Location
Kurraba Point is a harbourside suburb on the lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Kurraba Point is located 4 kilometres north of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of North Sydney Council.
Kurraba Point shares the postcode of 2089 with adjacent suburb of Neutral Bay. It is bordered by Neutral Bay, Cremorne and Cremorne Point. (wikipedia)
History
Aboriginal culture
Prior to the arrival of the First Fleet, the area in which Kurraba Point is situated was inhabited by the Cam-mer-ray-gal Group of the Ku-ring-gai Aboriginal Tribe. The group, which inhabited the north shore of Port Jackson, was one of the largest in the Sydney area.
The name “Karraba” or “Kurraba” is of aboriginal derivation and is thought to mean “good fishing place”.
European settlement
On 2 May 1814, Kurraba Point was included in the 700 acre land grant that was given to Lieutenant Alfred Thrupp as a wedding gift. At that time the area, which included most of what is now Neutral Bay and Kurraba Point, was called “Alfred Thrupp’s Farm” or “Thrupp’s Acres”. Sandstone was quarried from what is now Kurraba Point Reserve from around 1850 to supply stone for the construction of Fort Denison as well as ballast for ships returning to England and for local building. Through these times, the point was known as “Thrupps Point” and “Ballast Point”.
Patrick Hayes acquired a parcel of this land, where he established a soap and oil factory. The Port Jackson and Manly Steamship Company purchased Hayes’ former oil factory in 1883 and they set up a depot and engineering works there. In 1936 there was a fire at that depot when the ferry MV Bellubera caught fire and two men were killed. The Kurraba Point workshops were closed by the end of 1964; the State Government purchased the Kurraba Point site and in 1974 the site was cleared and the present Kurraba Reserve was created.
The renowned children’s author and painter May Gibbs lived for many years at Nutcote, a home in Wallaringa Avenue. The house was designed by the architect B. J. Waterhouse and built 1924-25. It was later restored and is now open to the public as a museum. It has a state heritage listing.
The suburb name of “Kurraba Point” was taken from the point of land on which it is located, between Neutral Bay and Shell Cove. It was part of the suburb of Neutral Bay until 4 June 2010 when Kurraba Point was formally gazetted as a suburb in its own right. (wikipedia)
Places of Interest
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