History

The Macquarie Watchtower is the earliest known surviving, sandstone tower building in Australia, the oldest surviving building on Botany Bay, and has long been recognised as a picturesque landmark on the headland, particularly popular for wedding photographs. The c. 1820 Macquarie Watchtower is thought to have been commissioned by Governor Macquarie. Not only is it…

Located in Circular Quay at the gateway to Sydney’s CBD, 33 Alfred Street has been a prominent feature on the Sydney skyline for more than 50 years and remains the home and headquarters of AMP to this day. Opened in 1962, the AMP ‘Sydney Cove’ Building, designed by Peddle Thorp & Walker (now PTW Architects),…

Located in front of the Western Sydney University building in central Parramatta is a piece of pulci art with quite an incredible story behind it. This work of art is a statue of a boy, so lifelike that he seems about to step down from his low pedestal and stride off into the distance. His…

Post war in the 1950’s and 60’s there was a wave of mass migration from Italy to Australia, and specifically from the lesser-known hillside town of San Fele (located in the southern region of Basilicata), to the then Drummoyne Municipality of Sydney, Australia. Thousands of men and women arrived to this new land, and bandied…

The date is 5th July, 1938. The place is Rose Bay, Sydney. An Empire Class flying boat rumbles and bobs towards its departure point and then turns slowly into the wind. As the engines roar, the plane gradually gathers speed before skimming across the sparkling, blue waters and starting its lazy climb into the sky….

Barrenjoey Lighthouse sits majestically on Sydney’s most northern point – Barrenjoey Head at Palm Beach. Positioned 91m above sea level, the lighthouse can be reached by a couple of walks and offers breathtaking views. It’s an easy day trip from Sydney and a great place to bring overseas visitors – they may recognise the lighthouse…

Before the construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Sydney Harbour was filled with ferries and punts plowing their way across the blue waters to join the north to the south of the city. There were private and public punts with them all providing a simple, small and spectacular journey. With the opening of the bridge…

In a suburb known for its high concentration of Groodles, Cavoodles, Labradoodles and Schnoodles, there once lived an old, ugly, battle-scarred mongrel dog with arthritis in all four legs who was almost totally deaf. His name was Billy. For 17 of his 19 years, the fox-terrier walked the streets of Mosman behind his loving master…

For decades, Sydney locals would plunge the depths into Wynyard Station by using the wooden escalators in York Street. Terribly nostalgic with a rhymical rattling sound, over time these would become more of a problem than they were worth. With great sadness they would be replaced. So, what to do with the four tracks of…

Located in the Parramatta River off Henley Point is a broken marble column. Many locals have no idea that this was not the result of an accident, but the column was designed this way for a very good reason. This point is the finish line of the course on which Australian sculling champion Henry Searle…