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Surry Hills is an inner-east
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 ...
of
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 ...
, 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. Surry Hills is immediately south-east 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 ...
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 Sydney The City of Sydney is the Local government in Australia, local government area covering the Sydney central business district and surrounding inner city suburbs of the Greater Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Established by Act of Parliament ...
. Surry Hills is surrounded by the suburbs of
Darlinghurst Darlinghurst is an inner-city suburb in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Darlinghurst is located immediately east of the Sydney central business district (CBD) and Hyde Park, within the local government area of the Ci ...
to the north, Chippendale and Haymarket to the west, Moore Park and
Paddington Paddington is an area in the City of Westminster, in central London, England. A medieval parish then a metropolitan borough of the County of London, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Paddington station, designed b ...
to the east and Redfern to the south. It is often colloquially referred to as "Surry". It is bordered by Elizabeth Street and
Chalmers Street Chalmers Street is a one way street in Surry Hills Surry Hills is an Eastern Suburbs (Sydney), inner-east suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Surry Hills is immediately south-east of the Sydney central business dis ...
to the west, Cleveland Street to the south, South Dowling Street to the east, and
Oxford Street Oxford Street is a major road in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, running between Marble Arch and Tottenham Court Road via Oxford Circus. It marks the notional boundary between the areas of Fitzrovia and Marylebone to t ...
to the north. Crown Street is a main thoroughfare through the suburb with numerous restaurants, pubs and bars. Central is a locality in the north-west of the suburb around
Central station Central stations or central railway stations emerged in the second half of the nineteenth century as railway stations that had initially been built on the edge of city centres were enveloped by urban expansion and became an integral part of the ...
.
Prince Alfred Park Prince Alfred Park is an urban park in Surry Hills, Sydney, Australia. It is bounded by Chalmers Street to the east, Cleveland Street to the south and the Main Suburban railway line to the west. History In December 1865, part of Cleveland Paddo ...
is located nearby.
Strawberry Hills Strawberry Hills is an official Urban Place in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Strawberry Hills is located east of Central railway station, within the suburbs of Surry Hills and Redfern which are part of the local government area of the Ci ...
is a locality around Cleveland and Elizabeth Streets and
Brickfield Hill Brickfield Hill is a City of Sydney locality in the Sydney central business district, Australia. The name was used for the surrounding settlement serving the colony's growing need for bricks, and today is part of the suburb of Surry Hills. Histo ...
to the east of that. A multicultural suburb, Surry Hills has had a long association with the Portuguese community of Sydney.


History

The first land grants in Surry Hills were made in the 1790s. Major
Joseph Foveaux Joseph Foveaux (1767 – 20 March 1846) was a soldier and convict settlement administrator in colonial New South Wales, Australia. He was also a sheep grazier and breeder, being the largest landholder in New South Wales by 1800. Early life Fovea ...
received . His property was known as Surry Hills Farm, after the Surrey Hills in
Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...
, England. Foveaux Street is named in his honour. Commissary John Palmer received . He called the property George Farm and in 1800 Palmer also bought Foveaux's farm. In 1792, the boundaries of the Sydney Cove settlement were established between the head of Cockle Bay to the head of Woolloomooloo Bay. West of the boundary, which included present-day Surry Hills, was considered suitable for farming and was granted to military officers and free settlers. After Palmer's political failures, his reduced financial circumstances forced the first subdivision and sale of his estate in 1814.
Isaac Nichols Isaac Nichols (29 July 1770 – 18 November 1819) was an English-born Australian farmer, shipowner and public servant who was a convict transported to New South Wales on the Third Fleet, on the Admiral Barrington. He was transported for seven ...
bought Allotment 20, comprising over . Due to the hilly terrain, much of the suburb was considered remote and 'inhospitable'. In the early years of the nineteenth century the area around what is now
Prince Alfred Park Prince Alfred Park is an urban park in Surry Hills, Sydney, Australia. It is bounded by Chalmers Street to the east, Cleveland Street to the south and the Main Suburban railway line to the west. History In December 1865, part of Cleveland Paddo ...
was undeveloped land known as the Government Paddocks or Cleveland Paddocks. A few villas were built in the suburb in the late 1820s. The suburb remained one of contrasts for much of the nineteenth century, with the homes of wealthy merchants mixed with that of the commercial and working classes. In 1820, Governor Macquarie ordered the consecration of the
Devonshire Street Cemetery The Devonshire Street Cemetery (also known as the Brickfield Cemetery or Sandhills Cemetery) was located between Eddy Avenue and Elizabeth Street, Sydney, Elizabeth Street, and between Chalmers Street, Chalmers and Devonshire streets, at Brickfi ...
. A brick wall was erected before any interments took place to enclose its . Within a four-year period the cemetery was expanded by the addition of to its south. A road was formed along the southern boundary of the cemetery in the first half of the 1830s and was called Devonshire Street. The Devonshire Street Cemetery, where many of the early settlers were buried, was later moved to build the Sydney railway terminus. Central railway station was opened on 4 August 1906. The area around Cleveland and Elizabeth streets was known as
Strawberry Hills Strawberry Hills is an official Urban Place in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Strawberry Hills is located east of Central railway station, within the suburbs of Surry Hills and Redfern which are part of the local government area of the Ci ...
. Strawberry Hills post office was located at this intersection for many years. In 1833, the Nichols estate was subdivided and sold. One purchase was by Thomas Broughton and subsequently acquired by George Hill who constructed Durham Hall on this and adjoining lots. Terrace houses and workers' cottages were built in Surry Hills from the 1850s. Light industry became established in the area, particularly in the rag trade (clothing industry). It became a working class suburb, predominately inhabited by Irish immigrants. The suburb developed a reputation for crime and vice. The Sydney underworld figure
Kate Leigh Kathleen Mary Josephine Leigh (née Beahan; 10 March 1881 – 4 February 1964) (other names included Kathleen Barry, and Kathleen Ryan) was an Australian underworld figure who rose to prominence as a madam, illegal trader of alcohol and cocain ...
(1881–1964), lived in Surry Hills for more than 80 years. In 1896
Patineur Grotesque ''Patineur Grotesque'' was a film of a comic roller-skater. Marius Sestier filmed the comic act in Prince Alfred Park in the South Sydney-Redfern area in 1896. The film was not released until 1897 in Lyon, France. The film was listed in the ...
one of Australia's first
film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...
s and first comedy routine filmed was shot in Prince Alfred Park by
Marius Sestier Marius Ely Joseph Sestier (8 September 1861 – 8 November 1928) was a French cinematographer. Sestier was best known for his work in Australia, where he shot some of the country's first films. Born in Sauzet, Drôme, Sestier was a pharmacist b ...
. Surry Hills was favoured by newly arrived families after
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 ...
when property values were low and accommodation was inexpensive. From the 1980s, the area was
gentrified Gentrification is the process whereby the character of a neighborhood changes through the influx of more affluent residents (the "gentry") and investment. There is no agreed-upon definition of gentrification. In public discourse, it has been us ...
, with many of the area's older houses and building restored and many new upper middle-class residents enjoying the benefits of inner-city living. The suburb is now a haven for the upper middle class and young rich.


Trams

The West Kensington via Surry Hills Line operated from 1881 down Crown Street as far as Cleveland Street as a steam tramway. It was extended to Phillip Street in 1909, Todman Avenue in 1912, and then to its final terminus down Todman Avenue in 1937. When the line was fully operational it branched from the tramlines in Oxford Street and proceeded down Crown Street to Cleveland Street in Surry Hills, then south along Baptist Street to Phillip Street, where it swung left into Crescent Street before running south along Dowling Street. It passed the Dowling Street Depot, then turned left into Todman Avenue, where it terminated at
West Kensington West Kensington, formerly North End, is an area in the ancient parish of Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, England, 3.4 miles (5.5 km) west of Charing Cross. It covers most of the London postal area of W14, includ ...
. The line along Crown Street closed in 1957, the remainder stayed open until 1961 to allow access to
Dowling Street Tram Depot Dowling Street Tram Depot was part of the Sydney tram network. It was the largest tram depot in Australia. History Dowling Street Tram Depot opened on 25 January 1909. The 27 road shed provided trams on the Coogee, La Perouse, Clovelly, Mar ...
.
Transdev John Holland Transdev John Holland Buses is a bus operator in Sydney, Australia. A joint venture between Transdev Australasia, Transdev and John Holland Group, John Holland, it operates services in Sydney Metropolitan Bus Service Contracts, Sydney Bus Regio ...
routes 301, 302 and 303 generally follow the route down Crown and Baptist Streets as far as Phillip Street.


Urban character

Surry Hills has a mixture of residential, commercial and light industrial areas. It remains Sydney's main centre for fashion wholesale activities, particularly on the western side. The area is also home to a large LGBTQIA+ community, where Sydney's Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras (Pride Parade) takes place each year. Surry Hills Markets are held in Shannon Reserve at the corner of Crown and Collins Streets, on the first Saturday of every month, and the Surry Hills Festival is an annual community event, attracting tens of thousands of visitors, held in and around Ward Park, Shannon Reserve, Crown Street and Hill Street. The Surry Hills Library and Community Centre sits opposite Shannon Reserve and houses the local branch of the
city library A public library is a library, most often a lending library, that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil servic ...
and the Surry Hills Neighbourhood Centre.


In popular culture


Literature

''
The Harp in the South ''The Harp in the South'' is the debut novel by New Zealand-born Australian author Ruth Park. Published in 1948, it portrays the life of a Catholic Irish Australian family living in the Sydney suburb of Surry Hills, which was at that time an i ...
'' is a novel by
Ruth Park Rosina Ruth Lucia Park AM (24 August 191714 December 2010) was a New Zealand–born Australian author. Her best known works are the novels '' The Harp in the South'' (1948) and '' Playing Beatie Bow'' (1980), and the children's radio serial '' ...
. Published in 1948, it portrays the life of a Catholic Irish-Australian family in Surry Hills, which was an inner city slum at the time. A sequel, ''
Poor Man's Orange ''Poor Man's Orange'' is a novel by New Zealand born Australian author Ruth Park. Published in 1949, the book is the sequel to '' The Harp in the South'' (1948) and continues the story of the Darcy family, living in the Surry Hills area of Syd ...
'', was published in 1949.


Transport

Central railway station, the largest station on 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 ...
and
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 ...
networks, sits on the western edge of Surry Hills. Surry Hills is also serviced by
Transdev John Holland Transdev John Holland Buses is a bus operator in Sydney, Australia. A joint venture between Transdev Australasia, Transdev and John Holland Group, John Holland, it operates services in Sydney Metropolitan Bus Service Contracts, Sydney Bus Regio ...
and
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 ...
buses. The
Eastern Distributor The Eastern Distributor is a motorway in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Part of the M1 and the Sydney Orbital Network, the motorway links the Sydney central business district with the south-east and Sydney Airport. The Eastern Distribut ...
is a major road, on the eastern edge of the suburb. Major thoroughfares are Crown Street, Cleveland Street, Bourke Street and Foveaux Street. Surry Hills is within easy walking distance of the Sydney CBD, and is included in a widening network of cycleways. Major construction took place on the Surry Hills section of the
CBD and South East Light Rail The CBD and South East Light Rail is a pair of Light rail in Sydney, light rail lines running between Sydney CBD, Sydney's central business district (CBD) and the Eastern Suburbs (Sydney), south-eastern suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Austr ...
which opened in December 2019 and April 2020 respectively.
Transport for NSW Transport for NSW (TfNSW) is a Government of New South Wales, New South Wales Government transport services and roads List of New South Wales government agencies, agency established on 1 November 2011. The agency is a different entity to the NSW ...
managed this project. It has been reported that there has been some disruption to local businesses because of the construction work taking place.


Places of worship

* Chinese Presbyterian Church * Christian Israelite Church * Cityside Church (Australian Christian Churches) * Dawn of Islam Mosque * Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church * King Faisal Mosque *
Self-Realization Fellowship Self-Realization Fellowship (SRF) is a worldwide religious organization founded in 1920 by Paramahansa Yogananda, the Indian guru who authored '' Autobiography of a Yogi''. Before moving to the United States, Yogananda began his spiritual wo ...
br>Sydney Centre
*
Society of Friends Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...
* St Francis De Sales Catholic Church * St Michael's Anglican Church * St Peter's Catholic Church * Surry Hills Baptist Church * Sydney Streetlevel Mission (
The Salvation Army The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestantism, Protestant Christian church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. It is aligned with the Wesleyan-Holiness movement. The organisation reports a worldwide m ...
) * Vine Church File:St Peter's Catholic Church-Front.jpg, St Peter's Catholic Church File:(1)Surry Hills Orthodox Church.jpg, Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church File:Surry Hills Church 2.JPG, Chinese Presbyterian Church File:(1)Christian Israelite Church.jpg, Christian Israelite Church, Campbell Street File:Surry Hills The Kirk.JPG, The Kirk, a deconsecrated Methodist church File:StMichael'sAnglicanChurchSurryHills.jpg, St Michael's Anglican Church File:(1)St Davids Hall Arthur Street-a.jpg, Heritage-listed St David's Hall, Arthur Street File:Buddhist Temple Surry Hills 006.jpg, Buddhist Temple, 117 Albion Street


Landmarks

* Sydney Police Centre * Centennial Plaza *
Belvoir Street Theatre Belvoir is an Australian theatre company based at the Belvoir St Theatre in Sydney, Australia, originally known as Company B. Its artistic director is Eamon Flack. The theatre comprises two performing spaces: the Upstairs Theatre and the smalle ...
* Prince Alfred Park & Swimming Pool * Tom Mann Theatre * Harmony Park * Ward Park, Devonshire Street * Rainbow Crossing, Taylor Square * Surry Hills Library and Community Centre, Crown Street * The Kirk, Cleveland Street


Restaurants

Surry Hills boasts a diverse range of cafes and restaurants serving a wide variety of cooking styles and cultures. The suburb has one of the highest, if not the highest, concentration of restaurants in Sydney. Local chefs include Andrew Cibej and Bill Granger.


Pubs and bars

Because of its industrial and commercial history, the Surry Hills area contains a significant number of
pubs A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption Licensing laws of the United Kingdom#On-licence, on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the ...
. The style of pubs range from the
Victorian period In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the reign of Queen Victoria, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. Slightly different definitions are sometimes used. The era followed th ...
to
Federation A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a political union, union of partially federated state, self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a #Federal governments, federal government (federalism) ...
and
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...
pubs from the mid-1900s. Many of these have been refurbished in recent years to include restaurants and modern facilities.


Heritage buildings

Surry Hills has a number of heritage-listed sites, including the following sites listed on the
New South Wales State Heritage Register The New South Wales State Heritage Register, also known as NSW State Heritage Register, is a heritage list of places in the state of New South Wales, Australia, that are protected by New South Wales legislation, generally covered by the Heritag ...
: * 197, 199, 201
Albion Street Albion Street may refer to: *Albion Street, Leeds, England * Albion Street, London, England *Albion Street, Surry Hills Albion Street is a street in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia in the local government area of the City of Sydney. It runs ...
: 197, 199, 201 Albion Street terrace cottages * 203–205 Albion Street: 203–205 Albion Street cottages * 207 Albion Street: Durham Hall * 626–630 Bourke Street:
Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church, Surry Hills The Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church is a heritage-listed Greek Orthodox church building located at 626–630 Bourke Street, Surry Hills, City of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by C. R. Summerhayes and built from 1898 to ...
* Centennial Park to College Street:
Busby's Bore Busby's Bore, Sydney's second water supply, is a heritage-listed former water management facility located between Centennial Park and College Street, Surry Hills, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by John Busby and built fr ...
* Chalmers Street:
Railway Institute Building The Railway Institute Building is a heritage-listed former educational facility and social venue at 101 Chalmers Street, Surry Hills, Sydney, Australia. It was built from 1891 to 1898. It is also known as the Institute building. It was added to ...
* 146–164 Chalmers Street:
Cleveland House, Surry Hills The Cleveland House is a heritage-listed former residence, hospital, convent and aged care facility and now vacant building located at 146–164 Chalmers Street, Surry Hills, Sydney, Australia. The building is located at the rear of the block a ...
* 356 Crown Street:
Crown Street Public School The Crown Street Public School is a heritage-listed State school, public primary school located at Crown Street, Sydney, Crown Street, Surry Hills, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by George Allen Mansfield and built from in 1 ...
* 285 Crown Street:
Crown Street Reservoir The Crown Street Reservoir is a heritage-listed reservoir located at 285 Crown Street, Sydney, Crown Street, Surry Hills, New South Wales, Surry Hills, City of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was built by Donohoe and Vaughan. It is also ...
* 397 Crown Street: 1849 Stonemasonry workshop * 416 Bourke Street:
Hopetoun Hotel The Hopetoun Hotel, colloquially referred to as The Hoey, is a historic Sydney hotel and live music venue in Surry Hills. It was built somewhere between 1836 and 1839, originally under the name of the Cookatoo Inn and then in 1901 revamped and n ...
The following buildings are listed on the now defunct
Register of the National Estate The Register of the National Estate was a heritage register that listed natural and cultural heritage places in Australia that was closed in 2007. Phasing out began in 2003, when the Australian National Heritage List and the Commonwealth Heri ...
: * Bourke Street Public School, established in 1880 and located in heritage-listed buildings * Children's Court, Albion Street * Former Police Station, 703 Bourke Street (designed by
Walter Liberty Vernon Colonel (Australia), Colonel Walter Liberty Vernon (11 August 184617 January 1914) was an English people, English architect who migrated to Australia and pursued his career as an architect in Sydney, New South Wales. In his role as the New Sou ...
) * Former Wesleyan Chapel, 348A Bourke Street * Riley Street Infants School, 378–386 Riley Street *
Society of Friends Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...
Meeting House, Devonshire Street * St David's Hall, Arthur Street * St Michael's Anglican Church, hall and rectory, Albion Street


Housing

Surry Hills is largely composed of grand
Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literatur ...
terraced houses A terrace, terraced house ( UK), or townhouse ( US) is a type of medium-density housing which first started in 16th century Europe with a row of joined houses sharing side walls. In the United States and Canada these are sometimes known as row ...
and some complexes of public housing units to the west of Riley Street. Examples of converted buildings previously used as hospitals include Crown Street Hospital and St. Margaret's, in addition to other building conversions.


Schools

Bourke Street Public School,
Crown Street Public School The Crown Street Public School is a heritage-listed State school, public primary school located at Crown Street, Sydney, Crown Street, Surry Hills, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by George Allen Mansfield and built from in 1 ...
, Inner Sydney High School, Sydney Community College, Sydney Boys High School and Sydney Girls High School are notable examples. The
Australian Institute of Music The Australian Institute of Music (AIM) is an Australian private tertiary education provider, with campuses in Sydney, New South Wales and Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1968, AIM delivers education for careers in the Australian music, enter ...
's Sydney Campus is also located in Surry Hills. File:Cleveland st boys high sydney.jpg, Cleveland Street Intensive English High School at its old site, now the location of Inner Sydney High School File:Surry Hills Crown Street Public School 1.JPG, Crown Street Public School File:Surry Hills Bourke Street Public School.JPG, Bourke Street Public School


Population

Demographically, Surry Hills is now characterised as a mixture of wealthy newcomers who have
gentrified Gentrification is the process whereby the character of a neighborhood changes through the influx of more affluent residents (the "gentry") and investment. There is no agreed-upon definition of gentrification. In public discourse, it has been us ...
the suburb, and long-time residents. At the , the population of Surry Hills was 15,828. At the , it had a population of 16,412. In 2021, 68.5% of dwellings were flats, units or apartments, compared to the Australian average of 14.2%. 29.1% are semi-detached terraced houses or townhouses, compared to the Australian average of 12.6%. Only 1.1% of dwellings are separate houses, compared to the Australian average of 72.3%. Surry Hills was categorised as a high wealth area, with a median weekly household income of $2,308, compared to the Australian average of $1,746. Historically, the suburb had an influx of post-war immigrants from Europe, particularly those from
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 ...
,
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
and
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 ...
. In 2021, 48.7% of people were born in Australia. The most common foreign countries of birth were England 6.4%, New Zealand 3.4%, China (excludes SARs and Taiwan) 3.3%, Thailand 3.0% and the United States of America 2.1%. 73.0% of people only spoke English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Cantonese 4.0%, Mandarin 3.0%, Thai 3.0%, Greek 2.0% and French 2.0%. 47.5% of dwellings have no cars, compared to the Australian average of 7.3%. 11.0% of the population walked to work, compared to the Australian average of 2.5%, and 9.1% travelled to work by public transport, compared to the Australian average of 4.6%. 57.0% worked at home, compared to the Australian average of 21.0%. In 2021 Surry Hills was a significantly more
irreligious Irreligion is the absence or rejection of religious beliefs or practices. It encompasses a wide range of viewpoints drawn from various philosophical and intellectual perspectives, including atheism, agnosticism, religious skepticism, rationa ...
suburb than the Australian average. Most (55.3%) reported no religion whilst 8.4% did not answer the question. The most common religions reported were Catholic 14.0%, Buddhism 4.8% and Anglican 4.8%.


Notable people

*
Tilly Devine Matilda Mary Devine (née Twiss, 8 September 1900 – 24 November 1970), known as Tilly Devine, was an English Australian organised crime boss. She was involved in a wide range of activities, including sly-grog, razor gangs, and prostitution, ...
(1900–1970), a prominent English-born crime syndicate figure and
madam Madam (), or madame ( or ), is a polite and formal form of address for Woman, women in the English language, often contracted to ma'am (pronounced in American English and this way but also in British English). The term derives from the French la ...
*
Jimmy Hannan Jimmy Hannan (25 August 1937 – 7 January 2019) was an Australian radio and television personality, variety show host, singer, entertainer and game show host of the 1960s and 1970s. One of the pioneers of television, he appeared regularly on v ...
(1937–2019), radio and television host *
Kate Leigh Kathleen Mary Josephine Leigh (née Beahan; 10 March 1881 – 4 February 1964) (other names included Kathleen Barry, and Kathleen Ryan) was an Australian underworld figure who rose to prominence as a madam, illegal trader of alcohol and cocain ...
(1881–1964), (resided) a figure in the notorious Sydney
razor gang Razor gangs were criminal gangs who dominated the Sydney crime scene in the 1920s. After the passage of the ''Pistol Licensing Act 1927'', the Parliament of New South Wales imposed severe penalties for carrying concealed firearms and handguns. ...
wars * Hugh Donald "Huge Deal" McIntosh (1876–1942), theatrical entrepreneur, sporting promoter and newspaper proprietor *
Jessica Mauboy Jessica Hilda Mauboy (; born 4 August 1989) is an Australian singer. Born and raised in Darwin, Northern Territory, she rose to fame in 2006 on the Australian Idol (season 4), fourth season of ''Australian Idol'', where she was runner-up and s ...
, (born 1989) singer and actress *
Ruth Park Rosina Ruth Lucia Park AM (24 August 191714 December 2010) was a New Zealand–born Australian author. Her best known works are the novels '' The Harp in the South'' (1948) and '' Playing Beatie Bow'' (1980), and the children's radio serial '' ...
(1917–2010), author, resided for a time in Surry Hills, where her first book, ''The Harp in the South'' (1948), was set *
Kenneth Slessor Kenneth Adolphe Slessor (27 March 190130 June 1971) was an Australian poet, journalist and official war correspondent in World War II. He was one of Australia's leading poets, notable particularly for the absorption of modernist influences int ...
(1901–1972), poet and author, many of whose poems were set in Surry Hills, Darlinghurst and Kings Cross *
Catherine Sutherland Catherine Jane Sutherland (born 24 October 1974) is an Australian/American actress. She is known for her portrayal of Kat Hillard, the second Pink Power Ranger and later, the Pink Zeo Ranger and the first Pink Turbo Ranger in the ''Power Ranger ...
, (born 1974) actress *
Brett Whiteley Brett Whiteley Order of Australia, AO (7 April 1939 – 15 June 1992) was an Australian artist. He is represented in the collections of all the large Australian galleries, and was twice winner of the Archibald Prize, Archibald, Wynne Prize, ...
(1939–1992), artist who resided and had a studio in Surry Hills, now the Brett Whiteley Studio * Mike Whitney (born 1959), cricketer and television host


References


External links

*
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 ...
] *
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 ...
]
demographics


Further reading

* {{Sydney City of Sydney suburbs Surry Hills, New South Wales, Suburbs of Sydney Slums in Australia Portuguese-Australian culture