nonetheless approved by the New South Wales Land and Environment Court. Summer Hill Public School, located in Moonbie Street, is a primary school that caters for students from Kindergarten to Year 6. It offers a selective program, known as Opportunity Classes, for Year 5 and 6 students under the New South Wales Government's Opportunity Class program. The school was established in 1883 in a wooden shed on of land that had been resumed from James Bartlett. The older buildings currently used at the school date back to 1913 while more modern buildings were constructed in 1977, 1998 and 2010. The school, designed in the Victorian Classical style, is listed on the Register of the National Estate. Saint Patrick's Catholic School is a private primary school, close to Summer Hill Public School.


Commercial area

Summer Hill's shopping precinct is centred around a small
town square A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true square, geometric square, used for community gathe ...
with good pedestrian access, and is surrounded by cafés and restaurants along Lackey and Smith Streets. The suburb is very small by Australian standards, having a population of just over 6000, in an area of 110 hectares. It features some fine examples of architecture from the 19th and early 20th century. The Summer Hill
flour mill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that has been separat ...
was built circa 1922, utilising the north–south goods railway line that was constructed during
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. The silos were added from the 1950s onwards. The flour mill has been owned by various companies, including Mungo Scott, Allied Flour & Starch and
Goodman Fielder Goodman Fielder is a joint Hong Kong/Singapore-owned manufacturer, marketer and distributor of bread, small goods, dairy products, margarine, oil, dressings and various food ingredients. Its main operations are in New Zealand, Australia, Fiji, ...
, and then Allied Mills. In October 2007, the mills were sold to a developer, EG Funds Management,Munro, Catherine
"Light rail left idling on the track"
''
Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper i ...
'', 15 October 2007. Retrieved 15 October 2007.
who have since redeveloped the mill site into a residential and commercial precinct. The precinct is a site for a regular community market for produce and artisan goods.


Transport

In Summer Hill on the day of the 2016 Census, the most common methods of travel to work for employed people were: Train 36.0%, Car, as driver 32.9%, Walked only 4.0%, Worked at home 3.8% and Train and bus 3.5%. Summer Hill is close to the main thoroughfares of
Liverpool Road Liverpool Road is a street in Islington, North London. It covers a distance of between Islington High Street and Holloway Road, running roughly parallel to Upper Street through the area of Barnsbury. It contains several attractive terraces o ...
and Parramatta Road; although they are quite congested at peak times. From 1915, Summer Hill was served by trams from Hurlstone Park. Trams left New Canterbury Road and went down Prospect Road, then swung right onto Smith Street. They turned onto Lackey Street, where they went right and terminated at the station. Low usage and rival buses saw the line closed in 1933, however some remains can be seen. Summer Hill railway station is located 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. The railway station was opened on 15 September 1879, and most of the local shops are clustered close to the station. There are two stations serving Summer Hill on the
Inner West Light Rail The Inner West Light Rail is a light rail line in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, running from Central railway station through the Inner West to Dulwich Hill and serving 23 stops. It is the original line of the Sydney light rail network ...
. These are - Lewisham West (adjacent to the former flour mill on the border with Lewisham) and Taverners Hill (near Parramatta Road). Access to the city is quicker by train, but the light rail may be used for some cross-regional journeys. It also interchanges with
Dulwich Hill railway station Dulwich Hill railway station is located on the Bankstown line, serving the Sydney suburb of Dulwich Hill. It is served by Sydney Trains T3 Bankstown line services. History Dulwich Hill station opened on 1 February 1895 as Wardell Road when ...
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 li ...
. There are four
Transit Systems Transit Systems Group is an Australian-based public transport company, which also operates overseas through its subsidiary Tower Transit Group. Transit Systems Group is a subsidiary of the Kelsian Group, formerly SeaLink Travel Group. History ...
routes that service the area - the 480 and 483 follow routes along Parramatta Road and then Liverpool Road, the 461 travels along Parramatta Road and the 413 travels along Junction Road. Additionally, the N70, N71 and N80 NightRide buses on Parramatta Road run between Central and Penrith, Richmond and Hornsby respectively. The area is also gradually becoming more bicycle friendly, with several bicycle paths in the suburb. A local group, "Friends of the Greenway" wish to see a bicycle and walking corridor built alongside the light rail.


Population


Demographics

In the , the population of the Summer Hill was 7,311, in an area of 1.1 square kilometres. The population was 51.4% females, 48.6% males. 58.3% of people were born in Australia. The next most common countries of birth were
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
(4.8%),
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
(3.6%),
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
(2.2%),
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
(2.2%) and
Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
(2.1%). 63.8% of people spoke only English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Mandarin 5.5%, Nepali 2.3%, Cantonese 1.9%, Italian 1.9% and Greek 1.7%. The most common responses for religion were No religion (41.8%),
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
(21.5%), Not Stated (10.4%),
Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
(7.6%) and
Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...
(3.5%). The majority of dwelling were flats, units or apartments (64%) followed by separate houses (19.6%) and
semi-detached A semi-detached house (often abbreviated to semi) is a single family duplex dwelling house that shares one common wall with the next house. The name distinguishes this style of house from detached houses, with no shared walls, and terraced house ...
,
terrace houses In architecture and city planning, a terrace or terraced house ( UK) or townhouse ( US) is a form of medium-density housing that originated in Europe in the 16th century, whereby a row of attached dwellings share side walls. In the United State ...
, or townhouses (16%).


Notable residents

Notable people to have been born or lived in Summer Hill include: * Normand Henry Baker (1908–1955),
Archibald Prize The Archibald Prize is an Australian portraiture art prize for painting, generally seen as the most prestigious portrait prize in Australia. It was first awarded in 1921 after the receipt of a bequest from J. F. Archibald, J. F. Archib ...
winning artist. * Robert Barbour, (1827–1895), politician. * Dr John Belisario (1820–1900), dentist at the later end of the 19th century, recorded as living in Summer Hill in the 1891 census; first dentist in Australia to administer ether to a patient to carry out dental work. * Colonel Matron Kathleen Best (1910–1957), first director of the Women's Australian Army Corps. * Simon Carter, member of the Australian rock band The Cops. * David Elphinstone (1847–1916), architect and builder. *
Virginia Gay Virginia Gay (born 16 September 1981) is an Australian actress, writer and director, mostly known for her work on the Australian TV dramas ''Winners & Losers'' (as Frances James (Winners & Losers), Frances James), and ''All Saints (TV series), A ...
, '' All Saints'' actress and contestant on '' It Takes Two'' * Justice Greg James (born 1944), former judge of the Supreme Court of NSW. *
Edwin Johnson Edwin Johnson may refer to: * Edwin Johnson (Australian educator) (1835–1894), under-secretary of the Department of Education, New South Wales * Edwin Johnson (historian) (1842–1901), English historian * Edwin Johnson (athlete) (born 1950), Bah ...
(1835–1894), education reformer, undersecretary to the Department of Public Instruction. *
Ninian Melville Ninian Melville (29 December 1843 – 26 June 1897) was an Australian politician in the late nineteenth century. Early life The son of a Scottish cabinet maker (Ninian Melville Jnr) who had been transported to Australia for stealing clothes, M ...
Jnr (1843–1897), local furniture maker and member of the NSW Parliament who also became Mayor of Newtown and later Ashfield. * John Paton (1833–1914), winner of the
Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...
for bravery in India in 1857; a Summer Hill park is named after him. *
Arthur Streeton Sir Arthur Ernest Streeton (8 April 1867 – 1 September 1943) was an Australian landscape painter and a leading member of the Heidelberg School, also known as Australian Impressionism. Early life Streeton was born in Mt Moriac, Victoria, sou ...
(1867–1943), Australian artist who briefly lived in Summer Hill. *
Ian Temby Ian Douglas Temby (born 5 May 1942) is an Australian barrister. He was the first Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions and the first Commissioner of the New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption. He conducted the Roya ...
QC (born 1942), first head of the
New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) is an agency of the Government of New South Wales responsible for eliminating and investigating corrupt activities and enhancing the integrity of the state's public administration. The Com ...
. *
Rt Hon ''The Right Honourable'' (abbreviation: ''Rt Hon.'' or variations) is an honorific style traditionally applied to certain persons and collective bodies in the United Kingdom, the former British Empire and the Commonwealth of Nations. The term is ...
Sir
Cyril Walsh Sir Cyril Ambrose Walsh KBE (15 June 1909 – 29 November 1973) was an Australian judge who served on the High Court of Australia from 1969 until his death in 1973. Early life Walsh was born in Sydney, New South Wales, the son of Michael a ...
(1909–1973), lawyer and Justice of the
High Court of Australia The High Court of Australia is Australia's apex court. It exercises Original jurisdiction, original and appellate jurisdiction on matters specified within Constitution of Australia, Australia's Constitution. The High Court was established fol ...
.


Politics

Summer Hill is in the safe
Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...
federal
electoral division An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...
of Grayndler. This seat has been held continuously by Labor (ALP) since it was proclaimed in 1949. It has been held by current member
Anthony Albanese Anthony Norman Albanese ( or ; born 2 March 1963) is an Australian politician serving as the 31st and current prime minister of Australia since 2022. He has been leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) since 2019 and the member of parlia ...
since 1996. Anthony Albanese held various ministerial appointments under the Rudd and Gillard governments, eventually becoming Deputy Prime Minister. During the 2010 Federal election, Greens candidate former Marrickville Mayor Sam Byrne, received 45% of the vote in comparison to Albanese's 54%. At the 2013 election, Albanese received over 70% of the two party preferred vote, making it currently the ALP's safest seat in the country. For NSW state elections, Summer Hill is in the
Electoral district of Summer Hill Summer Hill is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales. It is represented by Jo Haylen of the Labor Party. Summer Hill is an urban electorate in Sydney's inner west centred on the suburb o ...
, which was created in 2015. It is held by
Jo Haylen Joanna Elizabeth Haylen is an Australian politician who was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Assembly as the member for Summer Hill for the Labor Party at the 2015 New South Wales state election. She is currently the state's Minister ...
of the Australian Labor Party. Local political issues include: * Proposed construction of the M4 East, diverting traffic from Parramatta Road, and which construction option should be used. * Opposition to plans that would result in an increase in traffic at
Sydney Airport Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (colloquially Mascot Airport, Kingsford Smith Airport, or Sydney Airport; ; ) is an international airport in Sydney, Australia, located 8 km (5 mi) south of the Sydney central business district, in the ...
, and thus more
aircraft noise Aircraft noise pollution refers to noise produced by aircraft in flight that has been associated with several negative stress-mediated health effects, from sleep disorders to cardiovascular ones. Governments have enacted extensive controls that a ...
.Nicholls, Sean
"Political poison in airport plan, say councils"
''
Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper i ...
'', 20 November 2003. Retrieved 22 October 2007.
* Concern over the proposed new supermarket building, and whether it is in keeping with the local shopping area.O'Brien, Geraldine
"'Concrete cowpat' plan stinks: residents"
''
Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper i ...
'', 8 October 2002. Retrieved 29 September 2007.
* The expansion of the Trinity school, including the demolition of housing and development of a new aquatic centre on Prospect Rd, and proposed increase in student numbers, * Another community concern is the proposed high-rise re-development of the Mungo Scott flour mill.


Summer Hill Rainbow Crossing

On 14 April 2013, in response to the removal of th
Rainbow Crossing in Oxford St, Darlinghurst
parents and children from several local schools chalked a rainbow in the public square at Summer Hill, as part of the DIY Rainbow Crossing movement. On 15 April 2013
Ashfield Council
workers removed the rainbow. After media attention, council issued a statement labelling it a slip hazard and requested a permit be obtained before it could be re-chalked. The events were covered i
The Daily TelegraphThe AustralianPerth Now
and o
2DAY FM
. On 17 April 2013, it was rechalked by more than 100 people, including local councillor, Alex Lofts. On 18 April, it was again removed, only to be re-chalked. Since that date it has remained chalked. A group of families and supporters continue to chalk the rainbow, especially after rain. This group has also ensured the area remains free of litter; they also hold occasional performances and arts-related celebrations at the site. Some local businesses have offered discounts and support for the rainbow, these display a logo with a stylised image of the rainbow crossing on it. At an Ashfield Council meeting on 28 May 2013 the council passed a motion that a permanent outline of a rainbow be painted in Summer Hill Square, with the understanding that this may be periodically 'chalked in' by children, families and community members. The Summer Hill Rainbow Crossing has a following on Twitter
@SummerHillXing
and o
Facebook


See also

*
Trams in Sydney The Sydney tramway network served the inner suburbs of Sydney, Australia from 1879 until 1961. In its heyday, it was the largest in Australia, the second largest in the Commonwealth of Nations (after London), and one of the largest in the worl ...


References


External links


Image of Summer Hill's boundaries
from the
Geographical Names Board of New South Wales The Geographical Names Board of New South Wales, a statutory authority of the Department of Customer Service in the Government of New South Wales, is the official body for naming and recording details of places and geographical names in the sta ...

Summer Hill Public School

Trinity Grammar School
located in Summer Hill
Historic postcards of Summer Hill from the State Library of New South Wales

St Andrew's Anglican Church

St Patricks Church

Summer Hill Community Centre



Summer Hill Village Business Association

Demographics for Summer Hill from the Dictionary of Sydney
{{good article Populated places established in 1794 Suburbs of Sydney 1794 establishments in Australia Inner West Hume Highway