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Dictionary of Sydney

The Dictionary of Sydney
Subjects
Culture and Customs
Recreation and Sport

The Dictionary of Sydney was archived in 2021.

Recreation and Sport

Subject

18-footers

Aboriginal Rugby League in Sydney

Golf

Parsley Bay: ‘One of the people’s playgrounds’

Redfern Park

Sailing

Sport

Sydney to Hobart yacht race

Transcript: Mrs Constance Jewell remembers social life in Hammondville during the Depression

Australasian Sporting Magazine

Referee

Tattersalls Club building

New South Wales Annual Aboriginal Rugby League Knockout

World Masters Games 2009

Arncliffe Scots Sports and Social Club

Athletic Association of Great Public Schools of New South Wales

Athletics NSW

City Tattersalls Club

Coogee Beach Dolphins Sports Association Inc

Cromer Youth Club

Greenwich Sports Club

Hakoah Club

Harbour Foreshores Vigilance Committee

Korean Judo Association of Australia

Lao Sport Association (Kila Lao)

Mick Simmons Sport

National Fitness Council

Sydney University Ladies Lawn Tennis Club

Tattersall's Club

Andrews, Malcolm

Cotton, Frank Stanley

Marks, Ernest S

Simmons, Michael (Mick)

Acer Arena

Belmore Sportsground

Concord Oval

Redfern Oval

State Sports Centre

Sydney Academy of Sport and Recreation

Sydney Olympic Park

Sydney Sports Ground

'Australia's World Beaters' montage including Bobby Pearce c1930s

A number of us gave lunch to Miss Walker at "The Hut" at Parsley Bay today, Thursday 22 September 1910

Advertisement for the Sydney Elite Skating Rink 1888

Aerial view of Redfern Park and Redfern Oval 1949

Fishing off Garden Island, December 1876

Group of tennis players made up of students and staff, University of Sydney 1891-2

Hordern's sports ground, Wardell Road, Dulwich Hill c1921

Hordern's sports ground, Wardell Road, Dulwich Hill c1921

Miss Rhoda and Miss Elsie Anderson playing croquet at Yaralla, Sunday 14 August 1904

Opening of the Show Pavilion at Hordern's sports ground, Wardell Road, Dulwich Hill c1921

PIX article on the Redfern All Blacks 'Aboriginal Footballers' 1946

PIX article on the Redfern All Blacks 'Aboriginal Footballers' 1946

Parramatta Stadium March 2010

Parsley Bay, Sydney, N.S.W. c1910

Restrictions on spectators for the first race meet at Hyde Park Racecourse in October 1810

Show Pavilion at Hordern's sports ground, Wardell Road, Dulwich Hill c1921

Sporting challenges at the Union Inn, Cooks River December 1845

The Albert Sports, Albert Cricket Ground, Redfern September 1866

The site of Hordern's sports ground on Cooks River at Wardell Road, Dulwich Hill before construction, c1921

The site of Hordern's sports ground on Cooks River at Wardell Road, Dulwich Hill before construction, c1921

Mrs Constance Jewell remembers social life in Hammondville during the Depression, interviewed in 1986

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Recreation and Sport

18-footers

The image of an 18-footer in a north-east sea breeze has become synonymous with Sydney Harbour. The first 18-footers had developed from open boats that competed in matches from the early nineteenth century. Today, they are a high performance international class that has been likened to the 'Formula 1' of sailing.

Aboriginal Rugby League in Sydney

Aboriginal people have followed and played Rugby League since the beginnings of the code in the early twentieth century. Rugby clubs and competitions have provided Aboriginal communities in Sydney with connections based on country, kinship and competition, as well as allowing the skills of Aboriginal players to shine.

Golf

As middle-class suburbs burgeoned after World War I, so did the number of golf clubs, which functioned as vehicles for social agency, class formation and community stabilisation.

Parsley Bay: ‘One of the people’s playgrounds’

Parsley Bay is an inlet of Sydney Harbour bordered by Point Seymour and Village Point, and is the traditional land of the Birrabirragal people. In 1907 the bay and immediate surrounds became a public reserve, and it has remained ‘one of the people’s playgrounds’ ever since.

Redfern Park

Redfern Park has always been a significant social, cultural, political and historical site for Aboriginal people both as a sporting venue and place of reflection for the community.

Sailing

Sydney's first European colonists clung to the coastline and looked to the harbour and the sea for survival. Early recreational sailing was a product of the city's function as a seaport town. Sailing has since adapted to reflect and contribute Sydney's changing culture and customs.

Sport

Sport has long been important in Sydney life, interwoven with its fabric and culture. The ritual contests and physical activity of the Aboriginal people gave way to the informal, disreputable and often cruel pastimes of the early nineteenth century. The late nineteenth century saw the development of formal codes and organised leagues, leading to the commercialised, professional sports of the present.

Sydney to Hobart yacht race

Held every year since 1945, the Sydney to Hobart yacht race is one of the highlights of Sydney sailing, and one of the great races in the world.

Transcript: Mrs Constance Jewell remembers social life in Hammondville during the Depression

Mrs Constance Jewell was born in 1896 and interviewed in 1986 for the 'Looking Back at Liverpool: An Oral History of the Liverpool Region 1900 to 1960.' She moved with her husband to Hammondville, a housing settlement for families in difficulty, in the Depression. She remembers a rich social life in the community there.

Australasian Sporting Magazine

Short lived magazine of colonial life and sports.

full record »

Referee

Popular sports newspaper established in the 1886. It was published until 1939.

full record »

Tattersalls Club building

Lavish five storey building designed and built for the Tattersalls Club in 1927 on a block that runs from Castlereagh through to Elizabeth Street, facing Hyde Park. The architects were Burcham Clamp & Finch, and it was built by WS Baker & Sons. The building included an indoor swimming pool on the third floor, at the time the only elevated indoor pool outside the United States of America.

full record »

New South Wales Annual Aboriginal Rugby League Knockout

Rugby league knockout competition competing over four days on the October long weekend that began at Camdenville Oval in St Peters in 1971. Better known as the Koori Knockout it is now played at different locations around the state with the winning team hosting the following year's competition.

full record »

World Masters Games 2009

International multi-sport event held about every four years and open to all sportspeople over age 35.

full record »

Arncliffe Scots Sports and Social Club

Cricket and baseball club formed in 1913 by members of the Arncliffe Presbyterian Church, mostly Scots or of Scottish descent.

full record »

Athletic Association of Great Public Schools of New South Wales

Association of mostly private boys' schools in New South Wales that share common interests, ethics, educational philosophy and contest sporting events among themselves.

full record »

Athletics NSW

Umbrella organisation for 88 affiliated athletics clubs in the state.

full record »

City Tattersalls Club

Social club that was founded in 1895 by bookmakers in competition to the well-established Tattersalls Club.

full record »

Coogee Beach Dolphins Sports Association Inc

Rugby league and netball club based in Coogee.

full record »

Cromer Youth Club

Sporting club established in 1968

full record »

Greenwich Sports Club

Community club which offers soccer and netball for all ages.

full record »

Hakoah Club

Jewish sporting and cultural organization.

full record »

Harbour Foreshores Vigilance Committee

Association formed in 1905 to protect public access to the foreshores of Sydney Harbour and to lobby for the resumption of areas of private land to create public reserves.

full record »

Korean Judo Association of Australia

Sporting group for Koreans in Sydney.

full record »

Lao Sport Association (Kila Lao)

Sporting association for the Sydney Lao community.

full record »

Mick Simmons Sport

The oldest specialty sports store in Australia, continuously operating since 1877. It was established by Mick Simmons, a cigar and tobacconist whose business was eventually expanded to include hunting and fishing equipment, and after Simmons' death, sports equipment and apparel were added to the range.

full record »

National Fitness Council

Council established to promote physical fitness in the community.

full record »

Sydney University Ladies Lawn Tennis Club

Association formed in 1887 by women students at the University of Sydney to play tennis. Women had been playing tennis in the University's Lawn Tennis Association since its formation in 1885.

full record »

Tattersall's Club

full record »

Club established in 1858 for members of the racing fraternity. Founded at Mayors Hotel on Pitt Street as Tattersall's Subscription Betting Rooms, the hotel soon changed its name to Tattersalls with dedicated rooms for the club and its members.

Andrews, Malcolm

Author of several works on Australian sport and sportspersons.

full record »

Cotton, Frank Stanley

Lecturer in physiology who specialised in the study of the effects of physical strain on the human body. He invented the aerodynamic anti-gravity suit, the 'Cotton aerodynamic anti-G flying suit' during World War II, which prevented pilots from blacking out at high speed. With Forbes Carlile, he also established the first sports science laboratory in Australia.

full record »

Marks, Ernest S

full record »

Wool buyer, sportsman and politician who founded and was active in many amateur sporting associations. Marks was an early supporter of Zionism and also helped found the Australian Jewish Historical Society. He served as Lord Mayor of Sydney in 1930.

Simmons, Michael (Mick)

Businessman who started business as a cigar maker and tobacconist on George and Sussex streets in the 1880s. By 1895, his shop on George and Campbell streets had become one of the largest tobacco and fancy goods businesses in the city. His business expanded to include hunting and fishing equipment, and after his death, sports equipment and apparel were added to the range.

full record »

Acer Arena

Indoor arena at Sydney Olympic Park, which is a venue for basketball, netball and concerts.

full record »

Belmore Sportsground

Reserve in Tobruk Avenue Belmore.

full record »

Concord Oval

Oval seating 20,000 built in 1987 for the Rugby Union World Cup match.

full record »

Redfern Oval

Rugby league ground which is home of the South Sydney Rabbitohs rugby league club. It adjoins Redfern Park and was originally established as a sportsground as part of the park design in the 1880s.

full record »

State Sports Centre

Multi-purpose indoor sporting arena at Sydney Olumpic Park constructed in 1984.

full record »

Sydney Academy of Sport and Recreation

Centre for sports training and recreational activities on Narrabeen Lagoon.

full record »

Sydney Olympic Park

Sporting venues, public spaces and parklands erected for the 2000 Olympic Games on reclaimed industrial land. It became a suburb in 2009 when the suburb of Homebush Bay was divided between Sydney Olympic Park and Wentworth Point.

full record »

Sydney Sports Ground

Sporting venue in Moore Park which was demolished in 1986 in order to build the Sydney Football Stadium. The ground was located where the Sydney Football Stadium car park now sits.

full record »

'Australia's World Beaters' montage including Bobby Pearce c1930s

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[hood_08028 / Home and Away 8028]

A number of us gave lunch to Miss Walker at "The Hut" at Parsley Bay today, Thursday 22 September 1910

full record »

By

Arthur Wigram Allen

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[ PX*D 593, Thursday 22 September 1910]

(Album 55: Photographs of the Allen family, 13 September 1910 - 27 November 1910)

Advertisement for the Sydney Elite Skating Rink 1888

full record »

By

Livingston Hopkins

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[The history of Botany Bay by Arthur Gayll, Bulletin, 1888 via Trove]

Aerial view of Redfern Park and Redfern Oval 1949

full record »

Contributed By

City of Sydney Archives

(Historical Atlas of Sydney, City of Sydney – Aerial Photographic Survey, 1949: Image 83 (detail))

Fishing off Garden Island, December 1876

full record »

Image courtesy of the

State Library of Victoria

[IAN27/12/76/205]

(Illustrated Australian News, 27 December 1876, p203 Trove ref: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article60094848)

Group of tennis players made up of students and staff, University of Sydney 1891-2

full record »

Iza Coghlan, seated second row, fifth from right: Harriet Biffin, seated second row, third from right

Contributed By

University of Sydney Archives

Hordern's sports ground, Wardell Road, Dulwich Hill c1921

full record »

By

Arthur Ernest Foster

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a6552046 / ON 30/Box 12, 100]

(Mitchell Library)

Hordern's sports ground, Wardell Road, Dulwich Hill c1921

full record »

By

Arthur Ernest Foster

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a6552047 / ON 30/Box 12, 101]

(Mitchell Library)

Miss Rhoda and Miss Elsie Anderson playing croquet at Yaralla, Sunday 14 August 1904

full record »

By

Arthur Wigram Allen

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[PX*D 574, p51a]

(Album 32: Photographs of the Allen family, February 1904 - September 1904) (Mitchell Library)

Opening of the Show Pavilion at Hordern's sports ground, Wardell Road, Dulwich Hill c1921

full record »

By

Arthur Ernest Foster

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a6552051 / ON 30/Box 12, 105]

(Mitchell Library)

PIX article on the Redfern All Blacks 'Aboriginal Footballers' 1946

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[PIX 5 October 1946 p28 via Trove]

PIX article on the Redfern All Blacks 'Aboriginal Footballers' 1946

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[PIX, 5 October 1946, p29 via Trove]

Parramatta Stadium March 2010

full record »

Image courtesy of

[1003-1936-49]

Parsley Bay, Sydney, N.S.W. c1910

full record »

Contributed By

National Museum of Australia

[1986.0117.7557]

Restrictions on spectators for the first race meet at Hyde Park Racecourse in October 1810

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser , 13 October 1810, p1 via Trove]

Show Pavilion at Hordern's sports ground, Wardell Road, Dulwich Hill c1921

full record »

By

Arthur Ernest Foster

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a6552052 / ON 30/Box 12, 106]

(Mitchell Library)

Sporting challenges at the Union Inn, Cooks River December 1845

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.news-article59765355 via Trove]

(Bell's Life in Sydney and Sporting Reviewwe, 6 December 1845, p2)

The Albert Sports, Albert Cricket Ground, Redfern September 1866

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

(Sydney Punch, September 22, 1866, p 137)

The site of Hordern's sports ground on Cooks River at Wardell Road, Dulwich Hill before construction, c1921

full record »

By

Arthur Ernest Foster

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a6552045 / ON 30/Box 12, 99]

(Mitchell Library)

The site of Hordern's sports ground on Cooks River at Wardell Road, Dulwich Hill before construction, c1921

full record »

By

Arthur Ernest Foster

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a6552041 / ON 30/Box 12, 95]

(Mitchell Library)

Mrs Constance Jewell remembers social life in Hammondville during the Depression, interviewed in 1986

full record »

Mrs Constance Jewell was born in 1896 and interviewed in 1986 for the 'Looking Back at Liverpool: An Oral History of the Liverpool Region 1900 to 1960.' She moved with her husband to Hammondville, a housing settlement for families in difficulty, in the Depression. She remembers a rich social life in the community there.
Transcript

CONSTANCE: We had a great time there. We had a Younger Set, and a gymnasium class. Mrs Jones, Mrs Laura Jones of Stewart Avenue, Hammondville, she ran the Younger Set for us. And we had a ball here and they all went to the ball. I can't remember who they [debutantes] were presented to now, I really can't. In those days the hall was up where the shops are now. Mrs Brasnet gave us that hall for recreation and we ran dances up there, some for the Liverpool Hospital, some for the ambulance [service], and some for the Harmony Club; the Harmony Club consisted of a lot of men that used to like to come and sit and have talks and games and one thing and another. The ladies had the Black Cat Club and we all used to belong to that. The younger ones had a Younger Set and they had quite a lot of games and one thing and another, you know, to occupy their minds.

Contributed By

Liverpool City Library

(Excerpt from interview with Mrs Jewell from the 'Looking back at Liverpool : an oral history of the Liverpool region 1900-1960' conducted in 1986 by Liverpool City Council, editor and project co-ordinator Catherine Johnson ; researchers Angela Imbrosciano, Verica Miiosavijevic, Kathleen Smith)

Culture and Customs

Athletics

Baseball

Basketball

Beach Culture

Billiards

Boating

Bowling

Boxing

Bushwalking

Camping

Cricket

Cycling

Dancing

Football

Gambling

Games

Gardening

Golf

Greyhound racing

Horseracing

Knitting

Motor racing

Rowing

Sailing

Surfing

Swimming

Tennis

Netball