Ermington is a Riverside

Suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area. They are oftentimes where most of a metropolitan areas jobs are located with some being predominantly residential. They can either be denser or less densely populated ...

in the Geographical & Demographical Centre of Greater

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

NSW New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a state on the east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria to the south, and South Australia to the west. Its coast borders the Coral and Tasman Seas to the east. T ...

, Australia. Ermington is located Only 15 kilometres from 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 ...

, 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

City of Parramatta The City of Parramatta, also known as Parramatta Council, is a Local government in Australia, local government area located to the west and north-west of Sydney CBD in the Greater Western Sydney region. Parramatta Council is situated between th ...

. Ermington lies on the Northern Bank of the

Parramatta River The Parramatta River is an intermediate tide-dominated, Ria, drowned valley estuary located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. With an average Altitude, height, and depth, depth of , the Parramatta River is the main tributary of Sydney Harbour ...

History

Aboriginal culture

The area now known as Ermington was associated with the

Wallumettagal The Wallumettagal or Wallumedegal (derived from ''wallumai'', meaning snapper (fish)) tribe was an indigenous Aboriginal tribe that inhabited the area of Sydney today known as the Ryde–Hunters Hill area of the Northern Suburbs. Common Abo ...

/Wallumedegal people. References also note that the area had been controlled by the Wongal/Wangal people.

European settlement

Ermington was originally part of the Field of Mars area. In February 1792, Governor Arthur Phillip granted parcels of land on the northern bank of

in the Field of Mars to eight marines: Isaac Archer, John Carver, John Colthread, Thomas Cottrell, James Manning, Alexander McDonald, Thomas Swinnerton and Thomas Tining. Most of the parcels were about in size, except for McDonald's which was 130 acres (apparently because he was married). The settlers used their land to grow wheat, maize and vegetables.Jervis, J. (1999). ''The Cradle City of Australia: A History of Parramatta, 1788-1961.'' G. Mackaness (Ed), Pan: Sydney.McClymont, J. (2001). ''Pictorial History: Parramatta & District'', Kingsclear Books: Sydney. Alexander McDonald's grant extended northward from

to approximately present-day Stevens Street, and westward to present-day Spurway Street. His house is still standing near Parramatta River at 15-17 Honor Street. In 1809 he acquired an extra . He used his land to grow wheat, which he ground, dressed and sold to a baker in Sydney. After McDonald's death, his widow sold part of the land of about 45 acres to Seargent George MacDonald (no relation), who in turn sold it to Henry Bowerman and Charles Campbell. Bowerman named his estate ''Marion'' developing an orchard and vineyard on the land, and he built the ''Marion'' homestead on the hill where present-day Rydalmere East Public School with sweeping views of Parramatta River now stands. Mrs Bowerman put the estate up for sale in 1857, though it was 1862 before she actually disposed of it at auction. Jamed Hartwell Williams, a well known colonist and long time American Consul resided at 'Marion' for several years in the early 1870s. The estate passed into the hands of developers in the 1880s who renamed it the 'Broadoaks Estate' and 'Broadoaks House'. The remainder of McDonald's land was purchased by E. B. Miller, who built ''Rose Farm'' in Honor Street. John Colthread's grant comprised across present-day Wharf Road. The Police Magistrate to

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 ...

, Major

Edmund Lockyer Edmund Lockyer, (21 January 1784 – 10 June 1860) was a British soldier and explorer of Australia. Born in Plymouth, Devon, Lockyer was the son of Thomas Lockyer, a sailmaker, and his wife Ann. Lockyer began his army career as an ensign in ...

, purchased the land in 1827 and built the stone mansion ''Ermington'' - named after the parish in

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

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 ...

, where his second wife, Sarah Morris, was born. The house was completed in 1828 and stood near the current Ryde-Parramatta Golf Course. Locker increased his land holdings and by 1830 was grazing 1280 sheep and over 300 head of cattle on more than 1900 hectares. He subdivided some of his land in 1841 and advertised it for sale as the "Village of Ermington", but not many blocks were sold. In 1843, Lockyer sold off his remaining holdings. Lockyer died in 1860. His third child by his second marriage, born in England, was named Sarah Ermington Lockyer.

Agriculture

Ermington played an early role in Australia's wine industry. In 1806

Gregory Blaxland Gregory Blaxland (17 June 1778 – 1 January 1853) was an English pioneer farmer and explorer in Australia, noted especially for initiating and co-leading the first successful crossing of the Blue Mountains by European settlers. Early life ...

established a vineyard in what is now Ermington and produced award-winning wines. During March 1822 Australia's first wine export was shipped to England from Blaxland's 'Brush Farm' vineyard in Ermington. From the 1830s, the Ermington region became an important source of fruit for early Sydney, and it was a busy place in the packing season. Produce such as oranges, lemons, apples and apricots was carted down to Pennant Hills Wharf, and small boats including the ''Amy'' and the ''Growers Friend'' would transport it on to the markets in Sydney. Blue metal from the quarry in present-day Dundas Valley was also transported to Sydney for road building.

Industrial and residential development

In November 1886, the land bounded by present-day Silverwater Road, Jackson Street, Spurway Street and Lindsay Avenue was offered at auction as the ''Broad Oaks Estate''. However, the auction was unsuccessful and the land reverted to grazing and dairying. Many years later the land was acquired by John Bridge Ltd, who engaged surveyors Lockie, Gannon, Worley and Campbell to prepare the current curvilinear design in 1930. The streets were named after Australian painters. Further south, parts of the lower area adjacent to the Parramatta River were filled in the early 1930s in anticipation of a residential subdivision, also to be known as the ''Broadoaks Estate''. However, these plans were stifled by the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

. In 1943, the site was occupied by the Ermington Naval Storage Depot. Seven large nissen-style storage and repair warehouses were constructed to serve as a supplies store for the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

during

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 ...

. The

Royal Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the navy, naval branch of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (Australia), Chief of Navy (CN) Vice admiral (Australia), Vice Admiral Mark Hammond (admiral), Ma ...

continued to use the site for several years after the war to store non-explosive materials, and Prix Car Services used it to hold cars in the 1990s. In 1945, the Australian government acquired many of the orchards and nurseries in Ermington, commenced large-scale subdivision and built hundreds of Housing and War Commission dwellings to accommodate returned servicemen and their families. There are still substantial Housing Commission holdings near the intersection of Spurway and Bartlett Streets. Riverwalk Ermington

During the 1970s, to the chagrin of the local residents, much of the area occupied by

George Kendall Riverside Park George Kendall Riverside Park is a recreational park in Ermington, New South Wales, on the northern bank of the Parramatta River. The park is named after George Frederick Kendall, an alderman of the Ermington/Rydalmere Municipality from 1944 ...

(then called George Kendall Reserve) was used as a landfill site. Eventually the operation was decommissioned and the site revegetated. Since the Sydney property boom in the early 2000s, a wave of young families have settled in Ermington in search for affordable houses, while the continued development of

attracts professional workers. In 2006/07, the site of the former Ermington Naval Storage Depot was cleared and

Stockland Stockland Corporation Limited is a diversified Australian property development company. It has business in shopping centers, residential estates, industrial estates and manufactured housing communities. History Stockland was founded in 1952 by ...

commenced development of its ''Riverwalk'' estate, featuring high-market housing beside the

Commercial area

The Ermington Shopping Centre, opened in 1958, was an "essential amenity" for the hundreds of families in the new Housing and War Commission Homes. Today, this string of shops along Betty Cuthbert Avenue is a busy shopping hub.

Landmarks

Army barracks

Timor Barracks is just inside the northern boundary of Ermington, on the corner of Kissing Point Road and Stewart Street. It is currently home to the 8th Command Support Regiment.
History of the 155 Signals Squadron (8 CSR)
'
Department of Defence website
accessed 19 June 2006) Previously it was home to the Eastern Region Command Signals Regiment. The barracks used to be overlooked by a very tall antenna tower, providing communications for the army. The tower was pulled down some years ago. Today there is a mobile phone tower not too far from the site of the original army tower. The barracks opened on 17 February 1968, on the former site of the 2CH radio station transmitter. Today the 2CH transmitter is located across the Parramatta river from Ermington, at

Homebush Bay Homebush Bay is a bay on the south bank of the Parramatta River, in the west of Sydney, Australia. The name is also sometimes used to refer to an area to the west and south of the bay itself, which was formerly an official suburb of Sydney, a ...

. The area surrounding the transmitter was a market garden owned by Yates. A nearby street in Dundas, is called Yates Avenue. Today the old market garden is residential housing, built in the 1960s. File:AWA 2CH transmitter ermington 1.jpg, The old 2CH Radio Station Transmitter, where Timor Barracks now stands File:AWA 2CH transmitter ermington 2.jpg, The old 2CH Radio Station Transmitter File:Timor barracks nsw au 1960s.jpg, Timor Barracks in the 1960s, with the antenna tower visible.

The Lottie Stewart Hospital

Next to the Timor Barracks is the Lottie Stewart Hospital. The hospital has a history of

palliative care Palliative care (from Latin root "to cloak") is an interdisciplinary medical care-giving approach aimed at optimizing quality of life and mitigating or reducing suffering among people with serious, complex, and often terminal illnesses. Man ...

and is operated by the Wesley Mission.
Lottie Stewart Hospital: History
''
Sydney West Area Health Service
(accessed 19 June 2006) It was opened in 1948. The Lottie Stewart Fete is an annual fixture in Ermington's calendar.

Subiaco Creek

Ermington is the watershed of the Subiaco Creek. The Creeks starts as runoff from the area containing Timor Barracks and Lottie Stewart Hospital. It enters a culvert and runs underneath Fremont Avenue at the bottom of the valley near house number 23. It then flows under an easement into Cowells Lane Reserve. "The Creek" (as it is called by locals) used to be mostly above ground, but as at 2006 has been mostly buried in a pipe. It surfaces again near the intersection of Stevens Street and Spurway Street.

Transport

Victoria Road (A40) is a major route connecting Parramatta with

Anzac Bridge The Anzac Bridge is an eight-lane cable-stayed bridge that carries the Western Distributor (A4) across Johnstons Bay between Pyrmont and Glebe Island (part of the suburb of Rozelle), on the western fringe of the Sydney central business dis ...

and passes through Ermington. Stewart Street and Silverwater Road are parts of the A6 arterial route between

Cumberland Highway Cumberland Highway is a long urban highway located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The highway links Pacific Highway (Australia), Pacific Highway and Pacific Motorway (Sydney–Newcastle), Pacific Motorway (Highway 1 (New South Wales), ...

at Carlingford and the

Princes Highway Princes Highway is a major road in Australia, extending from Sydney via Melbourne to Adelaide through the states of New South Wales, Victoria (Australia), Victoria and South Australia. It has a length of (along Highway 1) or via the former ...

at Heathcote. It intersects with Victoria Road at a flyover interchange on the western edge of Ermington and crosses the Parramatta River over Silverwater Bridge.

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 six bus routes that service Ermington. The 501 travel to and from Parramatta station to Railway Square. The 523 travels via Spurway and Bartlett Streets in Ermington and on to West Ryde. The 524 services Melrose Park stopping along Boronia St then at Ermington Shops. This route then travels along the industrial section of Rydalmere along South Street and via the ferry wharf towards Parramatta. The 525 to Westfield Burwood from Parramatta services Ermington along Silverwater Road. The 544 route to Auburn station from

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 ...

also travels along Silverwater Road via Victoria Road in a south-westerly direction. Stage 2 of the Parramatta Light Rail is an under construction light rail link between Westmead and

Sydney Olympic Park Sydney Olympic Park is a suburb of Greater Western Sydney, located 13 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the Local government in Australia, local government area of the City of Parramatta, City of Parramatta Council. It i ...

via Parramatta. The project would pass through Ermington. At the 2011 census, only 16% of employed people travelled to work on public transport and 66% by car (either as driver or as passenger).

Schools

* Ermington West Public School * Rydalmere East Public School * Melrose Park Public School * Ermington Public School is located in West Ryde, just outside the boundaries of Ermington. StMarks Ermington

Churches

The first church in Ermington, St Mark's Anglican Church, was opened in 1883. The first known

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 ...

mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

in the area was celebrated in 1855, in a converted barn near Ermington House.

Parks

Parks in the Ermington area include: *

*Eccles Park *Cowells Lane Reserve *Thomas Wemyss Park *Millers Reserve *Hilder Reserve *Tristram Reserve *Lockyer Reserve

Sport and recreation

The Ermington United Sports & Recreation Club was founded in Ermington 1957 and is predominantly based at George Kendall Riverside Park. The club has since been involved in a variety of sports and recreational activities. These include: Cricket, AFL, archery and boomerang throwing. Currently the club is only involved in Soccer, Netball and Tennis. 1st Ermington Scouts was founded in 1953. Tigers Baseball & Softball Club (formerly Epping Eastwood) play their home baseball games at George Kendall Riverside Park. There are 5 diamonds close to the river which are used for T-Ball, under age and senior baseball. The main diamond is named after the club's first life member, Gary Chong who was instrumental in its construction and is still an active member of the club. George Kendall Riverside park also contains a number of locations fit for community or family based activities. These include: Playgrounds, Sheltered seating and cooking areas and a bike track.

Population

Demographics

At the , there were 12,686 residents in Ermington. Of these: ; Ethnic diversity: 52.8% of people were born in Australia. The most common other countries of birth were China 8.5%, South Korea 5.6%, Lebanon 2.1%, India 2.0% and Philippines 1.8%. The most common ancestries were Australian 18.8%, Chinese 18.2%, English 17.4%, Korean 7.6% and Lebanese 6.1%. 47.4% of people only spoke English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Mandarin 9.2%, Korean 7.3%, Cantonese 5.6%, Arabic 5.4% and Armenian 2.3%. ; Religion: The most common responses for religion were No Religion 30.3%, Catholic 25.8% and Anglican 7.0%. ; Age distribution: Ermington residents' median age was 37 years, compared to the national median of 38. Children aged under 15 years made up 19.4% of the population (national average is 18.2%) and people aged 65 years and over made up 14.0% of the population (national average is 17.2%). ; Income: The median weekly household income was $1,993, more than the national median of $1,746. ; Housing: Stand-alone houses accounted for 60.3% of occupied dwellings, while 21.2% were semi-detached (mostly townhouses) and 17.9% were flats, units or apartments. 42.8% of houses were rentedthe rest were mostly owned with a mortgage (33.1%) or owned outright (21.9%). The average household size was 2.8 people.

Notable residents

Betty Cuthbert Elizabeth Alyse Cuthbert (20 April 1938 – 6 August 2017), was an Australian athlete and a four-time Olympic champion. She was nicknamed Australia's "Golden Girl". During her career, she set world records for 60 metres, 100 yards, 200 metres ...

, an Australian Olympic Athlete, grew up in Ermington and attended Ermington Public School.Anna (class 4S),
Ermington Public School History
''
Ermington Public School Website
(accessed 19 June 2006) The main street of the Ermington shopping centre is called Betty Cuthbert Avenue, in her honour. Her family ran the Riverview Nursery (L Cuthbert & Sons) at 736 Victoria Road.NSW Heritage Register, Database Number 2240584
/ref> *

Greg Matthews Gregory Richard John Matthews (born 15 December 1959) is a New South Wales cricket team, New South Wales and Australia national cricket team, Australian former cricketer, cricket all rounder (Off spin, off-spin bowler and batting (cricket), l ...

, a test cricketer, attended Ermington Public School * Alexander McDonald (1792), a Royal Marines officer on the

First Fleet The First Fleet were eleven British ships which transported a group of settlers to mainland Australia, marking the beginning of the History of Australia (1788–1850), European colonisation of Australia. It consisted of two Royal Navy vessel ...

, in Honor Street. * Valerie Swain & Ben Swane were nursery and media personalities whose family founded a nursery in Ermington in 1919.

Politics

Prior to the 2007 federal election Ermington was the easternmost suburb in the federal electoral

division of Parramatta The Division of Parramatta is an Divisions of the Australian House of Representatives, Australian electoral division in the state of New South Wales. It was created in 1900 and was one of the List of Australian electorates contested at every el ...

. Between 2007 and 2024, most of Ermington was contained within the federal electoral

division of Bennelong The Division of Bennelong is an Electorates of the Australian House of Representatives, Australian electoral division in the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales. The division was created in 1949 and is named after Benn ...

, being on its western boundary. A small portion of the suburb, lying west of Silverwater Road, was in the

. Since the 2024 redistribution, all of Ermington has been in Parramatta again. At the state level Ermington is contained within the State Electoral District Of Parramatta. At the local government level Ermington is within the City of Parramatta

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 ...

. The portion of Ermington east of Spurway Street is in the Lachlan Macquarie

Ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

while the portion west of Spurway Street is in the Elizabeth Macarthur Ward.
Council: Ward Information
'
Parramatta City Council
(accessed 19 June 2006)

References

External links

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20030921050454/http://www.oca.nsw.gov.au/ecology/ferry-homebush-meadowbank.cfm History from Olympic Coordination Authoritybr>Original link, now dead
* *
Ermington Naval Stores' entry in the Australian Heritage DatabaseErmington Bay Wetlands' entry in the Australian Heritage DatabaseMcDonald's Farm House's entry in the Australian Heritage DatabaseParramatta and Lane Cove Rivers Landscapes' entry in the Australian Heritage DatabaseHistory for Brush Farm with info about Ermington (One Tree Hill)
* CC-By-SA">Creative_Commons_license.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Creative Commons license">CC-By-SA/nowiki> {{Geography of Parramatta River Suburbs of Sydney City of Parramatta