Kogarah, New South Wales
Encyclopedia
For the local government area, see the Municipality of Kogarah
Municipality of Kogarah
The Municipality of Kogarah is a Local Government Area in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The centre of the municipality is located 14km SSW of the Sydney central business district and west of Botany Bay....

.

Kogarah is a suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...

 of southern
Southern Sydney
This article refers to an area the same as a combination of St George and SutherlandSouthern Sydney is a general term which is used to describe the southern metropolitan area of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia....

 Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, in the state of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. Kogarah is located 14 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district
Sydney central business district
The Sydney central business district is the main commercial centre of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It extends southwards for about 3 kilometres from Sydney Cove, the point of first European settlement. Its north–south axis runs from Circular Quay in the north to Central railway station in...

 and is considered to be the centre of the St George
St George, New South Wales
St George Area is an unofficial name applied to a group of southern suburbs in Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The area includes all the suburbs in the local government areas of the City of Hurstville, the City of Rockdale and the Municipality of Kogarah...

 area. Kogarah is the administrative centre for the local government area of the Municipality of Kogarah
Municipality of Kogarah
The Municipality of Kogarah is a Local Government Area in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The centre of the municipality is located 14km SSW of the Sydney central business district and west of Botany Bay....

, although a small part of the suburb is located in the City of Rockdale
City of Rockdale
The City of Rockdale is a Local Government Area in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The city centre is located 12 kilometres south-south-west of the Sydney central business district, on the western shores of Botany Bay...

.

Location

Kogarah took its name from Kogarah Bay, a small bay
Bay
A bay is an area of water mostly surrounded by land. Bays generally have calmer waters than the surrounding sea, due to the surrounding land blocking some waves and often reducing winds. Bays also exist as an inlet in a lake or pond. A large bay may be called a gulf, a sea, a sound, or a bight...

 on the northern shore of the Georges River
Georges River
The Georges River is a waterway in the state of New South Wales in Australia. It rises to the south-west of Sydney near the coal mining town of Appin, and then flows north past Campbelltown, roughly parallel to the Main South Railway...

. The suburb originally stretched to the bay but has since been divided up to form the separate suburbs of Kogarah Bay
Kogarah Bay, New South Wales
Kogarah Bay is a suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Kogarah Bay is located 16 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district and is part of the St George area. Kogarah Bay is in the local government area of the Municipality of Kogarah.Kogarah Bay...

 and Beverley Park
Beverley Park, New South Wales
Beverley Park is a suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Beverley Park is located 15 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district, in the Municipality of Kogarah and is part of the St George area....

.

Kogarah has a mixture of residential, commercial and light industrial areas. It is also known for its large number of schools (including primary school, high school and tertiary education) and health care services (including two hospitals and many medical centres). The NRL
National Rugby League
The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...

 side, St George Illawarra Dragons
St George Illawarra Dragons
The St George Illawarra Dragons is an Australian professional rugby league football club, representing the St. George and Illawarra regions. They have competed in the National Rugby League since 1999 as a joint venture between Sydney's historic St. George Dragons club and 1982 expansion club, the...

 have their Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

 office based at nearby WIN Jubilee Oval, often referred to as Kogarah Oval. Kogarah features all types of residential developments from low density detached houses, to medium density flats and high density high-rise apartments.

History

Kogarah is derived from an Aboriginal
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....

 word meaning rushes or place of reeds. It had also been written as 'Coggera', 'Cogerah' and 'Kuggerah' but the current spelling was settled when the railway line came through the area in the 1880s.
Early land grants in the area were made to John Townson (1760-1835) who received 2250 acres (9.1 km²) from 1808 to 1810, centred around Hurstville
Hurstville, New South Wales
Hurstville is a suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Hurstville is located 16 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district and is part of the St George area. Hurstville is the administrative centre of the local government area of the City of...

 and James Chandler, whose neighbouring estate was centred around Bexley
Bexley, New South Wales
Bexley is a suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Bexley is located 14 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Rockdale and is part of the St George area.-History:...

. The district provided fruit, vegetables and oysters for Sydney. In 1869, St Pauls Church of England opened on Rocky Point Road (now Princes Highway). It was built on 2 acres (8,093.7 m²) of land given to the church by William Wolfen the Swedish Consul to Sydney, who owned 800 acres (3.2 km²) in Kogarah. The suburb grew around the church and the Gardeners Arms Hotel. Kogarah became a municipality in 1885.

The former neighbourhood of Moorefield is now part of Kogarah. It was originally a 60 acres (242,811.6 m²) land grant from Governor Lachlan Macquarie
Lachlan Macquarie
Major-General Lachlan Macquarie CB , was a British military officer and colonial administrator. He served as the last autocratic Governor of New South Wales, Australia from 1810 to 1821 and had a leading role in the social, economic and architectural development of the colony...

 in 1812 to Patrick Moore, who built a fine house there. The Moorefield racecourse built by a descendant opened in 1888. The Moorefield estate was subdivided in the 1950s and the Department of Education purchased 19 acres (76,890.3 m²), where it built two high schools and college of further education. Moorefields Girls High School was erected there in 1955 on the former site of Moore’s farm.

The Kogarah Mecca cinema was a landmark building, located opposite the railway station in Station Street. The cinema was often used by local schools for important events such as Speech Day.

Commercial area

Kogarah’s main shopping area is located around Kogarah railway station on Railway Parade, Regent Street and on the opposite side of the railway line on Station Street. The commercial area also extends to surrounding streets such as Montgomery and Belgrave Streets. Kogarah Town Centre is a shopping centre on Railway Parade. This commercial area includes the St. George Bank
St. George Bank
St.George Bank is a subsidiary of Westpac Banking Corporation trading primarily in New South Wales but with growing representation across a number of industry and business segments in Queensland and Western Australia. St.George also operates in South Australia and the Northern Territory under its...

 national headquarters in a large office building in Montgomery Street, which is a large employer in the area. Many high rise apartment buildings have also been built around the commercial area in recent years. The noted builder, James Goyen
James Goyen
The builder, James Goyen, constructed many houses and other buildings in the St George District, south of the Cooks River, New South Wales, Australia. Initially he had trained as a carpenter. His ability, leadership skills, personal qualities and business acumen transformed him from an employee to...

, had his works depot at 18 Montgomery Street, and later at 4 Montgomery Street. He built the original building of what was, for many years, the St George Technical College (now a campus of the Sydney Institute of TAFE).

Commercial and light industrial developments are also located along the Princes Highway
Princes Highway
The Princes Highway extends from Sydney to Port Augusta via the coast through the states of New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia, a distance of 1941 km or 1898 km via the former alignments of the highway ....

 and Rocky Point Road. The Darrell Lea
Darrell Lea
Darrell Lea Chocolate Shops is an Australian company that makes and sells chocolate.It is privately owned by the Lea family, and is the largest privately owned confectionery manufacturer in Australia. It was established as a company in 1927....

 Chocolate factory is located in Rocky Point Road. Surrounding streets feature more industrial developments. A small group of shops is located on President Avenue, sometimes referred to as Moorefield.

St George Hospital
St George Hospital, Sydney
The St George Hospital and Community Health Service is a tertiary referral hospital located in Kogarah, a southern suburb of Sydney, NSW, Australia...

 is a major regional hospital, that serves the whole St George
St George, New South Wales
St George Area is an unofficial name applied to a group of southern suburbs in Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The area includes all the suburbs in the local government areas of the City of Hurstville, the City of Rockdale and the Municipality of Kogarah...

 area but also accepts patients from other regions in New South Wales. St George Private Hospital is located nearby. Many medical centres, doctor’s surgeries and specialists’ rooms and related services are located in the surrounding area.

Kogarah Police Station and Kogarah Local Court are located on Montgomery Street. The local court serves the whole of the St George area and as such many barristers and solicitors have their offices in Kogarah. A historic fire station is located in Gray Street and another heritage building, the Kogarah School of the Arts is in Bowns Road.

Railway Parade

fresh fruit stores

Kogarah Town Centre

The Kogarah Town Centre is Kogarah's largest shopping centre. It includes a post office
Australia Post
Australia Post is the trading name of the Australian Government-owned Australian Postal Corporation .-History:...

, a supermarket (Woolworths) along with a multitude of specialty stores. It provides easy access to Kogarah railway station. While it is a shopping centre, it should be noted that the Kogarah Town Centre is quite small and the majority of its customers pass through from the railway station or Woolworths
Woolworths (supermarkets)
Woolworths is the largest supermarket chain in Australia, owned by Woolworths Limited.-History:Woolworths Limited was founded in 1924, with the first store opening up in Sydney's Imperial Arcade.-2008 rebranding:...

.

In early 2011 Kogarah Town Centre is due for a revamp with an application submitted into Kogarah Council to renovate the centre itself, the addition of a supermarket (Aldi
ALDI
ALDI Einkauf GmbH & Co. oHG, doing business as ', short for "Albrecht Discount", is a discount supermarket chain based in Germany...

), and expansion of Kogarah Tavern & Woolworths
Woolworths (supermarkets)
Woolworths is the largest supermarket chain in Australia, owned by Woolworths Limited.-History:Woolworths Limited was founded in 1924, with the first store opening up in Sydney's Imperial Arcade.-2008 rebranding:...

.

Kogarah Town Square

Kogarah Town Square is located in Belgrave Street. It is surrounded by residential developments and is anchored by the Kogarah Library and Cultural Centre. There is a small shopping arcade below one of the residential buildings. The square is surrounded by shops, offices, cafes, restaurants and a karaoke venue.

Transport

The entire Municipality of Kogarah
Municipality of Kogarah
The Municipality of Kogarah is a Local Government Area in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The centre of the municipality is located 14km SSW of the Sydney central business district and west of Botany Bay....

 and surrounding areas rely on bus, train and taxi services that operate from the centre of Kogarah's shopping district. Bus and train services accommodate the large population within Kogarah, as well as the large number of schools in the area.

Kogarah railway station is located on the Illawarra line of the CityRail
CityRail
CityRail is an operating brand of RailCorp, a corporation owned by the state government of New South Wales, Australia. It is responsible for providing commuter rail services, and some coach services, in and around Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong, the three largest cities of New South Wales. It is...

 network. The station sits below a concourse and a small shopping complex called the Kogarah Town Centre. In the late 1990s, the station underwent extensive renovations which added easy access facilities such as elevator
Elevator
An elevator is a type of vertical transport equipment that efficiently moves people or goods between floors of a building, vessel or other structures...

s from the concourse onto each of the four platforms.

Buses from Kogarah service surrounding suburbs, particularly those along the beach such as Brighton-Le-Sands
Brighton-Le-Sands, New South Wales
Brighton-Le-Sands , is a suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Brighton-Le-Sands is located 13 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district, on the western shore of Botany Bay...

, Monterey
Monterey, New South Wales
Monterey is a suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Monterey is located 15km south of the Sydney central business district and is part of the St George area. Monterey is in the local government area of the City of Rockdale....

, Ramsgate Beach
Ramsgate Beach, New South Wales
Ramsgate Beach is a suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Ramsgate Beach is located 16 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district, in the City of Rockdale and is part of the St George area. The postcode is 2217. Ramsgate is a separate suburb, to the...

, Sans Souci
Sans Souci, New South Wales
Sans Souci is a southern Sydney suburb in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Sans Souci is 17 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district and lies across the local government areas of the City of Rockdale and the Municipality of Kogarah. It is part of the St George area.Sans...

  etc. which rely heavily on bus services since they are far from railway stations. Until 1937, a steam tramway
Trams in Sydney
The Sydney tramway network once served Sydney, the capital city of New South Wales, Australia. In its heyday, it was the largest in Australia, the second largest in the Commonwealth , and one of the largest in the world. It was extremely intensively worked, with about 1,600 cars in service at any...

 operated between Kogarah and Sans Souci
Sans Souci, New South Wales
Sans Souci is a southern Sydney suburb in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Sans Souci is 17 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district and lies across the local government areas of the City of Rockdale and the Municipality of Kogarah. It is part of the St George area.Sans...

 via Rocky Point Road. This was replaced by an electric trolleybus
Trolleybus
A trolleybus is an electric bus that draws its electricity from overhead wires using spring-loaded trolley poles. Two wires and poles are required to complete the electrical circuit...

 service, one of only two such services to operate in Sydney. This was subsequently replaced in the 1950s with the current diesel government bus routes that currently operate. The majority of public transportation in Kogarah departs and arrives close to Kogarah Town Centre.

Parks

The Kogarah area also features many parks and reserves, with no shortage of sports playing fields. These include Hogben Park, Frys Reserve, Scarborough Park, Kogarah Park and Jubilee Oval.

Culture and events

have played rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...

 at Jubilee Oval since 1935 and following a merger with the Illawarra Steelers
Illawarra Steelers
The Illawarra Steelers are an Australian rugby league football club based in the city of Wollongong, New South Wales. The club competed in Australia's top-level Rugby League competition from 1982, when they, along with the Canberra Raiders, were admitted into the then New South Wales Rugby Football...

 also has WIN Stadium as a home ground.

Population

Demographics

According to the 2006 Australian Bureau of Statistics
Australian Bureau of Statistics
The Australian Bureau of Statistics is Australia's national statistical agency. It was created as the Commonwealth Bureau of Census and Statistics on 8 December 1905, when the Census and Statistics Act 1905 was given Royal assent. It had its beginnings in section 51 of the Constitution of Australia...

 Census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

 of Population, there were 12,336 people usually resident in Kogarah. 49.4% stated they were born overseas with the top countries of birth being China 10.9%, Bangladesh 3.8% and India 2.8%. English was stated as the only language spoken at home by 34.7% of residents and the most common other languages spoken were Mandarin 9.3%, Greek 6.6% and Cantonese 6.6%. The most common responses for religious affiliation were Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

  21.3%, Orthodox
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...

 13.2% and Anglican 9.0%.

Notable residents

  • Clive James
    Clive James
    Clive James, AM is an Australian author, critic, broadcaster, poet and memoirist, best known for his autobiographical series Unreliable Memoirs, for his chat shows and documentaries on British television and for his prolific journalism...

     - writer, poet, essayist, critic and commentator on popular culture was raised in Kogarah.
  • Kenneth Slessor
    Kenneth Slessor
    Kenneth Adolf Slessor OBE was an Australian poet and journalist. He was one of Australia's leading poets, notable particularly for the absorption of modernist influences into Australian poetry. The Kenneth Slessor Prize for Poetry is named after him.-Life:Slessor was born Kenneth Adolphe...

    , one of Australia's greatest poets, attended Kogarah Primary School, in the early 20th century. The family lived in Belgrave Street, according to his biographer, Geoffrey Dutton.
  • Rev Dr Rowland Croucher
    Rowland Croucher
    Rowland Croucher is an Australian pastor, counsellor and author.Brought up in the Open Brethren in Sydney, following a five-year career as a high-school teacher, Croucher began training in 1964 for the Baptist ministry in New South Wales...

    , theologian and author, lived in Warialda Street in the early years of married life while he was a staffworker with the InterVarsity Fellowship. His wife Jan taught at Kogarah High School.
  • Reg Gasnier
    Reg Gasnier
    Reg Gasnier AM is an Australian former rugby league footballer and coach, regarded as one of the 20th century's finest players. He played in the centres for the St. George Dragons from 1959 to 1967...

     - rugby league legend lives in Kogarah.
  • Dave Brown rugby league star of the 1930s was born in Kogarah.

Schools and churches

  • Resurrection of Christ Greek Orthodox Church
  • Grace Chinese Christian Church,
  • Kogarah Soldiers' Memorial Presbyterian Church (Kirkplace),
  • St Patricks Catholic Church, St Pauls Anglican Church,
  • Christ Church St George (Anglican), and Church In The Bank (Anglican).

  • Kogarah Public School
  • Kogarah High School
    Kogarah High School
    Kogarah High School is a comprehensive co-educational school located in Kogarah NSW- Sport houses :Kogarah High School has a long history of student achievement both academically and on the sporting field...

    , St George Girls High School, James Cook Boys Technology High School, Moorefield Girls High School
  • St Patrick's Primary School, Bethany College (years 7 - 8), Marist College Kogarah
    Marist College Kogarah
    Marist College Kogarah is a systemic Catholic College for boys from Years 7 to 12, located in Bexley, New South Wales, Australia.The College was founded in 1909, and has a tradition based on the teachings of the French educator Saint Marcellin Champagnat...

  • Sydney Institute of TAFE
    Technical and Further Education
    In Australia, training and further education or TAFE institutions provide a wide range of predominantly vocational tertiary education courses, mostly qualifying courses under the National Training System/Australian Qualifications Framework/Australian Quality Training Framework...

    : St. George Campus

External links


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