Geographical Information  

Cadigal People

Although exact boundaries cannot be determined it is believed the Cadigal clan stretched along the south side of Port Jackson from South Head to about Petersham.  

Wangal People

The Wangal people were believed to have occupied the area from about Petersham, along the southern shore of the Parramatta River to about Rosehill.  

It was believed that the boundary for the two clans lay along the Balmain peninsula, suggesting that Leichhardt, Lilyfield, north-west part of Rozelle and north-west part of Balmain belonged to the Wangal people, with Annandale , south-east part of Rozelle, Birchgrove and south-east part of Balmain to the Cadigal people.  

How to acknowledge the traditional owners of the Leichhardt Municipality 

There are two ways in which you can acknowledge the Aboriginal traditional owners of the Leichhardt Municipality. 

The first is by employing the services of an Aboriginal elder to perform a “Welcome to Country”. A Welcome to Country can only be given by an Elder of the local Aboriginal community, unless permission is given to another member of that community. 

An Elder generally is a Aboriginal person who has the cultural knowledge of their people, either traditional or contemporary knowledge, and has the respect of their community.To make contact with an appropriate Elder, contact Council’s Aboriginal Community Development Officer or the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council. 

The Second way to acknowledge Aboriginal traditional owners is by performing an “Acknowledgement of Country”. An Acknowledgement of Country can be performed by any non-Aboriginal person or any Aboriginal person who is not originally from that area. Two basic points about an Acknowledgement of Country is to ensure that you acknowledge the Aboriginal clan and/or country for where you are meeting and to acknowledge the descendents of those people who are still with us today.

Local History is a specialist collection of historical and current material that relates to all aspects of the Leichhardt local government area - the inner-Sydney suburbs of Annandale, Balmain, Birchgrove, Leichhardt, Lilyfield and Rozelle. 

The Leichhardt Local History collection includes:    

book   

reports and environmental studies   

maps and plans   

photographs and slides   

local newspapers and newspaper clippings files   

art works   

Balmain Cemetery Register on microfiche   

CD Roms   

The Leichhardt Italian Community Archive   

recorded oral histories   

local newspapers on microfilm   

Sand's Sydney Residential and Commercial Directory 1858 - 1932/33 on microfiche    

archives of community organisations and individuals with an association to the local area.  

The Local History collection is a reference collection - you can't borrow items, but you can access them for research purposes in the library. The main collection is located at Leichhardt, with a smaller collection at Balmain library. Please check the contact page for details of hours. The local history librarian has an indepth historical knowledge of the local area.  An appointment can be made with the Local History Librarian 9367 9335.  If you are unable to visit the library service to undertake your research an alternate and effective method is email. 

Leichhardt Italian Community History CollectionT

he Leichhardt Italian Community History Collection is a small but growing collection of material that relates to any aspect of the Italian presence in the Leichhardt Municipality. The collection includes photographs, books, newspaper clippings, posters and oral history recordings in English and Italian.  Try this site for more information on Italians in Leichhardt and CoAsIt Sydney. 
We are keen to hear from anyone able to loan or donate materials relating to Italians in Leichhardt - contact the Local History Librarian for further information on 9367 9335. 

Community ArchiveT

he collection includes the archives of several local organisations and personalities who have lived in the area, such as the papers of the Annandale Association, Annandale Public School, the former APIA club at Leichhardt, Friends of Callan Park and the Balmain and District Hard Court Tennis Association. 

Local History and You

We are always adding new resources to the Local History collection. Do you have items of local interest that you would like to donate or loan? Photographs of life in the Leichhardt area, books, memorabilia, art works, papers of local societies and organisations are all welcome. You can contact the Local History team at 02 9367 9266 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Leichhardt began its existence as a number of land grants. In particular two brothers Hugh and John Piper had a number of large grants between them. Hugh Piper established "Piperston". This estate was bought in 1846 by Walter Beames who was a friend of Ludwig Leichhardt. Beames assisted Leichhardt with provisions for his explorations and he also changed the name of "Piperston" to Leichhardt after his friend. 

One of the largest estates in Leichhardt was the Elswick estate which was owned by James Norton, solicitor and MLC. This was eventually subdivided into hundreds of blocks of land. There were also dairies in Leichhardt but these too eventually fell victim to residential development. 

Leichhardt was incorporated as a municipality in 1871. The 1880s was a time of development for Leichhardt as large public buildings such as the Post Office and the Town Hall were built. Transport was improved with the extensive development of the tram system and also the nearby rail network. Throughout the period 1900 - 1920 large areas of Leichhardt were subdivided and the population grew substantially in this time. 

In 1949 Balmain and Annandale Councils were amalgamated with Leichhardt (and from 1968 - 2002 Glebe was also incorporated into the Leichhardt Municipal Council area). Italian migration, which had begun in the 1920s, increased rapidly after WWII and Leichhardt became largely influenced by Italian culture, particularly the cafes, but also with the production of the newspaper "La Fiamma". Although the Italian population is decreasing in Leichhardt there is still a strong Italian influence on the suburb, reinforced with the opening in 2000 of the Italian Forum shopping and residential complex and the opening of Casa D'Italia, headquarters of the Italian cultural and social support agency CoAsIt in Norton Street. 

The 2001 Census revealed the changing demographics of Leichhardt, in particular a decrease in the number of people from non-English speaking backgrounds, and a rise in the median annual income.