Brooklyn is a town on the Pacific Highway in

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 Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. Brooklyn is located on the northern outskirts of Sydney and is located 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 the

Hornsby Shire Hornsby Shire is a local government area situated on the Upper North Shore as well as parts of the Hills District, of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The shire stretches from the M2 Hills Motorway in the south to the Hawkesb ...

with a population of 737 as of the . Brooklyn is surrounded by the

Muogamarra Nature Reserve The Muogamarra Nature Reserve () is a protected nature reserve that is located in the Sydney region of New South Wales, in eastern Australia. The reserve is situated in the northern edge of Sydney and lies between the suburb of to the sout ...

and occupies a strip of waterfront along the southern bank of the

Hawkesbury River The Hawkesbury River, or Hawkesbury-Nepean River (Dharug language, Dharug: Dyarubbin) is a river located northwest of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The Hawkesbury River and its associated main tributary, the Nepean River, almost encircle ...

. The town provides a range of amenities and activities, while maintaining a quiet village atmosphere. Brooklyn provides convenient access for North Shore residents and day trippers to the Hawkesbury River and

Pittwater Pittwater is a semi-mature tide dominated Ria, drowned valley estuary, located about north of the Sydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia; being one of the bodies of water that separate greater Metropolitan Sydney from th ...

waterways for boating, swimming and fishing, and to

Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park is a national park on the northern side of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. The park is north of the Sydney central business district and generally comprises the land east of the Highway 1 (New South Wales ...

and

for bushwalking and scenic views. Hornsby Council is currently developing a 'Brooklyn Master Plan' to provide for further improvement of the amenities in the area.

Hawkesbury River railway station Hawkesbury River railway station is a heritage register, heritage-listed railway station located on the Main North railway line, New South Wales, Main Northern and Central Coast & Newcastle Line, Central Coast–Newcastle lines in Brooklyn, ...

on the

Main Northern railway line The Main North Line (also known as the Great Northern Railway) is a major railway in New South Wales, Australia, running from Strathfield railway station, Strathfield in Sydney to Armidale railway station, Armidale. The 1980s saw the line clo ...

is served by

NSW TrainLink NSW TrainLink is a regional train and coach operator in Australia, providing services throughout New South Wales and into Australian Capital Territory, the Australian Capital Territory, Victoria (state), Victoria, Queensland and South Australia ...

services to the city and the Central Coast and

Hunter Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, ...

. The Pacific Highway and the M1 Motorway are both nearby and provide easy access to the town. Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park borders the suburb to the south.

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

runs parallel with the suburb on the opposite side of Sandbrook Inlet and is joined to Brooklyn by the railway causeway.

Dangar Island Dangar Island is a forested island, in area, in the Hawkesbury River, on the northern outskirts of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Dangar Island is a suburb of Hornsby Shire and as at the 2021 census had a population of 313, which swells ...

is sited to the northeast.

Recreation amenities and activities

Visitors to the town can enjoy several cafés both in the town and on the waterfront with a focus on local seafood. A range of other options for meals include the Angler's Rest Hotel and the new Estuary restaurant at Kangaroo Point. The iconic 'Peat's Bite' restaurant on the Hawkesbury River is only a 10-minute boat ride from Brooklyn. Boating and fishing are major tourist attractions in Brooklyn. There are several local marinas which provide boat hire, marine services, supplies and fuel for boaties, and houseboat rental for those who want to spend a few days enjoying the river. The Hawkesbury River is also a venue for dragon boat racing and Brooklyn is home to the 'Hawkesbury River Dragons' dragon boat racing club. McKell Park is a popular spot for picnickers. It provides superb river views and multiple venues for recreation. The park encompasses the entire headland from the northern waterfront with its netted public swimming pool and children's playground, to the picnic area at Flatrock lookout, around to Parsley Bay which has a large new boat ramp, multiple pontoons for water access, a large parking area for cars with room for boat trailers and a park with barbecue facilities. Yachts are anchored here with permanent moorings and kayaks can be hired in Parsley Bay to explore the waterways. The waterfront trail around McKell park is a beautiful short walk. There is also a multi-use sporting field and children's playground near Baden Powell Hall on Brooklyn Road. The town has a vibrant art scene with a number of local artists providing works which can be viewed and purchased at the Edge Art Space on Brooklyn Road and the Redfish Cafe Gallery. Brooklyn holds its annual Spring Fair and Markets at the Brooklyn Soccer Oval in September. Brooklyn is surrounded by reserves with plenty of scope for bushwalking. The town is on the route of the famous

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 ...

, a 250 km bushwalking trail from Sydney to Newcastle. Visitors can use this trail to access excellent views within a short distance from the town. The annual Oxfam 100 km Trailwalker charity event also starts from Parsley Bay in Brooklyn. The

is open for several weeks each year during the spring wildflower season. An entry charge applies, and there are guided and unguided walks within the reserve which is closed to the public outside these times. A wide variety of very good aboriginal rock carvings can be seen here along with sections of the old Peats Ferry Road. The Riverboat Postman which commenced in 1910, takes tourists on its mail run to boat access only settlements along the Hawkesbury River and departs weekdays from the Brooklyn Public Wharf. The trip is popular with tourists and this is a great way to enjoy the river's scenery and waterways up close. Alternately you can catch the ferry to Dangar Island for a walk, a picnic, or a meal at the island cafe. The Riverboat Postman leaves Ferry Wharf in Dangar Road adjacent to the railway station on its daily run (Monday – Friday) delivering mail and supplies to the water access only communities of

, Wobby, Bar Point, Marlow Creek and

Milsons Passage Milsons Passage is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located in the Hornsby Shire local government area. According to the 2021 census, its population was 32. See also * Dangar Island * Hawkesbury River R ...

. Brooklyn Public School is the local primary (junior) school, with high school students going to either private schools (

Abbotsleigh Abbotsleigh is an independent Anglican Pre-school education, early learning, primary, secondary Day school, day, and Boarding school, boarding school for Single-sex school, girls located in Wahroonga, on the Upper North Shore (Sydney), Upper N ...

Barker College Barker College is an independent Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican Mixed-sex education, co-educational Pre-school education, early learning, primary and secondary Day school, day and Boarding school, boarding school, located in Hornsby, New ...

, Knox Grammar), selective high schools ( Hornsby Girls, Normanhurst Boys) or public high schools such as Asquith Boys and Asquith Girls. All these high schools are located next to the train line and are a short train journey from Brooklyn (Hawkesbury River Station). Accommodation can be found at the Brooklyn Hotel, The Anglers Rest Hotel, and on various websites.

Popular culture

* Robert Buie was a local resident who fought in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, and his headstone in the Brooklyn cemetery credits him with shooting down

Manfred von Richthofen Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen (; 2 May 1892 – 21 April 1918), known in English as Baron von Richthofen or the Red Baron, was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during World War I. He is considered the ace-of-aces of th ...

, the German air ace who is more commonly known as the "Red Baron". * The 2005 movie ''

Oyster Farmer ''Oyster Farmer'' is a 2004 Australian romantic comedy/drama film about a 24 year old man who runs away to the Hawkesbury River and finds a job with eighth-generation oyster farmers. It was written and directed by Anna Reeves, produced by Anthony ...

'' was filmed in and around Brooklyn. Many local residents were employed as extras.

Demographics

According to the 2021 census, there were 737 residents in Brooklyn. 76.7% of people were born in Australia, with the next most common countries of birth being

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 ...

5.7%,

the United States of America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguou ...

1.9%,

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

1.5%,

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

1.5% and

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

0.9%. 90.0% of people only spoke

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

at home, the next most common languages spoken at home were

Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub- ...

1.2%,

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

0.8%,

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

0.7%,

Afrikaans Afrikaans is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language spoken in South Africa, Namibia and to a lesser extent Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and also Argentina where there is a group in Sarmiento, Chubut, Sarmiento that speaks the Pat ...

0.7% and

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

0.7%. The most common responses for religion were No Religion 50.2%,

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

15.3%,

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

14.0 and Christian, not further defined 3.1%.

History

The general area was known as Peat's Ferry crossing for a long time until January 1884 when a plan of survey for the subdivision of land owned by Peter and William Fagan was registered with the suburb name of Brooklyn. A hotel of the same name followed later in the year. The town owes its existence and location to the main northern railway line with the railway arriving in Brooklyn in 1887 when the single track section north from Hornsby was completed. In January 1886, the Union Bridge Company from New York was awarded the contract to build a railway bridge across the Hawkesbury River. The American roots of the bridge are reflected in the name given to the construction camp, which was named after the 1883

Brooklyn Bridge The Brooklyn Bridge is a cable-stayed suspension bridge in New York City, spanning the East River between the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn. Opened on May 24, 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was the first fixed crossing of the East River. It w ...

. The town name survives to the present day. The Hawkesbury River Railway Bridge was the final link in the Eastern seaboard rail network and was a major engineering feat at the time of its construction. "Hawkesbury River" was the original platform name when the station opened in 1887 but the nomenclature varied over the following twenty years with the names "Flat Rock", "Brooklyn" and "Hawkesbury" all being used until the final change in 1906 to

. ''Peat's Ferry'' Post Office opened on 1 January 1874 and was renamed ''Brooklyn'' in 1888. Brooklyn is positioned at the northern end of the

Cowan Bank Cowan Bank is an double-track section of the standard gauge Main Northern railway line, Main North line in New South Wales, Australia. It starts at Cowan railway station, Cowan station, north of Central railway station, Sydney, Sydney, descend ...

, a scenic stretch of steep track on a 1 in 40 grade. The line drops 200 metres from the ridgetop near Cowan to almost water level, passing through four tunnels in the process. Prior to electrification and diesel locomotives, Brooklyn was a staging post for trains heading south to Sydney with "push up" or

bank engine A bank engine (United Kingdom/Australia) (colloquially a banker), banking engine, helper engine or pusher engine (North America) is a railway locomotive that temporarily assists a train that requires additional power or traction to climb a grad ...

s being attached to the rear of steam trains here for extra assistance on the 8-kilometre climb to Cowan. There have been three major railway accidents in Brooklyn over the years. On 21 June 1887, an excursion train from Sydney ran out of control down the steep Cowan Bank. There were two other trains full of holidaymakers standing at the platforms at Hawkesbury River railway station and disaster was only averted by the alert station master who could hear the roaring engine and frantic whistling. He dispatched a railway porter to throw the points lever open and divert the runaway down a siding that led to the new bridge site. The train lost speed along the railway causeway out to Long Island and collided with some empty wagons. The locomotive slid off the embankment and ended up partially submerged in the river. The engine driver was trapped in the cabin and drowned but the fireman escaped. The toll was six dead and seventy injured. On 20 January 1944 the local bus stalled across the railway tracks at the level crossing in Brooklyn Road and was hit by the northbound Kempsey mail train. Seventeen people were killed. In the Cowan rail accident on 6 May 1990 an interurban electric train ran into the rear of a heritage steam train which had stalled climbing the Cowan Bank. Six people lost their lives. Early road traffic was conveyed across the river by George Peat's ferry and prior to the first road bridge being completed there were two vehicular ferries in operation, the "Frances Peat" and the "George Peat". The new concrete road laid down between Hornsby and Gosford had been completed by 1930 and the increased traffic was beyond the capacity of the ferries. Long queues formed on holiday weekends as vehicles awaited their turn. Work began on the first road bridge in September 1938 and it opened in May 1945. The width and depth of the river between Kangaroo Point and Mooney Mooney presented problems. The total distance to be covered was nearly 800 metres, but an embankment of fill was built out from the northern side, and the actual bridge spans only covered 580 metres. The southern foundation pier was sunk to 233 feet below high water before reaching bedrock, only short of a world record. The bridge cost

A£ The pound (Currency symbol, sign: £, £A for distinction) was the currency of Australia from 1910 until 14 February 1966, when it was replaced by the Australian dollar. Like other £sd currencies, it was subdivided into 20 Shilling (Australian ...

190,000 to build. This was supplemented by a second road bridge, a six-lane concrete construction that was completed in 1973 as part of the Sydney to Newcastle freeway. In 1901 the Duke and Duchess of York (later

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. George was born during the reign of his pa ...

and Queen Mary), whilst in Australia for the inaugural opening of federal parliament, anchored their yacht the "Ophir" in Cowan Creek and boarded the paddle wheel steamboat the "General Gordon" for a tour of the lower Hawkesbury. A small obelisk unveiled in 1939, adjacent to the railway station and the avenue of tall palms in McKell Park, commemorates the discovery and naming of the Hawkesbury River by Governor Phillip in 1789.

Heritage listings

Brooklyn has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: * Main Northern railway:

* Main Northern railway: Hawkesbury River Railway Bridge

Commercial area

The town has traditionally been associated with the farming of

Sydney rock oyster ''Saccostrea glomerata'' is an oyster species belonging to the family Ostreidae.MolluscaBase eds. (2022). MolluscaBase. Saccostrea Dollfus & Dautzenberg, 1920. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: https://www.marinespecies.org/a ...

with generations of the same families involved. Oyster beds are a common sight along wide sections of the river but in 2004 the disease QX wiped out production and the Industry has just recently been allowed to start up again (http://hornsby-advocate.whereilive.com.au/news/story/oyster-farmers-back-from-brink-and-now-exporting-internationally/).

Transport

is on the

, which is served by

Central Coast & Newcastle Line The Central Coast & Newcastle Line (CCN) is an regional rail, intercity rail service that services the Upper North Shore, Central Coast (New South Wales), Central Coast and Newcastle, New South Wales, Newcastle regions. It connects the two large ...

services. The Pacific Highway (B83) and the Pacific Motorway (M1) are major arterial roads located adjacent to Brooklyn. Access to Brooklyn via the Pacific Motorway requires exiting the motorway at Mooney Mooney on the northern shore of the Hawkesbury River and crossing the Peats Ferry Bridge via the Pacific Highway. Brooklyn is the base for Hawkesbury Cruises running The Riverboat Postman each weekday at 10:00 am, and by Brooklyn Ferry Service running the Dangar Island ferry from 6:00 am every day.

CDC NSW CDC NSW is a bus operator in New South Wales, Australia. It is an umbrella brand of ComfortDelGro Australia established in 2017 to cover the latter's New South Wales operations, some of which had been owned by ComfortDelGro since 2005. It was sub ...

operates one bus route through Brooklyn: * 592: Brooklyn to Hornsby via Mooney Mooney, Cowan, Berowra and Asquith

Kangaroo Point

The southern ends of the Pacific Motorway (M1) Brooklyn Bridge and the Pacific Highway Peats Ferry Bridge across the Hawkesbury River are located at Kangaroo Point. It has been termed "the entrance to Sydney" by those commuting from the north. The first

Australian five-pound note The Australian five-pound note was first issued in 1913 and featured a scene looking along the Hawkesbury River near Brooklyn, New South Wales, from the railway toward Kangaroo Point. Upon decimalisation it had a value of 10 dollars. Timelin ...

included a picture of Kangaroo Point. In 2012 Hornsby Shire Council undertook building work to construct viewing platforms and recreational areas.

Notes

# This is the area of the ABS Census Collection District, not the whole suburb as registered by New South Wales Land & Property Information.

References

External links

History of the 1888 (initial) Railway Bridge
*

CC-By-SA A Creative Commons (CC) license is one of several public copyright licenses that enable the free distribution of an otherwise copyrighted "work". A CC license is used when an author wants to give other people the right to share, use, and bui ...

] *

] {{authority control Brooklyn, New South Wales, Suburbs of Sydney Hawkesbury River Towns in New South Wales Hornsby Shire Australian places named after U.S. places or U.S. history