Did You Know?
some little known facts about Coogee
Arnold "Arnie" Schwarzenegger, former Mr Universe, the Terminator actor, filmmaker, and former
Governor of California used to call Coogee home during the 1970s. He worked out at a gym that was located in
a building at 3 Kurrawa Avenue. For a time the building housed a business that sold plastic coin sorting/counting trays and has since been rebuilt as an apartment building.
Coogee used to have an Ambulance Station located at Arden Street (on the corner of Waltham Street). It was completed in 1921. The architect was
Mr J A Kethol and the builder was Mr M B Sutton. Originally the ground floor accommodated 6 ambulances, casualty,
lecture and laundry rooms, offices and garage repair. The first, top, floor has always been apartments. The building's ground floor used
feature the Bananapalm Vietnamese restaurant, now a now an Italian restaurant named Louie
Bathing Machines : In 1886 permission was given to H. Grunfield (sometimes called "Greeenfield") to use bathing machines on Coogee Beach which allowed bathers to change in privacy and enjoy
the waves in the safety of an enclosed area.
Bathing Machines at Coogee Beach, late 19th century
Batty Bay : The rocky inlet between Coogee and Lurline Bays (just south of Wylies Baths) used to be known as Batty Bay. It was named after the
Batty family, printers, who owned a substantial 19th century Victorian mansion on Wolseley Road, Coogee, named Battysberg. The home is now demolished, but once boasted sweeping lawns
overlooking the ocean that was decorated with life sized masonry busts of famous historical figures. One of the figures, of William Shakespeare, has been
preserved and is on display at the Randwick Historical Society's museum at Maroubra.
Byron Lodge is a striking sandstone Victorian Gothic home in Byron Street. This house is often confused with musician Isaac Nathan's home which
once stood in Randwick on the corner of Belmore Road and Avoca Street that was built 1853 and named for Nathan's English friend and collaborator, Lord Byron
and demolished in 1912. Byron Street was named after Lord Byron.
Carr Street : is one of the main streets in Coogee running down from Randwick to Coogee Beach near the surf club. It features on all the early maps of Coogee, yet the
origin of its name seems unknown. Randwick City Council's database of street name origins does not mention Carr Street, and we can find no other source to explain where
the name came from. None of the early maps shows anyone named "Carr" living in Coogee, and we could find no likely candidate from Sydney's early history named "Carr".
The only explanation we could think of was from the archaic English word mean "swampy woodland". Some early maps suggest such a swampy area may have existed just to
the south of where the Surf Club is located.
Coogee is also the name of a southern coastal suburb of Perth, Western Australia (on the other side of the continent).
It takes its name from the lake, Lake Coogee, in the area, which translates to "Body of water" in the native Indigenous Nyoongar language.
Coogee Bay Road, Coogee's arterial backbone, was originally known as "Whale Street", it was renamed as Belmore Road after Earl of Belmore
(Sir Somerset Richard Lowry-Cory) who was Governor of New South Wales between 1868 and 1872. It was finally named "Coogee Bay Road" on November 30, 1930.
De La Salle College, a boys' only secondary college run and staffed by the De La Salle Catholic religious order of brothers was established at
160 Coogee Bay Road in 1946 and operated into the 1970s. Newspaper articles from the times show a school with an interest in sports including boxing,
and swimming with their annual swimming carnival usually held at the Coogee Aquarium Baths. St Brigid's primary school now operates from the site.
Duke Kahanamoku, the celebrated Hawaiin surfing and swimming legend and Olympic champion, popularised surfing Australia with surfing demonstrations at
Freshwater, Dee Why and Cronulla beaches in the summer of 1914 and 1915. He visited Coogee on 16 December 1914 for a swimming carnival at the Coogee Aquarium Baths
in Dolphin Street. It is unlikely that he also surfed at Coogee, but his dazzling exhibitions of wave-riding techniques left a legacy that lives on with the all surfers of all of Sydney's beaches, including at Coogee.
A billy Goat once roamed around the bushland on Coogee's northern headland (Dunningham Reserve) during the last half of the 20th century. Some people
remember as children running through the scrub with the goat. It seems to have been a domestic animal that lived in the backyard of a nearby block of apartments
but had free reign over the nearby bushland. Or maybe, because domestic goats have a lifespan of about 15 years, there was more than one goat.
Coogee Oval's Grandstand was built in 1924 and is known as the Cyril Towers Grandstand in honour of
the Rugby Union player Cyril Towers (1906 - 1985) who played 233 first grade games for the Randwick club, as well at playing
for state and national teams and was twice captain of the Australian team and pioneered the running "attack" form of Rugby.
Hill Climbs : in the early days of motoring, car and motorcycle enthusiasts used to use the steep hills or Arden Street on either side
of Coogee Beach to test the climbing capacity of their new-fangled jalopies. From about 1906 to 1909, hill climb tests were a regular event on the
southern side of Arden Street which rises steeply to about 80 metres above sea level at the junction of Malabar Road.
Little Coogee: Nearby Clovelly was once known as "Little Coogee" because of its proximity to the more famous Coogee,
which was sometimes
called Big Coogee. Due to the efforts of a local progress association in 1912 the name was changed to Clovelly after the fishing village in Devon, UK.
The other
"Little Coogee" is a area in Parramatta Park on the banks of the Parramatta River (45 kilometres west of Coogee). It was a popular swimming spot
from 1912 when public swimming
restrictions were lifted up until the early 1960s when river pollution closed it for swimming. It even had a
"Little Coogee Surf Life Saving Club" from 1912. It is still known as "Little Coogee" picnic area.
Some speculate it was called "Little Coogee"
as a tongue-in-cheek reference as it being a less-salubrious western suburbs alternative to Coogee as a eastern suburbs seaside resort. Others say it was
called "Little Coogee" after a demonstration visit to the swimming spot by a Coogee Life Saving team.
Maidstone is an impressive two storey Victoriana mansion at 1a Waltham Street featuring corner bay windows under a metal cupola and a grand arched
entrance. It was built between 1887 and 1889 by Thomas Matthew Alcock (1848 - 1902), a well-known Sydney jeweller, watchmaker and for many years a prominent figure
in horse racing circles. Standing behind St Brigid's Catholic Church, it was purchased by the Catholic Church in 1922. It has been restored by the Missionaries
of the Sacred Heart as their provincial house. We suspect that Waltham Street, formerly known as Francis Street, got its name from the brand of time watches
which Alcock's business sold. For some reason, the family later changed their name to Alcot.
Coogee Mardi Gras : Randwick Municipality began its centenary celebrations on Boxing Day 1958 with the opening of the Grand Mardi Gras
carnival at Coogee Beach. Crowds flocked to ride on the a giant Ferris wheel. On the evening of 1st January 1959, holidaymakers were horrified
to see the Ferris wheel collapse in a mangle of steel, equipment and bodies. At least 40 people were injured and two young girls died.
The late football great Diego Armando Maradona stayed for two weeks at what was the called then Coogee Holiday Inn, but is now the Coogee Crowne Plaza
hotel, during October 1993, when his Argentine team played Australia as part of qualifying rounds for 1994 World Cup. The most famous man on the planet had a
reputation for being able to party hard, but during this tour, the sporting stakes were high, and Maradona and his team stayed ensconced within the hotel apart from
trips to games, and press conferences, and staid events like a visit to Taronga Zoo to hold a koala bear.
A Mini Golf course used to be located on the block of land next to the Crowne Plaza Hotel during the late 1920's and 1930's. Early photographs
show well laid out putt-putt golf links next to the old Oceanic Hotel in Arden Street (240 Arden Street & 23 Vicar Street). A small square kiosk building in
mock-Spanish architectural style fronted Arden Street, and bore the sign saying "Bob-o-Links".
Pronunciation of Coogee as Coo-Gee will show you are not a local. The locals say the correct pronunciation sounds like Could-gee.
Roslyn at 29 Arcadia Street vies with Maidstone, The Grange, Cliffbrook and Ocean View as being the grandest mansion
in the suburb. It is a magnificent two storey Victorian 'Boom Style' mansion built in 1886 for Charles Thomas Saxon, a timber merchant. A later owner, Mr V. A. McCauley,
subdivided the land in front of the house eliminating its grand entrance from Beach Street.
Skating Rink : According to the 1928 to 1932 commercial telephone directory for Coogee, an Outdoor Skating Rink and Tennis Courts were operating
in Brook Street
opposite Coogee Oval.
Coogee once boasted three Squash Courts complexes during the period of high popularity of squash in Australia. One was housed in the Giles baths
building on the northern point at Dunningham Reserve. (You can
read more about Giles here). Another was in a purpose built building on the corner of
Arden and Bream Streets. When this squash centre closed, the building was demolished and replaced with a building containing
apartments and shops. The third was located in South Coogee at 222 Malabar, now Popplewell Park.
St Brigid's Catholic Church on the corner of Brook and Waltham Streets Coogee is a Romanesque style church
designed by architect Alfred Bates and built in 1921. Its dominant feature is the landmark tall square tower which can
be seen from Coogee beachfront and most other parts of the suburb. If you think it reminds you of the Westminster Catholic
Cathedral, it is because it was based on its London counterpart, emphasised by its embellishments of banded brickwork and
intricate cement ornamentation.
St Nicholas Anglican Church (123 Brook Street) constructed of brick and sandstone in Gothic Revival style,
was completed in 1906. It replaced an earlier church completed in 1886, but almost completely destroyed by fire
in 1905. The current building resembles the older church closely.
The high point on the cliffs between the north side of Coogee and Gordon's Bay used to be known as Suicide Point. Until the 1950s, newspapers
regularly reported deaths after falls from the cliffs. Local civic groups campaigned for security measures to prevent
deaths in 1921. Some of the deaths were the result of accidental falls, and in 1928 another involved the death of
local state member of Parliament, Hyman Goldstein, who some historians now feel may have been murdered by an arch political rival, J. T. Ley, later dubbed
the "Minister for Murder". The name fell out of favour, and the last press reference to Suicide Point we could find was in 1952 when the death of
an Alexander Hargraves was declared as being by suicide at 'Suicide Point' (The Sun Sydney 28 Dec 1920, Page 6).
Surfboard Licences : During the 1960s, you were required to have a "licence" to ride a surfboard at Coogee (and other beaches).
As a reaction to public concerns about safety, Sydney beach-side councils introduced surf craft registration in 1960 along with a circular vinyl permit sticker.
Coloured coded for each season, they indicated the council area, a two year summer season and a stamped serial number. They were valid only for the beaches
of the issuing municipal council and policed by beach inspectors and surf club members (sometimes resulting in confiscation), a system hated by boardriders.
The system disappeared without fanfare by the 1969-1970 season.
Surfoplanes: are inflatable, rubber, oblong, ribbed surf mats with thick moulded handles. Designed to be ridden lying prone, they were the popular way to catch
waves until overtaken by moulded surf boards in the late 1950s. They were invented by Bronte Beach Doctor Ernest Smithers in the early 1930s and first used on Bondi Beach.
He and business partner, Sir Charles Kingsford Smith, acquired a monopoly on their hire on Sydney and Illawarra beaches. The first official surfoplane race was held at
Coogee Beach in February 1934.
Wedding Cake Island's name origin is a mystery. People speculate that it relates to the distant view of white caps of waves
or of copious bird droppings, giving the island the appearance of an iced wedding cake. But does it really look like a wedding cake? The Geographical Names Board
of NSW notes the name was officially given in 1977, but the name existed before that. Interestingly, it says it was previously known as Bridal Rook.
Wikipedia says that it is also known as "Lemo's Island" although who or what is "Lemo" is not stated. Local surfers consulted have said they have not
heard of "Lemo". The name "Wedding Cake Island" is first mentioned in a 1924 newspaper report about a man attempting to swim to the Island. READ MORE
about Wedding Cake Island.
References
'St John's Ambulance Station', The Sydney Morning Herald Wed 28 Dec 1921 Page 5
'Hawaiian Swimming' The Sun (Sydney) Tue 3 Mar 1914 , Page 11
Cathy Morris, ' Parramatta Beach not so far-fetched to those who recall days of diving in at Little Coogee', Parramatta Advertiser October 30, 2014
'No Fear of Sharks', The Richmond River Express and Casino Kyogle Advertiser Wed 5 Mar 1924 Page 2
'Death of Mr T. M. Alcock', The Sydney Morning Herald Wed 12 Mar 1902 Page 9
Rugari, Vince, 'The best circus to ever hit this country: Maradona's two weeks in Sydney' Sydney Morning Herald 26 November, 2020
Warhshaw, Matt. The History of Surfing, San Francisco, Chronicle Books, 201o, pp. 68-69
