Belfield History and Memories

Belfield: History and Memories

1

he boundaries of the suburb of Belfield are, on the west, the Railway Goods Line to Enfield and Cosgrove Road; on the north, Cox’s Creek and Cooks River; on the east, Lincoln Street and First Avenue; and on the south, Albert Street and Ninth Avenue.

Until 1948, the area north of Punchbowl Road was in the Municipality of Enfield and, after a redistribution of boundaries, is now serviced by Strathfield Council. The southern side of Punchbowl Road is in the City of Canterbury, and until about 1948, the postal address was Belmore North.

The name “Belfield” perhaps dates from 1916, when the Railway Goods Line opened, running through the adjoining suburbs of BELmore and EnFIELD. which is the reason given for the name. The name wasn’t gazetted until 1977 when the Geographical Names Register of N.S.W came into being, but the name was in use long before that.

T

Early Settlement Punchbowl Road was probably an Aboriginal pathway - part of a long track leading from Parramatta River to Georges River. On its route were many creeks and wedands which were rich sources of food for the people of the region. Cooks River was crossed at a shallow ford within a wide circular valley, which the British setders later named The Punch Bowl.

After 1809, the land along the river and the Aboriginal track was divided up into small farms, and granted to individual settlers. Land grants south of the track were promised to John Redman in 1811 (100 acres), Thomas Hyndes in 1813 (100 acres), William Goodwin in 1814 (50 acres), Thomas Capon in 1817 (200 acres), Joseph Broadbent in 1820 (40 acres), and John Nichols in 1821 (100 acres). On the north side of the track, a grant of 60 acres was promised to John Alford in 1809. Most of these people were constables in either Sydney or Parramatta, and many were not interested in farming, and sold the land after a short time. Soon the greater part of the Belfield area was in the hands of two landowners.

John Redman, the Chief Constable in Sydney, began to buy many of the farms which had been granted to his subordinates in the Belfield and Campsie areas. By 1831, he owned altogether 540 acres, from which he supplied timber and firewood to the Sydney Gaol.

Justice John Stephen of the Supreme Court of Sydney bought the grants of John Alford, John Nichols and Joseph Justice John Stephen (Mitchell Library) Broadbent, and built a country estate which he named Clareville. The house, a low building with a circular driveway in

Belfield

2

front, was on the northern side of Punchbowl Road, near the Cooks River crossing. This had been Alford’s farm, which was cleared, fenced, had wheat planted, and had forty head of cattle on it.

Across the river, Brighton Farm was acquired by WH. Moore, a solicitor in the Supreme Court, and he closed off the Aboriginal track to Georges River which ran through his property, and opened a new road along the side of his farm linking Liverpool Road with Punchbowl Road. Today this road is known as Coronation Parade. Liverpool Road was known as a the haunt of bushrangers, with a nest of sly grog shops and brothels of the worst description. The roads were dangerous - in April 1836, the Australian commented, If a dray succeeds in surmounting the hill at the Punch Bowl after the next twentyfour hours’ rain, we will engage to eat it. The area around Clareville was described as wild and difficult country, where shingle-splitters, charcoal burners and sawyers earned their living, cutting firewood and building materials for the growing town of Sydney.

Redman’s farms were bequeathed to his sons after his death, and the large property was subdivided into smaller holdings. Goodwin’s grant was sold to the Stephen family, who incorporated it into Clareville. In 1849 the whole of the 250 acres, with all its buildings, was sold by John Stephen’s family to Charles Elliott, gentleman, for £600. His young family grew up in the healthy rural surroundings.

After the timber was felled, towards the middle of the nineteenth century, farmers moved on to the cleared paddocks. Clareville was ideal farming land, being close to Sydney, with excellent road access.

In 1868, Elliott subdivided the part of the farm which was south of Punchbowl Road into small allotments of eight to ten acres each, and offered them for sale. The allotments with a frontage to the main road were £10 an acre, those at the rear were half that price. Louis Varidel of Bankstown, vigneron, bought one of the cheaper allotments, and Louis Cervetto, who ran an inn on the site of the Enfield Hotel, rented another on the western side of Margaret Street. Other farmers settled in the area as well. These farms were improved by their owners - in December 1879 a sale notice advertised the property at the eastern corner of “Redman Road” (Burwood Road) and Punchbowl Road as having: A well-built and tastefully finished weatherboard cottage, brick-nogged, on stone foundations, with verandahs on all sides, and containing hall, drawing- and dining-rooms (the latter 16 feet x 22 feet), four rooms, kitchen and pantry, with detached two-stall stable, coach house, cartshed, man’s room, and store. The whole of the land is cleared and planted with about six hundred varied and selected fruit trees; also grape vines; besides which there is a well-arranged kitchen garden.

A capital homestead, on an elevated spot in the healthy and convenient suburb of Enfield, the vendor will arrange to drive intending purchasers from Burwood Station to the property.

The Varidel Family was to remain in the area for well over a hundred years. Louis Varidels property was used successively as a vineyard, a market garden, a poultry farm, and, after 1900, a dairy.

Trams The tram line which came closest to Belfield was the line from Ashfield to Enfield along Georges River Road, which opened as a steam line in 1891. Requests to extend the line to Druitt Town and Bankstown were resisted by the operators, the Commissioners for Railways. In 1901, the line was continued to Burwood and Mortlake, and, six years later, to Cabarita. The line was electrified in 1912. In 1923, the earlier proposal to extend the line to Bankstown was reviewed but again rejected.

The Enfield Tram System, as it was known, was replaced by buses in August 1948.

History and Memories

3

Henry (Harry) Dale, who owned and operated a bus service from Campsie Railway Station through Belfield, Belmore and Lakemba to Punchbowl Railway Station. Frederick Walker is in the driver’s seat.

(Courtesy Mr & Mrs L. Dale and Mrs V. Edwards. Local History Collection, Canterbury City Library)

Belfield’s early industries Until the start of World War I in 1914, Belfield was very sparsely populated, with most of the area being used for dairies, farms, piggeries, market gardens and poultry farms. There were several poultry farmers on the south side of Punchbowl Road, near Cooks River, including Thomas Graham, James Cockburn, Joseph James and Henry Absalom. On Nichols’s Farm, on the western side of Burwood Road, James MacKay, a carcase butcher, had his slaughterhouse and boiling down works, and Richard Burns carried on the associated trade of sausage skin cleaning. There were two blacksmiths, Edward Hammond and George Langley, living on Burwood Road.

The subdivision of William Redman’s “Sudbury Farm” into 177 half-acre allotments in 1893 brought suburban setdement to the Belfield area. Large Federation-style farmhouses were built in Lincoln, Baltimore and Cecilia Streets, and the backyards, each over 200 feet long, were big enough to plant an orchard and keep fowls. “Lynwood” in Baltimore Street, occupied by Charles J. Hebblewhite about 1907, is one of the few remaining houses from the Federation era left on the estate. Young families began to move into the area in the early years of the twentieth century; Miss M.C. Hungerford set up in practice as a nurse in Burwood Road, and probably had a flourishing practice as a midwife. Later, Nurse Chaseton’s practice was in her house in Linda Street.

Horses and carts were commonplace until the 1940s going from street to street with the driver calling out his product - milk, meat, butter, eggs, vegetables, rabbits, blocks of ice, and clothes props being the main items. A horse trough was situated in Punchbowl Road, opposite the hotel, on the edge of the footpath to give the horses a drink of water.

Where did the children go to school?

The nearest public school for Belfield children was at Belmore North built in 1903. An important day in the lives of primary school children was Empire Day, celebrating the birthday of Queen Victoria on 24 May. This celebration first started in 1905 and continued into the late 1950s. All the children gathered in the Assembly Hall, listened to speeches about patriotism and loyalty to the Empire and Australia and were entertained with items from some of the pupils. Children who were members of the Boy Scouts, Girl Guides and Red Cross were allowed to wear their uniforms to school on this special occasion.

4

Belfield

School broke up at lunchtime and the afternoon was a half-day holiday to prepare for Cracker Night. The fireworks were let off in the backyard or at local bonfires. Sometimes (whether accidental or not), a spark would fall into the box and the whole lot would go off all at once, shooting crackers in all directions.

Coming of the Railway Early in the twentieth century, the only track for goods trains to and from Darling Harbour was on the main suburban railway lines through Redfern. By 1908, passenger and goods traffic had grown so much that restrictions prohibiting the movement of goods trains in peak hours were in place. This made it very difficult to operate efficiently.

A separate Metropolitan Goods Line from Flemington to Glebe Island and Darling Harbour via Campsie and Dulwich Hill was approved in 1910. The first section to open was between Flemington and Campsie in April 1916 and the line opened through to Glebe Island a few months later.

The large marshalling yard at Enfield was a gravity yard capable of handling a thousand trucks, with two large roundhouses each stabling forty-two engines and associated coal storage, water service and ash handling facilities. It became the lynchpin of the State’s rail freight system.

The marshalling yard attracted railway employees to Belfield and surrounding suburbs from elsewhere in Sydney and land values soared. The yard provided employment to many local residents in subsequent years. It was redeveloped in the 1990s.

When the railway line was built, it divided two streets - Baltimore Street (which became Hall Street on the Belmore side) and Cecilia Street (which became Bruce Avenue and Burwood Road on the Belfield side). This was in the days of steam trains and everything would be covered with a layer of coal dust. These were followed by diesel engines, which were just as dirty, leaving a deposit of oily soot. The line was electrified in 1972.

It was made clear when the railway was proposed in 1908-10 that no passenger services would be run on the new line, but, for a long time Belfield residents hoped that a railway station would be built somewhere along the line. The only passengers carried regularly on the line were on the few services for railway employees living outside the district to get to and from their workplaces.

World War I After war was declared in August 1914, many young men from the Belfield area enlisted. Several of the volunteers were British immigrants who had been working on the construction of the goods line. The earliest to enlist, on 11 August, was Private John Doughty Cookson, an English labourer from the railway camp, who served first in the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force which occupied Rabaul and the German colonies in New Guinea, and later re-enlisted in the 2nd Battalion to serve in Gallipoli and the Western Front. He was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal in 1916. Sons of the Langley and Sarjeant families, of Burwood Road, also volunteered, as did the four sons of Harry and Annie Witheridge of Lincoln Street, three of whom did not return.

Gordon and Allan Begg of Margaret Street enlisted in 1915; Allan was awarded a Military Medal for bravery at Polygon Wood in Flanders. He had led an advance party into No Man’s Land to bring back details of the terrain for his Battalion, and then acted as guide for the men around the shelled area, saving many casualties. After the war, Belfield became the home of many former servicemen and their families.

History and Memories

7

Typical War Service Home, probably 23 Linda Stteet, Belfield. The original caption read: “A concrete house at Belmore, Sydney, erected for War Service Homes Commission by the Wilson System” (Australasian Concrete November 15, 1921)

War Service Homes To assist servicemen returning from World War I, the War Service Homes Scheme was introduced as an important part of the repatriation measures. In 1920, the newly-established War Service Homes Commission acquired land bounded by Punchbowl Road, Burwood Road and die Goods Line, which had been subdivided as the Great Central Railway Estate. The houses built by the Commission in Bazentin and Boronia Streets were occupied early in 1922 and were among die first War Service Homes erected anywhere in Australia.

The houses were of distinctive design - an early bungalow style, considered at the time to be an ideal type of workers’ accommodation. The features included rough-cast walls, verandah posts with lattice decoration, six-paned windows, low-pitched roof, and timber gable with exposed beams used as decoration. The style was influenced by designs, not only from England, but also from America.

Walter Burley Griffin brought this influence to Australia.

Many other houses in Belfield were financed by the War Service Homes Commission by loans dirough the Commo nw e alt h Building a War Service Home, Belfield, 1921.

(Australasian Concrete November 15, 1921)

32-38 Seymour Parade, Belfield (Australasian Concrete November 15, 1921)

Bank, with the owner arranging the construction. Many houses built to the Commission’s standard designs can be seen in the streets to the south of the original estate.

In War Service Homes Commission developments, the streets were often named after war themes, such as sites of battles in which Australian troops were involved, training camps, and prominent military figures. Bazentin Street (formerly Wattle Street) is named after a village near Pozieres on the Somme batdefield in France, Mena (formerly Messines Street) was a training camp site and hospital in Egypt, and Persic was a ship which transported Australian troops to the battlefields. Another reminder of World War I is in a private subdivision in about 1920, where Birdwood Avenue is probably named as a tribute to General Sir William Birdwood, who commanded the Anzac Corps.

Progress Hall A Progress Hall was erected on the triangular corner of Persic and Bazentin Streets about 1923.

During construction a severe windstorm demolished it and it had to be started again. In 1927 a “Queen Competition” was held and the crowning took place in the Progress Hall.

Before motorised vehicles became more available to the working man, push bikes were a popular form of transport and in peak hours at “start” and “knock off” times, the roads were crowded with people cycling to and from work.

Progress Hall, corner of Persic and Bazentin Streets (Des Cramp)

History and Memories

9

The Belfield Queen and her tetinue. Photo taken in the back yard of a house in Boronia Street, Belfield.

The crowning took place in the Progress Hall in 1927. The house in the background faces Bazentin Street, and Punchbowl Road is on the right side of the photo. The Sumner family lived in Bazentin Street. Queen: Mrs Pavitt, Train bearers: (?) and Jean Webb, Attendants: Iris Sumner, Mrs Ackland and May Pettit, Court official: Ron Jackson (?) opera singer, Minister: (?), Jester: Mr Watts.

(Courtesy Mrs F. ]ejfree nee Sumner)

Belfield Methodist Church Belfield Methodist Church on Punchbowl Road has two foundation stones - the first one laid by E. Ford Esq. Mayor of Enfield and the second one laid by Rev. A.J. Burt, Circuit Superintendent, on Good Friday, March 25,1921. A new church on the same site was opened and dedicated by Rev. W Galt on 4 February 1968.

Before the original church was built, Sunday School classes were held in the home of Mr and Mrs Seach in Linda Street, and an exresident recalls being told that Linda Street was named after Mrs Seach. In the Sands Directories of 1919, Linda Street had only two dwellings in it and one was that of WH. Seach. Further research shows that William Seach married Linda Hollier in 1913.

In 1977, the Methodist, Congregational and some Presbyterian Churches joined together to become the Uniting Church.

Belfield

10

St Paul’s Church of England St Paul’s Church of England in Burwood Road commenced in 1928. The foundation stone reads: THIS STONE WAS LAID BY THE VEN. ARCHDEACON BOYCE ON MARCH 24TH, 1928 ERECTED BY VOLUNTARY LABOUR TO THE GLORY OF GOD. W KINGSTON, MINISTER It was a branch of St Andrews, Lakemba.

Before the weatherboard church was completed, services were held in a tent, the Progress Hall, or in the homes of parishioners. When St Paul’s was made a Provisional Parish, Rev. N. Robinson, Curate-in-charge, occupied a house in Clarence Street as the rectory until a new Rectory was built in 1961 on the church grounds.

In April, 1972, the Hon. Frank Stewart opened a War Memorial Hall which had been built between the old and new churches.

TO THE GLORY OF GOD AND IN MEMORY OF THOSE MEN AND WOMEN WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN THE SERVICE OF THEIR COUNTRY AND IN MEMORY OF PETER CHARLES SMITH, KILLED IN ACTION IN VIETNAM In 1987, the church was decommissioned and sold to the Korean Central Presbyterian Church.

All memorial plaques on pews etc. were removed and are now being kept at St Andrew’s Church at Lakemba.

St Paul’s Church of England (Courtesy Des Cramp)

Belfield

12

A group of friends and neighbours from the Bazentin and Boronia Street area at a picnic in 1927.

This photo could possibly have been taken at Hollywood Picnic Grounds on the Georges River at Lansvale. Back row from left: Mr & Mrs Ackland , unidentified, Mr & Mrs Johnston (Punchbowl Road), Mr C. Bock?, unidentified, Mr McKee?, Mr R. Watts & baby, Mr Frazer, unidentified. Second row from left. Mrs Bock (Madeline Street), unidentified, Sumner daughter, Mr & Mrs Sumner, Charles Webb, Mrs Frazer, Sumner daughter. Third row from left: Mrs Watts and daughter, unidentified, Mr G. Browne, Mrs Webb, Mr H. Knowles, Frazer daughter. Children in front: Most ate unidentified, Flora Sumner sixth from left, four Webb children at tight. (Courtesy Mrs F. Jeffree nee Sumner)

The Depression The Depression that began in 1929 and continued into the 1930s was a difficult time for everybody. There was no work available for most of the male population and food coupons - no money - were issued to families.

Belmore North School provided soup for the children who had to supply their own cups. It was free to the children whose fathers were out of work but one penny for those fortunate enough to have a father with a job. The soup was cooked in a gas copper installed in one of the hat rooms.

It wasn’t unusual to see people walking along the train line picking up pieces of coal to take home for their fires. They faced a fine if caught by the inspectors who patrolled the line.

In 1936, when the depression started to ease, Canterbury Council provided relief work by cementing the banks of Cooks River and the creeks running into it.

History and Memories

13

Schoolchildren line up for a free issue of soup and bread at Belmore North Public School, 2 August 1934. (State Library of NSW, Sam Hood Collection)

Belfield Hotel opened in 1932.

In 1940, all the patrons of the hotel decided to back a horse in die Melbourne Cup called Old Rowley. They considered this a good omen as one of their group was called Old Rowley Bennett.

Sixpence each way was the popular bet and imagine the rejoicing when Old Rowley romped in at 100/1! The letdown when it was discovered that the bookie had absconded with the bets isn’t hard to imagine. Perhaps he knew he wouldn’t be able to meet the huge payout.

An early photograph of Belfield Hotel (Courtesy Noel Butlin Archives Centre, ANU)

14

Belfield

Sport between the Wars During the 1930s, there were a few single tennis courts in Belfield, mostly in the backyards of properties. There were three in Burwood Road between Omaha Street and Reid Avenue (now Indiana Place). One was “Greenwood” and another belonged to the Barrens. There was “Loch Nea” behind a shop in Seymour Parade, Binns owned one in Linda Street and Pettits owned another one. “The Pines” was in Madeline Street, “Adanta” in Baltimore Street and another in Lincoln Street. A group of four courts was in the centre of the block bounded by Punchbowl Road, Chisholm and Water Streets and Cutbush Avenue. They have all gone now to make way for more housing.

A cricket club and Baseball Club also existed during this period.

North Belmore Cricket Club, 1927-28. Back row: E.A. Goldschmid, C.Fraser, N.C. Bannon, J. Whatmough, A.L. Morton, P. Bullus, S. Johnson. Third row: C. McKee, C. Whatmough, A Warren, N. Ritchie, F. Jackson, C. Bock, R. Watts. Second row: R.P. Sumner (Vice-Captain), J. Jackson (Captain), H. Knowles (President) C.R. Webb (Hon. Sec.), G.M. Browne (Hon. Treas.), C. Walker.

Front row: S. Ackland, C. Johnston, F. Cramp, A. Jones (Scorer)

16

Belfield

Rudd Park In 1938, in the area that is now Rudd Park, it was proposed that a dog racing track be installed with a 6 foot (a little less than two metres) high fence all round die perimeter but, because of opposition from the local people, this did not eventuate.

However, in 1941, Rudd Park did open with a flourish. On 23 August, during World War II, a parade of tanks, soldiers, bands, scouts, and residents formed up in Evaline Street, Campsie and marched to the park. The official opening was by Mrs Rudd, the wife of Alderman J.R. Rudd, at the entrance gates in Clarence Street. It was a recruiting drive for the war and the proceeds of a “Mile of Pennies� were sent to Canterbury Hospital.

Rudd Park has been the home ground of Belmore Soccer Club for many years. On Saturday mornings in the early years, crowds of players, parents and onlookers lined the fields. A tent was erected near the gates and, when it was realised that there was more room at the other end of the field, it was moved. The mothers of two of the players provided refreshments by wheeling a wheelbarrow full of sweets, cordials, etc. from their homes nearby. One of the seats on the sidelines was used for a counter. If it was very windy, a piece of hessian was put up behind them.

At first, the only amenities on the ground were tin toilets along the canal painted in camouflage colours in case a Japanese plane flew overhead and the pilot decided to drop his bombs. Sheds were eventually built and these were replaced by brick buildings, which provided dressing rooms, a kiosk and a Clubroom, and a toilet block.

Mrs Rudd cutting the ribbon at the opening of Rudd Park (Courtesy Mrs Butterworth)

17

History and Memories

Belfield R.S.L. Belfield R.S.L. was granted a charter in 1938 and after World War II was able to purchase the Progress Hall from the Council. After renovations, it became the Memorial Hall. A new building was eventually built in 1963 and further extensions were added in 1971. The Women’s Auxiliary was formed in 1947.

World War II was a worrying time, particularly after Japan entered the war in 1942.

We had to learn to get along with rationing when coupons were issued for meat, butter, sugar, tea, clothing and petrol. Our lives were ruled by all sorts of regulations necessary for the running of the country After the war, the Housing Commission of N.S.W acquired land and built houses in Punchbowl and Cosgrove Roads, Victory, Scott, Elliott and Clarence Streets, Varidel and Jay Avenues and Austin and Edgar Crescents.

The War Memorial, Belfield R.S.L. Corner of Bazentin and Persic Streets (Canterbury City

Library)

Postal Services Although the postal address was Belmore North until about 1948, a Post Office operated in a shop on the corner of Downes Street and Burwood Road from 1936. A local Hairdresser’s sign on the wall advertised a “wet set” 6d. The Post Office moved to the other side of Burwood Road in 1955 when the Greengrocer’s shop, owned by Mario, became vacant. His name is still embedded in the front step.

Until the area officially became Belfield, mail was delivered from Belmore Post Office. With changing procedures, Campsie Post Office took over deliveries in 1991. A new business and delivery centre was built in 1996 in Yerrick Street, Lakemba for mail deliveries to all the surrounding suburbs.

In 1975, the Postmaster General’s Department (P.M.G.) was abolished and Australia Post and Telecom were set up in its place.

Renovated Progress Hall after World War II

(Courtesy Belfield RSL)

18

Belfield

Commonwealth Bank, Burwood Road, Belfield about 1958 (Courtesy Commonwealth Bank Archives)

Commonwealth Bank The Commonwealth Bank opened a branch on 14 February, 1949 in a temporary prefabricated building at the back of a block in Burwood Road and, when this was no longer suitable, a new building was erected in 1958 on the front of the block. Bank policies and practices changed and the Bank terminated its Belfield branch on 25 January, 1996.

The building now houses the J.I.E.H. Community Club.

Belfield Bowling and Recreation Club The formation of the Belfield Bowling and Recreation Club in 1949 began with a meeting of interested men in Ray Boulton’s Barber Shop in Burwood Road. The Clubhouse was erected by (mostly) voluntary labour and because the Government had issued Building Controls following the war, materials were “scrounged” from any available source. The club was officially opened in 1951 when the Clubhouse and two greens were completed. The Ladies Bowling Club was formed and play commenced the same year. Extensive alterations and improvements were made to the existing Clubhouse in 1970.

Belfield Bowling Club (Courtesy Local History Collection, Canterbury City Library)

19

History and Memories

St Michael’s Catholic Church, Margaret Street (Courtesy Local History Collection, Canterbury City Library)

St Michael’s Catholic Church Early in the 1950s the Catholic Church owned some property in Clarence Street but, when Rudd’s Nursery, (not the alderman), in Margaret Street became available, it was considered a better site. St Michael’s Catholic Church opened in 1954 with Father Wallington in charge. The house already on the property became the first presbytery.

The foundation stone on the Church reads: THIS FOUNDATION STONE WAS BLESSED AND LAID ON 6th JUNE, 1954

BY THE MOST REV. J.P. CARROLL, D.C.L. At the Infants School adjoining the Church, the foundation stone was laid by CARDINAL N.T. GILROY, D.D. CARDINAL BISHOP OF SYDNEY ON 5th OCTOBER, 1958 A Primary School followed and a new brick presbytery was erected about 1966.

Scouting A Scout Hall near the overhead railway bridge in Burwood Road provided activities for boys in the area. Meetings were first held in the home of Mr Herb Spratt in Seymour Parade. Money was raised by door-to-door collections, housie, and other means until the group had £68 to lay the foundations for a hall in Carter Street in 1955. Mr Spratt laid the foundation stone and behind the facade were two Nissen huts, (wartime emergency buildings), obtained from Richmond Air Force Base. These were later replaced by a full brick building.

Cooks River County Road Reservation

20

Belfield

Scout Hall, Carter Street, Belfield. (Courtesy Local History Collection, Canterbury City Library)

In 1951 the Department of Main Roads, now the Roads and Traffic Authority, put a reservation on land bordering Cooks River for an industrial road to be called Cooks River County Road. This ran from Botany Bay to the Hume Highway at Chullora, roughly following the course of the river. Applications to remove the reservation led to the lifting in 1997 of the order on the section from Punchbowl Road to the Hume Highway. Following Government approval to extend the M5 Expressway eastward, the restriction on the remaining portion was lifted - except the section in Belfield between Second Avenue, Campsie and Punchbowl Road.

The Observatory

The County of Cumberland Planning Scheme’s Cooks River County Road reservation ran along the south bank of the canal at Belfield (left of picture) (Courtesy Local History Collection, Canterbury City Library)

History and Memories

The Housing Commission of N.S.W. built houses in Belfield towards the end of World War II and after the war. About 1945, a house on the north side of Punchbowl Road was a display house furnished

by Bebarfalds city department store.

The Minister for Housing, Mr Clive Evatt, conducted many foundation stone laying ceremonies and official openings of Housing Commission estates. These photographs were taken in Belfield in June 1948.

(Above) Speeches at the ceremony. Clive Evatt, Minister for Housing, is sitting on the fence at the right of the speaker.

(Below) The local crowd posed for a photograph.

(State Library of N.S.W. Piecan Database, nos. GPO-1-44034 and GPO-1-44051)

21

22

Belfield

In 1954, a group of men interested in astronomy formed the Sydney Amateur Astronomers (S. A A.), and decided to set up an observatory. The site they chose was a vacant block of land behind Mr Gordon Patston’s home in Lincoln Street, Belfield. The first meetings were held in a garage and concrete squares were laid on the ground for the telescopes. On the second Field Night on 24 September 1955, two hundred people attended. A Clubhouse was built and officially opened on Friday, 18 September, 1955. The Field Nights were very popular and on one special night about a thousand people attended.

In 1957 when Russia launched Sputnik I, Belfield was the only Moonwatch station operating at the time and was the first observatory in the Western World to make a visual sighting of the satellite.

Some of the educational courses offered for both adults and juniors included astronomy, telescope making, speed reading, mathematics and “How to Read a Slide Rule”.

In 1966, the first murmurings of subdivision were heard but it wasn’t until 18 April, 1970, after their last meeting that the members demolished their Clubhouse. Michael Avenue now runs at the back of the land.

Belfield’s Industries

Canterbury Boys’ High students watch the course of the satellite, Sputnik, at Belfield Observatory July 1957. (State Library of N.S. W. Picman Database. Australian Photographic Agency, nos. 03622 and 03639)

Belfield has only a small industrial area. Some of the earlier factories included Miss Muffit Jams, an ice cream distributor and United Capacitor Co., a subsidiary of Plessey’s Ltd. Some of the industrial buildings have since been demolished and a new road, Clairville Close, has been formed. A resident who lived in Scott Street during her school days can remember the smell of the jam. She can also recall looking out their back door at the flowers in Mr Rudd’s nursery in Margaret Street.

The first Pizza Hut built in Australia opened on the corner of Water Street and Punchbowl Road on 22 April, 1970. It closed in 1998.

23

History and Memories

The tarpaulin factory on railway property on the corner of Punchbowl and Cosgrove Roads provided employment for many Belfield residents. The factory was relocated from Sydney Yards to Enfield in 1925 and continued production until 1991. A resident, who worked in the factory during the war years, can remember a searchlight unit on the paddock across Cosgrove Road manned by the “Yanks”. There was also a large American Transport Depot nearby.

Parks and Reserves Parks and Reserves line Cooks River and Cox’s Creek. They are:• Jim Begnall Memorial Field named after a Life Member of Western Suburbs Junior Rugby League Club. The first match was played there on 25 April, 1976.

• Cooke Park named after an alderman of Enfield Council in 1936.

• Bark Huts Reserve • Maria Reserve Other parks are:• Eccles Reserve, named after Alderman J.W. Eccles, is between Linda Street and Seymour Parade. Residents can remember it as a paddock with a creek running through it. Pipes were laid, the ground filled and levelled and the Council installed an old steam roller for the children to climb into and over. The chimney was filled with cement for safety. It was removed about 1981.

• Rudd Park • Another small playground is behind Belfield RSL. Although not in Belfield but just over Cox’s Creek were two very large gasometers. These were demolished in the early 1990s when natural gas was introduced. They dominated the Belfield skyline for many years.

There have been murders, suicides and shady characters in the area but some well known people

Steam roller on the day of its removal ftom Eccles Reserve, 1981 (Courtesy Des Cramp)

24

Belfield

have spent some of their lifetime in Belfield.

These include

Belinda Green - Miss World 1972 Harry Hinton - Champion Motor Cycle Racer Freddie Dawson - World famous boxer Joe Lynch - his manager Ronal Jackson - Opera singer Ted Matthews - the last Australian survivor of the landing on Gallipoli on 25 April 1915

Albert Edward ‘Ted’ Matthews (Courtesy Kevin Matthews)

\

25

History and Memories

Index Cosgrove Road 17,23 County of Cumberland Planning Scheme 20 Cox’s Creek 1,23 Cramp, F. 14 Cricket 14 Cutbush Avenue 14

Aboriginal pathway 1,2 Absalom, Henry 3 Ackland family 9,12,14 Alford, John 1,2 Anglican Church 10 Atlanta tennis court 14 Austin Crescent 17 Australia Post 17

Dale, Harry 3 Dawson, Freddie 24 Depression 12 Downes Street 6,17

Baltimore Street 3,4,14 Bannon, N.C. 14 Bark Huts Reserve 23 Barren family 14 Baseball 14 Bazentin Street 7,8,12 Begg family 4 Belfield (name) 1,17 Belfield Bowling and Recreation Club 18 Belfield Hotel 13 Belfield Observatory 22 Belfield R.S.L. 17,23 Belmore North Public School 3,12,13 Belmore Soccer Club 16 Binns family 14 Birdwood Avenue 8 Blackwood Street 6 Bock family 12,14 Boronia Street 7,9,12 Boundaries 1 Boyce, Archdeacon 10 Brighton Farm 2 Broadbent, Joseph 1 Browne family 12,14 Bruce Avenue 4 Bullus, P. 14 Burns, Richard 3 Burt, A. 9 Burwood Road 2,3,4,6,7,17 Buses 3 Capon, Thomas 1 Carter Street 19 Cecilia Street 3,4 Cervetto, Louis 2 Chaseton, Nurse 3 Chisholm Street 14 Oakville Close 22 Clarence Street 10,16,17 Clareville 1,2,5 Cockburn, James 3 Commonwealth Bank 18 Cooke Park 23 Cooks River 1,3,12,20 Cooks River County Road Reservation 20 Cookson, John D. 4 Coronation Parade 2

Eccles Reserve 23 Edgar Avenue 17 Elliott, Charles 2,5 Elliott Street 5,17 Empire Day 3,4 Enfield Hotel 2 Enfield Marshalling Yard 4 Evatt, Clive 21 Farming 1,2,3 Ford, E. 9 Fraser, C. 14 Frazer Family 12 Galt, W 9 Goldschmid, E.A. 14 Goods Line 4,7 Goodwin, William 1,2 Graham, Thomas 3 Great Central Railway Estate 7 Green, Belinda 24 Greenwood tenuis court 14 Hammond, Edward 3 Hebblewhite, Charles J. 3 Hinton, Harry 24 Hollier, Linda 9 Housing Commission of NSW 17,21 Hungerford, Nurse 3 Indiana Place 14 Industries 22

Kingston, W 10 Knowles family 12,14 Korean Central Presbyterian Church 10 Land grants 1 Langley family 3,4 Lincoln Street 3,14,22 Linda Street 3,7,9,14,23 Liverpool Road 2 Loch Nea tennis court 14 Lynch,Joe 24 Lynwood 3 MacKay, James 3 McKee family 12,14 Madeline Street 14 Margaret Street 2,19,22 Maria Reserve 23 Matthews, Ted 24 Mena Street 8 Messines Street 8 Methodist Church 9 Michael Avenue 22 Miss Muffit Jams 22 Moore, WH. 2 Morton, A.L. 14 Nichols, John 1,3 North Belmore Cricket Club 14 Omaha Street 14 Parks and Reserves 23 Patston, Gordon 22 Pavitt, Mrs 9 Persic Street 8 Pettit family 9,14 The Pines tennis court 14 Pizza Hut 23 Post Office 17 Progress Hall 8,9,10,17 Punch Bowl 1,2 Punchbowl Road 1,2,3,5,6,7,14,17,23 Queen competition 8,9

X

Jackson, Ronal 9,24 Jackson family 14 James, Joseph 3 Jay Avenue 17 J.I.E.H. Community Club 18 Jim Bagnall Memorial Field 23 Johnson, S. 14 Johnston family 12,14 Jones, A. 14

Railway 4,7,23 Redman, John 1,2 Redman’s Estate 3,11 Ritchie, N. 14 Robinson, N. 10 Rudd, Mrs A. 16 Rudd Park 15,16,23 Rudd’s Nursery 19,22

26 St Andrew’s Anglican Church, Lakemba 10 St Michael’s Catholic Church & School 19 St Paul’s Anglican Church 10 Sarjent family 4 Schools 3,12,13,19 Scott Street 17,22 Scouting 19,20 Seach family 9 Seymour Parade 8,14,19,23 Smith, Peter C. 10 Spratt, Herb 19 Stephen, John 1,2 Stewart, Frank 10

Belfield

Sudbury Farm 1,2,3 Sumner family 9,12,14 Sydney Amateur Astronomers 22 Tarpaulin factory 23 Tennis courts 14 Trams 2 United Capacitor Co. 22 Uniting Church 9 Varidel, Louis 2 Varidel Avenue 17 Victory Street 17

Walker, C. 14 Walker, Frederick 3 Wallington, Father 19 War Service Homes 7,8 Warren, A. 14 Water Street 5,14,23 Watde Street 8 Watts family 9,12,14 Webb family 9,12,14 Whatmough family 14 Witheridge family 4 World War I 4 World War II 17,21,23 Wrightson’s Palace Grounds Estate 6

Acknowledgements Thanks to Jean Nolan, Lesley Muir, Brian Madden, Des and Edna Cramp, Tiana Trappel, Loma Tonkin, John Bridges, Shirley Govey, Tom Hainey, Colin Rae, Flora Jeffries, Joan Fitzgerald, Sue Shepherd, Marlene Doran, National Archives of Australia, Commonwealth Bank, Scout Hall, Australian Railway Historical Society, and all other residents who supplied information and photographs.

Extracts were taken from booklets published by St Paul’s Church of England, Belfield; Belfield R.S.L.; Belfield Bowling Club; and Andrew James of the Astronomical Society of NSW. Kim Thomson from Canterbury City Library took the current photos. Special thanks to Catherine Hardie who gave up her free time to prepare the final draft.

Canterbury City Council provided a grant of $500 to help defray the cost of printing.

Canterbury and District Historical Society c/- Canterbury City Library, PO Box 77, Campsie NSW 2194

Š 2002 Rae Fortier, Lesley Muir and Canterbury and District Historical Society.

This book is copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of study, research, criticism, review or as otherwise permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced by any process without written permission. Enquiries should be made to the publisher.

ISBN 0-9579391-1-6

(Front cover) Ladies at Loch Nea tennis court, Seymour Parade, ca.1930. Mrs Cramp, Mrs Sutton, Mrs Blatchford on right of photo. (Courtesy Mrs F. Jejfree)

(Back cover) Canterbury Boys’ High students watch the course of the satellite, Sputnik, at Belfield Observatory, July 1957 (State Ubrary of NSW Pieman Database. Australian Photographic Agency, no.03623)

Printed by University of Sydney Printing Service