Bennelong's clan, the Wangal, were traditional owners of the area that became Mortlake, but dispossessed when the land was granted to settlers in 1795. By the 1880s, the suburb was dominated by the AGL gasworks, and the railway, coal loading and other infrastructure necessary to support it. When the works closed in 1990 and were redeveloped as Breakfast Point, Mortlake was reduced in size. As other industries move away the area is likely to be redeveloped.
