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For the local government area, see City of Parramatta.

Parramatta Sydney, New South Wales
Parramatta Town Hall
Population:	22,809
Established:	1788
Postcode:	2150
Property Value:	AUD $440,000
Location:	23 km (14 mi) west of Sydney CBD
LGA:	City of Parramatta
Parish:	St. John
State District:	Parramatta
Federal Division:	Reid, Parramatta
Suburbs around Parramatta: Northmead North Parramatta Oatlands Westmead Parramatta Rosehill Greystanes Mays Hill Harris Park

Parramatta is a western suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Parramatta is located 23 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre of the local government area of the City of Parramatta. Parramatta is a major commercial centre of Greater Western Sydney. Parramatta is colloquially known as 'Parra'.

Parramatta sits on the bank of the Parramatta River and is approximately at the geographical centre of the Sydney metropolitan area. North Parramatta is a separate suburb.

Contents 1 Commercial Area 2 History 2.1 Aboriginal Culture 2.2 European Settlement 3 Transport 4 Landmarks 5 Churches and Religious Institutions 6 Schools 7 Culture 8 National Estate 9 References 10 External links

Parramatta is a major business and commercial centre, sometimes called Sydney's "second central business district". Parramatta has many high density commercial and residential developments. It is home to Westfield Parramatta, which is now the eighth largest shopping centre in Australia.^[1] Church Street is home to many shops and restaurants. The northern end of Church Street, close to Lennox Bridge, features al fresco dining with a diverse range of cuisines. The southern end of Church Street, past Westfields is known as Auto Alley for the prevalence of car dealerships.

Since the new millennium, Parramatta has seen the consolidation of its role as a government centre, with the relocation of facilities, such as the New South Wales Police Headquarters, from Sydney's CBD. At the same time, major construction work occurred around the railway station with the expansion of Westfield Shoppingtown, the creation of a new transport interchange and the development of the Civic Place local government precinct. Some private businesses have also relocated their offices to Parramatta.

Old Government House, Parramatta, circa 1799	Tudor Gates, Parramatta Park, built in 1885	St John's Cathedral	Parramatta's historic Town Hall, designed by W.A. Mansfield and built 1881-83
Lancer Barracks, one of three buildings dating from 1822-28	Church Street from Lennox Bridge	Bath House, Parramatta Park	Remains of Governor Phillip's House, Parramatta Park

The Darug people had lived in the area for many generations, and regarded the area as a food bowl, rich in food from the river and forests. They called the area Baramada or Burramatta ('Parramatta') which means "the place where the eels lie down".^[2] To this day there is a plentitude of eels and other sea creatures attracted to the profusion of nutrients created by the fact that at Parramatta the saltwater of Sydney Harbour meets the freshwater of the Parramatta River's catchment. The eel has been adopted as the symbol of the Parramatta Eels Rugby League club.

Parramatta was founded in 1788, the same year as Sydney. The British Colony, which had arrived in January 1788 in the First Fleet at Sydney Cove, had only enough food to support itself for a short time and the soil around Sydney Cove proved too poor to grow the amount of food that 1000 convicts, soldiers and administrators needed to survive. During 1788, Governor Arthur Phillip had reconnoitred several places before choosing Parramatta as the likeliest place for a successful large farm.^[3] Parramatta was the furthest navigable point inland on the Parramatta River (i.e. furthest from the thin, sandy coastal soil) and also the point at which the river became freshwater and therefore useful for farming.

On Sunday November 2, 1788, Governor Phillip took a detachment of marines along with a surveyor and, in boats, made his way upriver to a location what he called The Crescent, a defensible hill curved round a river bend, now in Parramatta Park. As a settlement developed, Governor Phillip gave it the name "Rose Hill" (now used for a nearby suburb) which in 1791 he changed to Parramatta, approximating the term used by the local Aboriginal people.

In an attempt to deal with the food crisis, Phillip in 1789 granted a convict named James Ruse the land of Experiment Farm at Parramatta on the condition that he develop a viable agriculture. There Ruse became the first person to successfully grow grain in Australia. The Parramatta area was also the site of John Macarthur's pioneering of the Australian wool industry at Elizabeth Farm in the 1790s.

Governor Arthur Phillip built a small house for himself on the hill of The Crescent. In 1799 this was replaced by a larger residence which, substantially improved by Governor Lachlan Macquarie from 1815 to 1818, has survived to the present day, used as a retreat by Governors until the 1850s with one Governor (Governor Brisbane) making it his principal home for a short period in the 1820s. The house, Old Government House, is currently a historic site and museum within Parramatta Park and is Australia's oldest surviving public building.

Parramatta railway station is a major transport interchange on the CityRail network. It is served by the Blue Mountains line, Cumberland line and the Western line. The station was originally opened on July 4, 1860, five years after the first railway line in Sydney was opened in 1855, running from Sydney to Parramatta Junction. It was recently upgraded, with work beginning in late 2003 and the new interchange opening on February 19, 2006.

The ferry wharf is at the Charles Street Weir, which divides the tidal saltwater from the freshwater of the upper river, on the eastern boundary of the Central Business District. The wharf is the westernmost destination of the Sydney Ferries River Cat ferry service which runs on Parramatta River.

The Great Western Highway and Parramatta Road have always been important roads for Parramatta and Greater Sydney. The M4 Western Motorway has taken much of the traffic away from these roads, with entrance and exit ramps close to Parramatta.

• Lake Parramatta is a 10-hectare reserve, based around a former reservoir. The catchment area for the lake is bounded by North Rocks Road, Pennant Hills Road and Hunts Creek. The entrance is from Lackey Street, North Parramatta.

• Parramatta Park is a large park adjacent to Parramatta Stadium. It was formerly the Governor's Domain and contains Old Government House, as mentioned above. Another feature is the natural amphitheatre located on one of the bends of the river, named by Governor Philip as "the Crescent", which is used to stage concerts. Over 120 bird species have been recorded there. It is home to the Dairy Cottage, built from 1798 to 1805, originally a single-room cottage and is one of the earliest surviving cottages in Australia. It was built for ex-convict George Salter. Between 1914 and 1816 it was converted to a dairy. The Tudor Gatehouse, on O'Connor Street, was erected by the Park Trust in 1885 and designed by Gordon McKinnon. It was restored in 1980. The remains of Governor Brisbanes observatory are vsible, constructed in 1822. Notable astronomers at the observatory include James Dunlop and Christian Carl Rumker. In 1822 the architect S. L. Harris designed the Bath House for Governor Brisbane and built it in 1823. Water was pumped to the building through lead pipes from the river. In 1886, it was converted into a pavilion.^[4]

Church Street takes its name from St John's Anglican Cathedral opposite the Town Hall. Nearby is the historic St John's Cemetery. Parramatta Salvation Army is one of the oldest active Salvation Army Corps in Australia. St Patrick's Cathedral is also located within the region and is the one of the oldest Catholic churches in Australia.

The suburb is also home to the Parramatta and Districts Synagogue services the entire Jewish community of western Sydney.

Parramatta High School was the first co-educational school in the Sydney Metropolitan area, established in 1913. Other schools include Arthur Phillip High School, Macarthur Girls High School, Parramatta Public School, St Patrick's Primary Parramatta, Our Lady of Mercy College (OLMC) and The Kings School, Parramatta.

• Riverside Theatre is located on the bank of the Parramatta River.

• Parramatta Eels rugby league club which competes in the National Rugby League. Parramatta Stadium is the home ground of the Parramatta Eels, located beside Parramatta Park. Parramatta Leagues Club is on O'Connell Street.

• The Parramatta Advertiser and the Parramatta Sun are the newspaper serving Parramatta and surrounding suburbs.

Parramatta has many buildings on the Register of the National Estate. The following is a sample. (Source: The Heritage of Australia, Macmillan Company, 1981)

• Lancer Barracks

• Elizabeth Farm House

• Centennial Clock

• Former Post Office, Church Street

• Lennox Bridge

• Parramatta Town Hall

• St John's Cathedral

• Roman Catholic Cemetery, Parramatta North

• Parochial School, Elizabeth Street

• Parramatta Psychiatric Center

• Brislington, Marsden Street

• Hambledon, Hassall Street

• St Patrick's Cathedral Parramatta

• Macarthur House

• St John's Cemetery

• Former King's School Group

• Parramatta Park

• Experiment Farm Cottage

• All Saints Church Group

• Arthur Phillip High School

• The Book of Sydney Suburbs, Compiled by Frances Pollen, Angus & Robertson Publishers, 1990, Published in Australia ISBN 0-207-14495-8

1. ^ Parra Westfields
2. ^ Troy, Jakelin. "The Sydney Language", Macquarie Aboriginal Words. Sydney: Macquarie Library, 76. 
3. ^ "Man of Honour - John Macarthur", Michael Duffy, Macmillan 2003, p. 81 ff
4. ^ [1]

• [2]

• Parramatta, New South Wales is at coordinates 33°48′56″S 151°00′27″E / -33.81554, 151.00735Coordinates: 33°48′56″S 151°00′27″E / -33.81554, 151.00735
• Parramatta City Council website
• 2001 Census Information
• Parramatta High School

Suburbs and localities within the City of Parramatta | Western Sydney | Hills District | Sydney
Camellia | Chester Hill | Clyde | Constitution Hill | Dundas | Dundas Valley | Eastwood | Epping | Ermington | Granville | Harris Park | Model Farms | Northmead | Oatlands | Old Toongabbie | Parramatta | North Parramatta | Pendle Hill | Rosehill | Rydalmere | South Granville | Telopea | Toongabbie | Winston Hills | Wentworthville | Westmead
List of Sydney suburbs