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right|thumb| Petersham railway building

Petersham is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in New South Wales, Australia. Petersham is located 6 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Inner West Council. Petersham is known for its extensive Portuguese businesses, with many Portuguese shops and restaurants, despite only 156 (1.9%) of the population being born in Portugal.

Petersham is bordered by the suburbs of Leichhardt to the north, Stanmore to the east, Marrickville to the south and Lewisham to the west. Taverner's Hill, named after Fred Taverner, is a locality in the western part of the suburb.

History

Before European settlement, the area now constituting Petersham was within the territory of the Indigenous Gadigal people. The area now occupying Petersham was first worked by Europeans in 1793. During a period of food shortage for the new colony, the Lieutenant-Governor Major Francis Grose dispatched convicts to the suburb's south-west to clear the bush for a timber yard and to grow corn and wheat. He named the region Petersham for his native village in Surrey, England, with the name covering a broader region than today. For some time thereafter, Petersham was used for agriculture, and was considered the source of some of the best crops in the colony. It was also a popular site for kangaroo hunting. During the 1820s, inhabitants were terrorized by bushranger Jack Donahue and his gang. and several others in the area, until he had all the land in Petersham and beyond, creating a estate that reached the Cooks River. This large estate was subdivided in 1834 upon Wardell's murder by escaped convicts. Over the following years, the area was developed. Stanmore Road was created in 1835, and within seven years had been developed from a bush track. The Cherry Tree, Petersham's first inn was opened by Thomas Weedon on land bought from Wardell's estate. During the 1840s a racetrack was opened and then closed after receiving poor attendance. At this time, travelling to Sydney with bullock (castrated cattle) took a day, and the suburb became a resting stop for travels out to Parramatta and Liverpool.

On 2 May 1945 during World War II, a Mosquito HR576 RAF (UK) performing an air test flight disintegrated over Leichhardt and Petersham. The crew of two were killed but no one on the ground was seriously injured. A contemporary newspaper reported two civilian injuries and 18 properties being damaged. It was suspected that a violent pull out from a power dive, with its associated high 'G-forces may have led to the structural failure of the aircraft. The two crew members tried to escape from the aircraft but they were not high enough for their parachutes to open.

In 1948, the local council merged with Marrickville and St Peters to form the Municipality of Marrickville. By 2006, Petersham had become gentrified.

  • 23-35 New Canterbury Road: Egyptian Room, Royal Arch Masonic Temple
  • Terminus Street: Petersham railway station

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Image:Petersham4.JPG| Commercial Row, New Canterbury Road

Image:Petersham5.JPG| The Majestic Theatre, Petersham

Image:Petersham2.JPG| Assembly of God, Trafalgar Street

Image:Petersham Masonic Temple.JPG|Masonic Temple

</gallery>

Commercial area

A small row of shops and cafes line New Canterbury Road

Local landmarks include the Petersham Town Hall, the Petersham Reservoir and Petersham Park. Petersham is bordered by Parramatta Road to the north, as well as the training buildings for Transport for NSW railway staff.

Transport

Petersham railway station is on the Leppington & Inner West Line and Liverpool & Inner West Line of the Sydney Trains network. Travelling west, all stations services run from the City Circle to Homebush and Parramatta. The station includes an ornate iron pedestrian bridge over the train line. The old station building was built in 1886 in the Victorian Free Classical style. It has been described as "the largest and grandest of the surviving 19th century railway stations in the Sydney area", and is listed on the Register of the National Estate.

The 428, 444, 445 and 412 buses run through Petersham at different points. The 428 runs from Canterbury to Circular Quay, the 444 and 445 run from Campsie to Balmain, and the 412 runs from Campsie to King Street Wharf in the city.

Schools

Fort Street High School, located on Parramatta Road, is the oldest selective school in New South Wales and has 934 students as of 2013. Petersham Public School sits on the Petersham and Lewisham borders, and has 240 students as at 2014. The old public school building located in Gordon Street goes back to 1878. Along with the church in the grounds, it is listed on the Register of the National Estate.

Taverners Hill Public School situated on Elswick Street, is an infants only school with 60 students and recently published its own cook book.

thumb|right|All Saints Anglican Church

Churches

  • All Saints Anglican Church, Petersham.
  • Petersham Assembly of God, on Audley Street.
  • Metropolitan Community Church, Sydney (a church with an outreach to the LGBTQI+ community but open to all).
  • Thai Church: "House of Faith" at Petersham Assembly of God.
  • Nova Alianca (Portuguese-speaking) at Petersham Assembly of God.

Architecture

Petersham contains several Edwardian and Victorian mansions, built at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries. These houses are generally in their original condition, unusual for a suburb so close to the city. Despite this, some have been modified with "pebblecrete" porches, and new windows, and some have been altogether demolished and replaced with apartments. The remaining mansions are concentrated around Petersham Park.), which is a celebration of the suburb's Portuguese ties. Petersham is also home to the Petersham Bowling Club and Petersham RSL Club.

References

  • Crash of a Mosquito over suburbs of Sydney on 2 May 1945 Includes eyewitness accounts by children at the school.