Gymea Bay, New South Wales

Infobox Australian Place | type = suburb
name = Gymea Bay
city = Sydney
state = nsw


caption = Gymea Bay
lga = Sutherland Shire
postcode = 2227
pop =
area =
propval = $1,080,500
est =
stategov = Miranda
fedgov = Cook
near-nw = Kirrawee
near-n = Gymea
near-ne = Miranda
near-w = Kirrawee
near-e = Yowie Bay
near-sw = Grays Point
near-s = "Royal National Park"
near-se = Yowie Bay
dist1 = 27
dir1 = south
location1= Sydney CBD

Gymea Bay is a suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Gymea Bay is located 27 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the Sutherland Shire. The postcode is 2227, which it shares with the adjacent suburb of Gymea.

Gymea Bay takes its name from the small bay on the north shore of the Port Hacking estuary (also known as the Port Hacking River). The suburb's extremities are defined by Forest Road on the northeast, Avenel Road on the north, Dents Creek on the west, and the waters of North West Arm and the bay itself to the south. The area is characterised by large amounts of verdant bushland. However, since the 1990s, invasions of feral deer from the Royal National Park have begun to negatively affect the ground cover underneath the tree canopy.

History

The bay, the suburb and the adjacent suburb of Gymea, were named after the Gymea Lily "Doryanthes excelsa", a 6 m tall perennial that is prevalent in the area. It was named by the local Eora people and became the inspiration for the suburb's name, by government surveyor W.A.B. Geaves in 1855. [ [http://www.suthlib.nsw.gov.au/ssc/rwpattach.nsf/viewasattachmentPersonal/shire_placenames_20041008.pdf/$file/shire_placenames_20041008.pdf Sutherland Shire place names] ] The Gymea Lily has been adopted as a symbol of the area and features on the crest of many local organisations. Development in the area has eradicated most of these lillies but some can still be found, a few kilometres south in the Royal National Park. ["The Book of Sydney Suburbs", Compiled by Frances Pollen, Angus & Robertson Publishers, 1990, Published in Australia ISBN 0-207-14495-8, p118]

Commercial area

Gymea Bay is mostly residential, with a small group of shops located in Gymea Bay Road. The suburb's needs are principally served by shops in neighbouring suburbs, especially Gymea and Miranda.

chools

The suburb is home to a public primary school, [http://www.gymeabay-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/ Gymea Bay Public School] , the largest primary school in the Sutherland Shire.

Recreation

Gymea Bay is home to the heritage-listed Gymea Bay Baths, off Ellesmere Road. Gymea Bay Swimming Club have been using the baths for over 40 years. The bay and Port Hacking estuary are used extensively for watersports such as wakeboarding and water skiing.

References

External links

* [http://www.gymeabay-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/ Gymea Bay Public School]
* [http://www.gnb.nsw.gov.au/name_search/extract?id=MaqwXtZTMn Entry at the Geographical Names Board of NSW]
* [http://www.heritage.nsw.gov.au/07_subnav_01_2.cfm?itemid=2440167 Heritage listing of Gymea Bay baths]
* [http://gymeabayswimming.googlepages.com/home Gymea Bay Swimming Club]