Auburn is a
Western Sydney
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
* Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
* Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that ...
suburb in the state of
New South Wales
New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
, Australia.
Auburn is located 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 ...
and is 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 federated state, state, province, division (politica ...
of
Cumberland City Council
Cumberland Council, trading as Cumberland City Council, is a local government area located in the western suburbs of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The Council was formed on 12 May 2016 from the merger of parts of the Citie ...
, having previously been the administrative centre of
Auburn Council.
The suburb was named after
Oliver Goldsmith
Oliver Goldsmith (10 November 1728 – 4 April 1774) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish poet, novelist, playwright, and hack writer. A prolific author of various literature, he is regarded among the most versatile writers of the Georgian e ...
's poem ''
The Deserted Village
''The Deserted Village'' is a poem by Oliver Goldsmith published in 1770. It is a work of social commentary, and condemns rural depopulation and the pursuit of excessive wealth.
The poem is written in heroic couplets, and describes the decli ...
'', which describes 'Auburn' in
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
as the "loveliest village of the plain".
History
Origins
The Auburn area was once used by Aboriginal people as a market place for the exchange of goods, a site for ritual battles and a 'Law Place' for ceremonies. The area was located on the border between the Darug inland group and the Eora/Dharawal coastal group. The Wangal and Wategoro, sub-groups or clans, are the groups most often recognised as the original inhabitants of the Auburn/Homebush Bay region.
Bennelong, one of the most famous Natives of the time, was a member of Wangal, as was his wife, Barangaroo.
Pemulwuy
Pemulwuy ( /pɛməlwɔɪ/ ''PEM-əl-woy''; 1750 – 2 June 1802) was a Bidjigal warrior of the Dharug, an Aboriginal Australian people from New South Wales. One of the most famous Aboriginal resistance fighters in the colonial era, he is n ...
, who organised tribes to resist the white settlement of the Sydney region from 1790 to 1802 was also a member of the Wangal.
On 5 February 1788, soon after the landing of Captain
Phillip at Sydney Cove, Captain John Hunter and Lieutenant William Bradley sailed up what is now known as the Parramatta River, as far as Homebush Bay. Captain Hunter was the first European to set foot within the Auburn Local Government Area. Ten days later, the Governor, along with a well-armed party in three boats, reached Homebush Bay. They ventured about inland. The following day a party of explorers traced the river in a westerly direction, coming to the place where the Duck River enters the Parramatta River. They explored the tributary as far as the depth of water permitted. Seeing what appeared to be ducks rising out of a swamp covered with reeds, they named the river
Duck River. The ducks were actually Eastern Swamp Hens, but the name Duck River remained. The Eastern Swamp Hen featured prominently on the council's Coat of Arms and was part of the former Auburn City Council logo.
Settlement
In February 1793, Auburn area was established as the first free-agricultural settlement thanks to Governor Phillip's repeated applications to the British government for free settlers. Phillip was of the opinion that only free settlers with the assistance of convicts will be able to create an environment in which a country could support its inhabitants. Secretary Dundas endorsed Governor's opinion and secured an agreement with several farmers, some of whom were members of the Religious Society of Friends (
Quakers
Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestantism, Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally ...
), to settle in the colony. The first grants were given to Thomas Rose, Frederic Meredith, Thomas and Joseph Webb as well as Edward Powell. The deeds of the land described the farms' location as Liberty Plains and this is the name given to the neighbourhood of their farms by the first settlers, although the actual area bearing that name was a little further, lying at the upper part of Port Jackson. Dwellers of the Liberty Plains Parish were very proud of the fact that in the colony of felons they were the first people who came to Australia as free men and were given a privilege of choosing their own grants. This proud heritage is reflected in the motto on the
Auburn coat of arms: "Liberty, with steady zeal".
In the late 1870s a "township" was surveyed "in the centre of the Liberty Plains… 11 miles from Sydney, on the Suburban Railway line" and divided into "fine township allotments all fronting grand wide streets". The subdivision was named 'Auburn', being a reference to Goldsmith's poem 'The Deserted Village'. The poem begins: "Sweet Auburn! Loveliest village of the plain". Advertisements for the sale of allotments in May 1878 quoted the poem and added: "So wrote the poet in years gone by in describing the 'Auburn' of Old England, and fitly does it describe the new Auburn of the Sunny South".
One of the early settlers in the area was Fred Chisholm, who had an estate west of the present site of Auburn railway station. In the 1880s, John Buchanan, a timber merchant, purchased land from Fred Chisholm and built his home, 'Duncraggarn Hall', a two-storey
Italianate
The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style combined its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century It ...
mansion with a central tower and elaborate wrought-iron balconies. In 1892, Buchanan sold his thirteen-acre estate to the
Sisters of Charity
Many religious communities have the term Sisters of Charity in their name. Some ''Sisters of Charity'' communities refer to the Vincentian tradition alone, or in America to the tradition of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton (whose sisters are also of ...
, who turned the house into St Joseph's Hospital for Consumptives. In 1903, extensions to the hospital were constructed and the house itself became a convent for the sisters. Further modifications and extensions took place over the years, with the eventual result that the old hospital site became St Joseph's Village—a retirement village—with a modern hospital next door. 'Duncraggarn Hall' is heritage-listed.
Auburn council
The formal Auburn Local Government Area was formed in 1948, when Auburn and Lidcombe Councils merged into Auburn Municipal Council. In 2006 it became the
City of Auburn
Auburn City Council (officially known as the City of Auburn) was a local government area in the Greater Western Sydney region of New South Wales, Australia. Prior to its 2016 merger, the council area was located about west of the Sydney centr ...
which in 2016 was split between other local government areas.
20th to 21st century and immigration
In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, Auburn became a popular point of settlement for successive waves of immigrants. In the post-
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
era, immigrants from
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
,
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
,
Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
and
Greece
Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
settled in Auburn, who were succeeded in the 1960s by immigrants from
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
and
Vietnam
Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
. More recently, in the early of 21st century, a large number of immigrants have settled in Auburn from
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
,
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
,
Nepal
Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...
,
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
and
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...
. The history of immigrant settlement in Auburn has resulted in a suburb which is noted for its multicultural environment.
Demographics
According to the , there were 39,333 residents in Auburn. The most common reported ancestries were Chinese 21.8%, Nepalese 12.7%, Turkish 8.1%, Lebanese 6.2% and Indian 6.1%. 28.0% of people were born in Australia. The next most common countries of birth were China 14.4%, Nepal 12.7%, India 5.4%, Turkey 4.3% and Pakistan 3.7%. 12.2% of people only spoke English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Mandarin 14.1%, Nepali 12.6%, Arabic 10.5%, Turkish 7.5% and Urdu 6.8%. The most common responses for religious affiliation were Islam 38.5%, No Religion 17.3%, Hinduism 13.6%, Not stated 9.1% and Catholic 8.2%.
Transport
Rail
Auburn railway station is on the
Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
and
Leppington & Inner West lines of the
Sydney Trains
Sydney Trains is the brand name and operator of Railways in Sydney, suburban and intercity train services in and around Greater Sydney in New South Wales, Australia.
The metropolitan part of the network is a hybrid urban rail, urban-suburban r ...
network, where there are frequent services.
The
Auburn Maintenance Centre
The Auburn Maintenance Centre is a train depot operated by Downer Rail responsible for the maintenance of the Sydney Trains A, B and M set fleets.
History
As part of the contract to build and maintain the Sydney Trains A sets, John Holl ...
, a large maintenance and storage facility which services Sydney Trains rolling stock, is located to the northwest of the town centre, close to
Clyde station.
Bus
Auburn also has a number of bus services, which service Auburn and the surrounding areas.
Busways
Busways is an Australian bus company operating services in Sydney, and in the Central Coast, Mid North Coast regions of New South Wales and Adelaide. It is the largest privately owned bus operator in Australia.
History
The origins of Busw ...
operate two routes to and from Auburn station:
*540: to
Silverwater Correctional Complex
The Silverwater Correctional Complex, an Australian maximum and minimum security prison complex for males and females, is located in Silverwater, west of the Sydney central business district in New South Wales, Australia. The complex is oper ...
*544: to
Macquarie Centre
Macquarie Centre is a shopping centre in the suburb of Macquarie Park in the Northern Sydney region of Sydney and is located opposite the main campus of Macquarie University.
History 20th Century 1960s: purchase of land
In 1968, Grace Bro ...
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
...
operates four routes via Auburn station:
*908:
Merrylands
Merrylands is a suburb in Western Sydney, Australia. Merrylands is located west of the Sydney central business district and is in the Local government in Australia, local government area of the Cumberland Council, New South Wales, Cumberland Ci ...
to
Bankstown
Bankstown is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located 19 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is part of the Canterbury-Bankstown region. Bankstown is the administrative centre ...
*909:
Parramatta
Parramatta (; ) is a suburb (Australia), suburb and major commercial centre in Greater Western Sydney. Parramatta is located approximately west of the Sydney central business district, Sydney CBD, on the banks of the Parramatta River. It is co ...
to Bankstown
*911: to Bankstown
*S3: to
Auburn Botanical Gardens
Auburn railway station is served by two
NightRide routes:
*N60:
Fairfield station to
Town Hall station
*N61:
Carlingford station to Town Hall station
Heritage listings
Auburn has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
* Great Southern and Western railway:
Auburn Railway Signal Box
* 93 Parramatta Road:
Electricity Substation No. 167
Commercial area
Auburn has a mixture of residential, commercial and industrial areas. A commercial area is located close to
Auburn railway station. There are many multicultural restaurants and cafes.
South of the railway station, the commercial area stretches for approximately and features many shops, restaurants and supermarkets, including a number of shops and restaurants specialising in
Middle Eastern
The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq.
The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...
,
Turkish and
East Asia
East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...
n products and cuisine. This reflects Auburn's history as a popular place of settlement for successive waves of immigrants in Sydney.
Some distance north of the town centre clustered around the railway station, commercial and industrial developments are also located along the length of
Parramatta Road
Parramatta Road is the major historical east-west artery of metropolitan Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, connecting the Sydney central business district, Sydney CBD with Parramatta. It is the easternmost part of the Great Western Highway. S ...
and surrounding streets.
It is home to the LFL team Auburn Wildcats who play in the Australian Eastern Conference as it is one of 6 teams in Sydney who represent this league. There are 40 teams in total of the LFL Australia and 12 are located in NSW.
File:Auburn NSW 2144, Australia - panoramio (15).jpg, Street scene in the town centre
File:Auburn NSW 2144, Australia - panoramio (27).jpg, Street scene in the town centre
File:(1)Keighery_Hotel_Auburn.jpg, The Keighery Hotel, located close to the railway station
Image:Auburn Parramatta Road 3.JPG, Harvey Norman Centre, Parramatta Road
Image:The Bell Tower, Auburn.jpg, Bell Tower Complex, Parramatta Road
Image:Nick-scali.jpg, Nick Scali Centre, Parramatta Road
*
Landmarks
*
Auburn Hospital with basic 24-hour emergency facilities is on Norval and Hargrave Streets.
*
Auburn Botanical Gardens
Media
* ''
The Auburn News and Granville Electorate Gazetteer'', published 1903 to 1907
Schools
*
Al-Faisal College
*Alpha Omega Senior College
*Auburn Girls High School
*Auburn North Public School
*Auburn West Public School
*Auburn Public School
*
Amity College (Auburn Campus)
*St John of God Primary school
*St Joseph The Worker Primary School
*
Trinity Catholic College
*
Sydney Adventist College, Auburn Campus
Religious structures

The Auburn Baptist Church opened in 1888 and since 1928 has resided at its present location on Harrow Road.
The Sri Mandir in Auburn is Australia's oldest Hindu temple, having opened in 1977.
The
Auburn Gallipoli Mosque took thirteen years to construct and was largely funded by the Turkish community in the area. The name of the mosque reflects the legacy of
Gallipoli
The Gallipoli Peninsula (; ; ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles strait to the east.
Gallipoli is the Italian form of the Greek name (), meaning ' ...
in Turkey and the shared bond between Australian society and the Australian Turkish Muslim Community who constructed the
mosque
A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard.
Originally, mosques were si ...
Notable people
*
Chris Bath
Christine Bath (born 13 May 1967) is an Australian journalist, radio and television presenter and news anchor.
Bath currently hosts Drive on ABC Radio Sydney and '' 10 News First Weekend'' on Network 10.
She has previously been host of Eve ...
, television and radio journalist
*
John Benaud, Australian test cricketer
*
Hippolyte De La Rue, Senior RAAF Commander
*
Ahmad Elrich, football (soccer)
*
Tarek Elrich
Tarek Elrich (born 1 January 1987) is an Australian professional soccer player who plays as a right-back or midfielder for Parramatta FC in NSW League Two.
Elrich started his senior career with local club Sydney Olympic, before moving to th ...
, football (soccer)
*
Brad Fittler
Bradley Scott Fittler (born 5 February 1972), also known by the nickname of "Freddy", is an Australian rugby league commentator, television presenter, and former player.
Fittler captained both New South Wales rugby league team, New South Wales ...
, former professional
rugby league
Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...
player, coach, and sportscaster, born in Auburn.
*
Alex Gersbach, football (soccer)
*
Jamal Idris, rugby league player
*
Scott Jamieson
Scott Alexander Jamieson (born 13 October 1988) is an Australian retired soccer player who played as a left back.
Club career
Blacktown City
Jamieson was born in Auburn, Sydney. He has previously played for the Blacktown City in the New S ...
, football (soccer)
*
Tomi Juric, football (soccer)
*
Jack Lang, former Premier of NSW (1925–1927, 1930–1932), had a long and close association with Auburn, setting up a successful real estate business there. He went on to serve on the local council, eventually becoming Mayor. He died in Auburn in 1975
*
Feleti Mateo, rugby league player
*
Salim Mehajer, suspended deputy mayor of
Auburn City Council. Attracted national infamy for his grossly exuberant wedding, criminal record, allegations of corruption and electoral fraud.
*
Grant Millington, rugby league player
*
John Moulton was a general surgeon in Auburn
*
Warren Mundine, the first Indigenous president of the
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also known as the Labor Party or simply Labor, is the major Centre-left politics, centre-left List of political parties in Australia, political party in Australia and one of two Major party, major parties in Po ...
. Born in Grafton in 1956, Warren and his family lived in Auburn in the mid-1960s.
*
Lelea Paea, rugby league and rugby union player
*
Lopini Paea, rugby league player
*
Mickey Paea, rugby league player
*
Stanley Llewellyn Perry, Lieutenant-Colonel of the 48th Battalion during World War I
*
Garry Rush, racing driver
*
Myuran Sukumaran
Myuran Sukumaran (17 April 1981 – 29 April 2015) was an Australian who was convicted in Indonesia of drug trafficking as a member of the Bali Nine. In 2005, Sukumaran was arrested in a room at the Melasti Hotel in Kuta, Bali with eight othe ...
(1981–2015), executed drug trafficker and co-ringleader of the
Bali Nine
The Bali Nine were a group of nine Australians convicted for attempting to drug smuggling, smuggle of heroin out of Indonesia in April 2005. The heroin was valued at around 4 million and was bound for Australia. Ringleaders Andrew Chan ( ...
*
Zeb Taia, rugby league player
*
Kelepi Tanginoa, rugby league player
*
Tevita Tatola, rugby league player with
South Sydney Rabbitohs
The South Sydney District Rugby League Football Club, also known as the South Sydney Rabbitohs, is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Sydney suburb of Maroubra, New South Wales, Maroubra that competes in the Nat ...
*
Anthony Watmough, rugby league player
Pop culture
*
SBS television drama ''
East West 101'' was filmed in Auburn.
References
External links
Auburn Council Website
2001 Census Information
*
C-By-SA
{{DEFAULTSORT:Auburn, New South Wales
Suburbs of Sydney
Turkish communities outside Turkey
Populated places established in 1793