Ashfield: People and Places

Explore the rich history of Ashfield’s people and places through six different sites, starting from the suburb’s civic heart on Liverpool Road and finishing at the Ashfield Infants’ Home. These histories offer brief impressions of life in Ashfield, as it transformed from a ‘pretty village’ for Sydney’s colonial elite into the bustling, multicultural hub of today.

The aim of this project was to investigate a small handful of Ashfield’s significant places and people; to include a variety of sites, connected to a range of characters from this suburb’s past. Let these stories inspire you to see Ashfield and the Inner West in a new light.

This tour takes place on the land of the Wangal people of the Eora Nation, whose ancestors journeyed, hunted, celebrated and lived off this land for tens of thousands of years before strangers sailed into Sydney Harbour in 1788, and changed their lives forever. I would like to pay my respect to Wangal elders, past and present, and to any descendants who may be listening today.

Acknowledgements:

This tour is supported by the Inner West Council Community History and Heritage Grants Program.

Author/producer: Nicole CamaCo-author: Caitlin Adams (St John’s Cemetery and Ashfield Infants Home)Editor: Linda BrainwoodResearch assistance: Amy WayProducer: Nick Clark

Special thanks to Amie Zar (Community History & Heritage Coordinator) and Carmel Andrew (Community History Technician) both from Inner West Council for their assistance in this project.

Special thanks must also go to David Rollinson from the Ashfield and District Historical Society, who provided ample sources and information in the production of this tour, including journal publications, photographs and advice. There is a wealth of publications and historical items related to the history of Ashfield in the Ashfield and District Historical Society collections. Find out more about the society and their work at their website.