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Bennelong Point
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Bennelong Point, a former island in Sydney Harbour, is a headland that, since the 1970s, is the location of the Sydney Opera House in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Key Information
History
[edit]Bennelong Point is known to the local Gadigal people of the Eora nation as Dubbagullee.[1]
The point was originally a small tidal island, Tubowgule,[2][3] later renamed as Bennelong Island, that largely consisted of rocks with a small beach on the western side. The island was located on the tip of the eastern arm of Sydney Cove and was separated from the mainland at high tide.[3] For a brief period in 1788, this relatively isolated protrusion into Port Jackson was called Cattle Point as it was used to confine the few cattle and horses that had been brought from Cape Town by Governor Arthur Phillip with the First Fleet.
The area at that time was also strewn with discarded oyster shells from many long years of gathering by the local aboriginal women. Those shells were regathered by the newly arrived convict women and burnt to make lime for cement mortar. The point was called Limeburners' Point for that reason, though those shells only furnished enough lime to make a single building, the two-storey Government House.[4]
In the early 1790s, the Aboriginal man Woollarawarre Bennelong— employed as a cultural interlocutor by the British—persuaded Governor of New South Wales, Arthur Phillip, to build a brick hut for him on the point, giving it its colonial name.[5]
In December 1798, a half-moon battery was constructed at the extreme northern end of the Point, mounted with guns from HMS Supply.
In the period from 1818 to 1821, the tidal area between Bennelong Island and the mainland was filled with rocks excavated from the Bennelong Point peninsula. The entire area was leveled to create a low platform and to provide suitable stone for the construction of Fort Macquarie. While the fort was being built, a large portion of the rocky escarpment at Bennelong Point was also cut away to allow a road to be built around the point from Sydney Cove to Farm Cove. This was known as Tarpeian Way.[5]
The existence of the original tidal island and its rubble fill were largely forgotten until the late 1950s when both were rediscovered during the excavations related to the construction of the Sydney Opera House. Prior to the Opera House's construction, Bennelong Point had housed Fort Macquarie Tram Depot.[6]
Gallery
[edit]-
Bennelong Point and Fort Macquarie c. 1841. -
Bennelong Point, Fort Macquarie & the first Sydney Rowing Club shed c. 1873. -
Bennelong Point and Fort Macquarie during the 1920s. -
Fort Macquarie Tram Depot shortly before demolition in 1958. -
The Sydney Opera House on Bennelong Point, 2010. -
Restaurants in Bennelong Point.
_c._1873_SLNSW_FL1254158.jpg)
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Bennelong Point / Dubbagullee". sydneybarani.com.au. City of Sydney. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
- ^ Hayward, Philip (2023). "De-Islanding: The peninsularisation of islands in Sydney Harbour (1818–2023)". Journal of Marine and Island Cultures. 12 (2). University of Technology Sydney: 19, 22. doi:10.21463/jmic.2023.12.2.02. Retrieved 30 October 2024 – via Institution for Marine and Island Cultures, Mokpo National University.
- ^ a b "Our story: Tubowgule". Sydney Opera House. n.d. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
- ^ Hughes, Robert (1987). The Fatal Shore (paperback 1996). Harvill Press. p. section 1.iii (page 11), and section 4.ii (page 90 ). ISBN 1-86046-150-6.
- ^ a b "Bennelong Point" (with various images detailing the island and its structures, since 1788.). The Dictionary of Sydney. State Library of New South Wales. n.d. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
- ^ Yarrow, Stephen (n.d.). "Lost Sydney: Bennelong Island". Pocket Oz: Pocket Guide to Sydney. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
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Bennelong Point
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Geography and Location
Physical Features
Bennelong Point is a promontory extending into Sydney Harbour from the southern shore, located immediately east of Sydney Cove on the northern edge of Woolloomooloo Bay. Originally a rocky outcrop that appeared as a tidal island at high tide, surrounded by rocky shoals, it was connected to the mainland between 1818 and 1821 using rocks excavated from the peninsula itself.[4][5] The site's natural topography features a sloping terrain typical of the harbour's headlands, with low elevation facilitating early reclamations and structures.[6] This narrow landform, enclosed by water on three sides, projects prominently into the harbour, enhancing its visibility from surrounding areas.[7][1] Geologically, the point consists of sandstone formations common to the Sydney Basin, though extensive modifications for fortifications, trams, and the Sydney Opera House have obscured original features.[4]Traditional Indigenous Context
Tubowgule, the traditional Indigenous name for Bennelong Point, was a resource-rich promontory utilized by the Gadigal clan of the Eora nation, the coastal Aboriginal peoples inhabiting the Port Jackson area prior to European arrival in 1788.[1] Positioned between Warrane (Sydney Cove) to the west and Wahganmuggalee (Farm Cove) to the east, the site jutted into Sydney Harbour, facilitating access to abundant marine life where tidal influences mixed fresh and brackish waters.[8] This ecological niche supported shellfish harvesting, fishing, and other sustenance activities central to Eora subsistence patterns.[9] The location functioned as a hub for food gathering, recreation, and cultural practices, including corroborees—ceremonial dances and gatherings that reinforced social bonds and transmitted knowledge among clans.[10] Archaeological evidence from shell middens in the vicinity indicates long-term occupation and exploitation of seafood resources, with layers of discarded oyster and mussel shells attesting to sustained Indigenous presence over millennia.[11] Originally a low-lying tidal island of rocky outcrops fringed by a small western beach, Tubowgule's form enhanced its utility for launching canoes and processing catches, embedding it within the broader Eora maritime economy that sustained populations estimated at several thousand around the harbor.[12]Indigenous History
Pre-1788 Significance
Tubowgule, the traditional name for Bennelong Point among the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, derives from a Dharug word meaning "where the knowledge waters meet," referring to the confluence of fresh and tidal waters in Sydney Harbour that created nutrient-rich environments.[1][8] This tidal headland, originally a small island connected by sandbars at low tide, supported abundant marine life, including fish, shellfish, and crustaceans, making it a vital site for foraging and sustenance for Eora clans.[1][13] The location's ecological bounty positioned Tubowgule as a key fishing and food-gathering area, where Gadigal people harvested resources using spears, lines, and traps, supplemented by nearby terrestrial foods from surrounding bushland.[13] Its strategic position on the harbour facilitated inter-clan interactions, with visiting groups from other Eora clans drawn to the site's productivity and accessibility by canoe.[13] Archaeological evidence of middens—accumulations of shellfish remains—in the broader Sydney Harbour foreshores underscores long-term occupation, though specific pre-1788 artifactual records at Tubowgule are limited due to later colonial alterations.[1] Culturally, Tubowgule served as a hub for recreation, social gatherings, and corroborees—ceremonial dances and storytelling events that reinforced kinship ties, law, and spiritual connections to Country among Eora people.[13] As part of the Gadigal estate within the Eora cultural landscape, it embodied ongoing custodianship dating back tens of thousands of years, with the site's enduring role as a meeting place reflecting its significance in maintaining social and ecological knowledge transmission.[8][13]Bennelong's Association
Woollarawarre Bennelong, a senior man of the Wangal clan within the Eora nation, was born around 1764 on the south shore of the Parramatta River.[2] In November 1789, at approximately 25 years old, he was captured near Manly Cove by British officers under Governor Arthur Phillip's orders to facilitate communication amid ongoing conflicts between settlers and Indigenous groups.[2] After an initial escape in late 1790, Bennelong was recaptured and developed a rapport with Phillip, serving as an interlocutor between the Eora and the colonial administration.[14] [9] In November 1790, at Bennelong's request and selected site, Phillip ordered the construction of a small brick hut on the rocky outcrop known to the Gadigal as Tubowgule (or Dubbagullee), a promontory on the eastern side of Sydney Cove that formed a tidal island at high tide.[15] [16] [1] This structure, built using convict labor and imported bricks, marked one of the earliest permanent dwellings in the colony and symbolized Phillip's strategy of integration through accommodation.[15] The hut functioned as a residence and occasional communal space for Eora visitors, though Bennelong continued to navigate tensions, including resistance to British expansion.[17] The site's subsequent naming as Bennelong Point derives directly from this association.[9] [15] Bennelong accompanied Phillip to England in 1792, where he resided for nearly three years, observing British society before returning to Sydney in September 1795 aboard HMS Britannia.[14] Upon arrival, he found the brick hut had been demolished two months prior, in November 1795, amid shifting colonial priorities and his prolonged absence.[14] Bennelong thereafter resided variably with Eora kin and settlers but maintained ties to the cove area until his death on 3 January 1813 at Kissing Point (now Putney), aged about 49.[14] The point's naming endures as a recognition of his role in early cross-cultural exchanges, though historical accounts vary on the voluntariness of his European voyage and the hut's long-term occupancy.[9][14]Colonial Era Developments
Early British Settlement (1788–1810s)
Upon the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove on 26 January 1788, under Captain Arthur Phillip, the rocky tidal outcrop now known as Bennelong Point—then a protrusion into the harbor—was promptly designated Cattle Point and used to enclose livestock transported from Cape Town, including cattle and horses vital to the fledgling penal colony's survival.[12] [18] This initial utilitarian purpose reflected the settlers' immediate priorities of securing provisions amid resource scarcity, with the point's isolation aiding containment before broader land clearance for agriculture.[4] In November 1789, Governor Phillip ordered the capture of Woollarawarre Bennelong, a Wangal clansman from the Parramatta River area, to bridge communication gaps and learn Indigenous languages and customs for diplomatic purposes.[19] After initial resistance and an escape, Bennelong adapted to colonial society, residing in Phillip's household at Sydney Cove and acquiring English proficiency.[19] By 1791, at Bennelong's request, Phillip commissioned a modest brick hut—roughly 12 feet square—on the eastern point of the cove, establishing the site's first permanent structure and prompting its renaming to Bennelong Point in recognition of his intermediary role.[19] [1] Through the early 1800s, the point remained sparsely developed, functioning as an extension of the governor's domain near Government House, with occasional Indigenous visits to the adjacent yard but no significant expansions until later fortifications.[4] Phillip's departure in 1792 and Bennelong's 1792–1795 voyage to England further shifted focus, though the hut symbolized early attempts at cross-cultural accommodation amid ongoing frontier tensions.[19] By the 1810s, the area's tidal nature persisted until reclamation efforts began, underscoring its transitional role from Indigenous fishing ground to colonial outpost.[4]Fort Macquarie Period (1817–1901)
Fort Macquarie was constructed on Bennelong Point from 1817 to 1821 as a defensive outpost to protect Sydney Harbour from potential naval threats and to prevent the theft of boats from the cove.[20] [17] The foundation stone was laid on 16 December 1817, with the structure designed in Picturesque Gothic style by convict architect Francis Greenway on the orders of Governor Lachlan Macquarie.[17] [20] It featured a square layout with circular bastions at each corner, a central castellated square tower, and walls built to create a deceptive appearance of greater strength than its actual capabilities allowed.[17] [20] Some armaments were salvaged from HMS Supply, the last surviving vessel from the First Fleet.[21] The fort saw limited military occupation, including by the 3rd Regiment of Foot (Buffs) around 1825, primarily to guard against internal dissent and to secure resupply ships entering the harbor.[17] In 1855, it was extended with a barbette battery accommodating five cannons to enhance its defensive role.[17] Further expansions occurred in the 1860s amid fears of Russian invasion following the Crimean War, reflecting ongoing concerns over colonial vulnerabilities.[20] Despite these modifications, the fort's design flaws and the rapid evolution of naval technology rendered it increasingly obsolete as an effective harbor defense by the late 19th century.[20] [17] Demolition of Fort Macquarie commenced in 1890 and was substantially completed by 1901, clearing the site for the construction of electric tram sheds.[17] [3] The structure's Gothic towers had been admired for their landscape contribution to Sydney Cove, though its military shortcomings were widely acknowledged.[20]Industrial and Infrastructural Use (1902–1950s)
Following the demolition of Fort Macquarie in 1901, Bennelong Point was repurposed for public transport infrastructure with the construction of the Fort Macquarie Tram Depot.[3] The facility opened on 10 August 1902, serving as a storage and maintenance hub for the New South Wales Government Tramways fleet.[22] Designed as a castellated brick building in Gothic style to evoke the demolished fort, it functioned as both a terminus and depot for trams operating in the Circular Quay area.[23] [20] The depot supported Sydney's electric tram network during its expansion in the early 1900s, handling routes that connected the harbor precinct to inner suburbs and facilitated passenger access to key commercial and maritime hubs.[23] As the system grew to encompass over 280 kilometers of track by the 1920s and peaked in ridership during the 1930s and 1940s, the Bennelong Point location provided essential operational capacity amid rising urban demand.[24] Trams housed there included standard-gauge vehicles for city-center services, contributing to the network's role as Australia's largest urban rail system at the time.[22] Post-World War II shifts toward motorized buses and automobiles diminished tram reliance, with services curtailed progressively from the late 1940s.[24] By the mid-1950s, fleet operations at the depot had transferred to western sidings, rendering the site largely redundant as part of broader network rationalization.[22] The structure remained standing until its demolition in 1958, marking the end of industrial-scale infrastructural use at Bennelong Point.[3]