Dictionary of Sydney

The Dictionary of Sydney was archived in 2021.

Bennelong Point

Rocky outcrop to the east of Sydney Cove, which was a tidal island when Europeans arrived, but was joined to the mainland with rocky rubble in 1818 to provide a basis for Fort Macquarie to be built there. The point is named for Bennelong, who lived in a house on the point in the 1790s.

-33.856451766466, 151.21530722348

Name
Alternate
Bennelong Island
Alternate
Cattle Point
Aboriginal
Dubbagullee
Alternate
Limeburners' Point
Aboriginal
Tubowghule
Commemorates
Type

East Circular Quay

CC BY-SA 2.0
,
2008

The area that is now East Circular Quay was quickly seen as the governor's side of Sydney Cove after colonisation in 1788. The first house built on the point belonged to Bennelong. When the semi-circular quay was constructed from 1837, the eastern side of the bay was used as a quarry. From the 1860s, wool stores and warehouses were built that dominated the landscape until after World War II, when taller buildings were allowed.