The Dictionary of Sydney was archived in 2021.
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Commercial radio
The first commercial radio station in Sydney went to air in 1923, and by the mid-1920s there were a range of stations broadcasting politics, religion and sport, as well as friendly entertainment. By World War II the sector was promoting its charitable and social endeavours.…
Rowe Street
Small street between Pitt and Castlereagh Streets originally named Brougham Place which was renamed for architect Thomas Rowe in 1875. It became a hub for Sydney's artistic and fashionable set in the mid-twentieth century before most of it was demolished in 1973 for the…
Australian National Maritime Museum
Museum established in 1991 to explore Australia's links to the sea. Its high walls and diving roof forms were designed to accommodate the masts of boats inside the museum. It also contains floating attractions including the ex-RAN Oberon class submarine Onslow, moored next to…
Hobartville
North-western residential suburb on southern border of Richmond, adjacent to the University of Western Sydney. Subdivided in 1966, it is named after the estate of William Cox, with streets named for members of the Cox family, principals of Hawkesbury Agricultural College,…
Mastertouch Piano Roll Company
A company established in Sydney which manufactured and sold piano rolls. It was the only piano roll manufacturer operating in Australia and one of two remaining large scale piano roll manufacturers in the world, the other being QRS in the United States of America. Following…
H Cohen and Son
Wholesale grocery store established by Jewish tailor and convict, Henry Cohen, in the early 1840s on George St where Australia Square now stands. The site also included the Cohen family's house and is depicted in Joseph Fowles' Sydney in 1848. For a time, the store…
Cohen, Henry
Jewish tailor and convict from London, England who was transported for 14 years after being convicted of possession of a stolen bank note on 16 May 1833. His wife and 10 children arrived separately in Sydney and his brother-in-law was Joseph Simmons. He was granted a…
Markham, Dulcie May
Prostitute and associate of gangland figures in Sydney during the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. During her lifetime, she amassed 100 convictions in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia for prostitution, vagrancy, consorting, assaulting police and the public,…
Caraher, Owen Joseph
Soap and candle maker who set up shop in Gloucester Street, The Rocks. He then owned a soap factory on the same street and his own residence, Cardistown House. He also rented his terrace houses in nearby Caraher's Lane to fellow Irish immigrants. Caraher was also an alderman…
Back Row East
The eastern back row of the early township of Sydney, where Phillip Street runs today. Behind the street lay bush and scrub. Also known as Back Row, and later as Mulgrave Street, it was renamed 'Phillip Street' by Macquarie in 1810. Back Row West is modern day Kent Street on…
Sudan War 1885
In March 1885, the New South Wales Contingent departed from Sydney to participate in a British colonial conflict in Sudan, the first time that Australian soldiers had been sent to fight overseas. The contingent comprised 758 soldiers. Hostilities had ended before the…
Georges River
River that rises at Appin in the upland swamps of the O'Hares Creek catchment, and flows 80 kilometres north and east to meet Botany Bay at Taren Point, in Sydney's southern suburbs. The total catchment is over 930 square kilometres managed by a large number of local…
McGarvie, John
Second Presbyterian minister in colonial Sydney, the first incumbent at Pitt Town and Ebenezer, and of St Andrews Scots Church. While living in the area, he recorded the names of places along the Hawkesbury River, or Dyarubbin, that local Aboriginal people shared with him.…
Armfield, Lillian May
Pioneering Sydney policewoman whose long career spanned the city's razor gang wars. One of the first plain-clothed female detectives in Australia, in 1947 she was also the first woman of The Commonwealth to be awarded the King's Police and Fire Services Medal for…
Josephson, Jacob
Jeweller and silversmith who was transported to Sydney for having forged notes in his possession. He opened a small store almost immediately on his arrival and despite a period in the debtor's prison in 1827, went on to succeed in business as a jeweller and merchant. In 1841…
Cover of PIX 3 December 1949
This week's cover: Portrait of two Sydney teenagers - Fay Cleary and Tex Vaughan - enjoying themselves. They have their own (up-to-date) way of self-expression in the moments of relaxation from the more serious aspects of modern living. In a few years these happy times will…
Forty years of the Elsie Refuge for Women and Children
Elsie Refuge, in Glebe, is an icon of Sydney feminism and Australian domestic violence services. Established in 1974 by Women's Liberation, it was the first refuge for women and children organised on feminist principles and was pivotal to the recognition of the social problem…