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A Cadigal man who became one of the first to interact with the Europeans, Colebee was a leading Aboriginal figure in Sydney Town in the early years of the colony. He was associated with the white-bellied sea eagle.

One of the later suburbs on Sydney's north shore, West Pymble remained semi-rural into the 1950s, with original settler families remaining important in the district. War service homes began changing things in the 1950s, bringing a whole new group into the bushland…

Sydney’s, and Australia’s, first bank robbery took place on 14 September 1828 when the Bank of Australia strongroom was breached by thieves entering through a sewer drain and stealing £14,000 mostly in notes but also some gold and silver coins. Most of this was never…

A picturesque, semi-rural locality on Sydney's rural-urban fringe, Kirkham's identity has been shaped and reshaped by successive generations who have created their own stories, heroes and icons in an ever-evolving landscape.

Founded on three separate occasions, Glebe School of Arts only became financially secure because of its billiard tables. By the mid-twentieth century, when new entertainments were becoming available, the school was again in trouble and passed its library and building to the…

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,…

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…

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…

Underground alternative magazine first published in Sydney. The original Australian OZ took the form of a satirical magazine published between 1963 and 1969, while the British incarnation was a "psychedelic hippy" magazine which appeared from 1967 to 1973. It was…

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…

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…

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…

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,…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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.…

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…