Como, New South Wales

Como, New South Wales
Como
SydneyNew South Wales
Como Hotel 1.JPG
Como Hotel
Population: 3,635
Postcode: 2226
Location: 27 km (17 mi) south of Sydney CBD
LGA: Sutherland Shire
State District: Miranda
Federal Division: Cook
Suburbs around Como:
Illawong Oatley Oatley
Illawong Como Oyster Bay
Bonnet Bay Jannali Kareela

Como is a suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Como is located 27 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the Sutherland Shire. The postcode is 2226, which it shares with neighbouring Jannali and Bonnet Bay. Como West is a locality in the suburb.

Located on the southern banks of the Georges River, Como is also bounded to the west by the Woronora River. The shoreline features Bonnet Bay, Scylla Bay and Carina Bay.

Contents

History

Como, a name given to it on account of its similarity to Lake Como[1] at the foot of the Bernese Alps in Italy, was named by James Murphy in the late 1800s whilst he was managing the affairs of Thomas Holt (1811–1888),[2] who at the time owned much of the land that stretched from Sutherland to Cronulla.

The Italian influence on the suburb is also reflected in many of the existing street names which were named after various cities located throughout Italy including Genoa Street, Verona Range, Tivoli Esplanade, Ortona Parade, Novara Crescent, Pavia Road, Cremona Road and Loretta Avenue (originally named Loretto,[3][4] a misspelling of the Italian city of Loreto).

Murphy also built "Como House" which subsequently burnt down in 1969, as well as developing the Como Pleasure Grounds, commonly known by locals today as 'Como Mountain'. After Murphy passed away, his estate provided scholarships for young men in agricultural science at St John's College Sydney and the Hawkesbury Agricultural College.

Before the railway line was built, the area was in originally known as Woronora with the first local post office opening on 16 May 1883 followed quickly by the local school on 16 April 1884.[2]

The original single-track Como Railway Bridge spanning the Georges River began service with the opening of the railway station at Como on 26 December 1885.[5] Upon opening of the railway bridge, Como immediately became a popular weekend retreat for city folk with the natural beauty making it particularly popular with holiday makers with trains reported as being overcrowded on their first day of service.[1]

Old (closer) and new Como Bridges

The historic Como Hotel was constructed by the German railway workers in 1878, and was a German workers club for years throughout the duplication of nearby railway lines and construction of the dual rail bridge. It was ravaged by fire in 1996 (after surviving the infamous 1994 Eastern seaboard fires) and largely destroyed as a result of an unattended gas cooker in the kitchen. The hotel was later rebuilt in 2001, featuring a more modern intrepretation of the original historic design.

In 1972, a new concrete dual-track railway bridge was opened to the west of the original Como Railway Bridge to remove the bottleneck imposed by the original single-track design which had reduced service numbers on the increasingly busy Sutherland line. A new Como railway station was also built 800m further to the south with the existing train station located at the southern end of the Como Railway Bridge demolished. The original Como Railway Bridge has since been converted into a pedestrian bridge for use by members of the public as well as cyclists wanting to cross the Georges River. The bridge also now features Sydney Water's pipeline running from Woronora Dam to Tempe.[6]

Como was severely affected by bushfires in 1994, with upwards of 70 houses burnt down. Como West Public School was also destroyed by the fires and a new school was built on the original land.[7]

Commercial area

Wolger Street shops

Como features a small shopping centre in Wolger Street. The locality is referred to as Como West.

Transport

Como railway station is on the Illawarra line of the City Rail network. Como is the first station after crossing the Georges River from Oatley in the St George area. Como is approximately 35 minutes from Sydney Central.

Landmarks

Como is most notable for the old Como Hotel, a historic hotel which was extensively rebuilt after a large fire in November 1996. It is easy to watch the local rugby league football from the balconies of this hotel. Other landmark buildings the suburb include the Como School of Arts, Cafe de Como and the Como Marina on the Georges River. Como features two public schools: Como Public School and Como West Public School.

Sport and recreation

Como is home to the successful St George Rowing Club. Many top rowers begin their sculling career here. Como is also home to many parks, including Scylla Bay Oval home to the highly successful Como-Jannali Crocodiles and the Como Pleasure Grounds which houses both salt and fresh water pools.

Population

Demographics

According to the 2006 Australian Bureau of Statistics Census of Population, there were 3,635 people usually resident in Como. 13.4% stated they were born overseas with the top countries of birth being United Kingdom 5.7%, New Zealand 0.9% and China 0.9%. English was stated as the only language spoken at home by 93.2% of residents and the most common other languages spoken were Greek 1.1%, Mandarin 0.7% and German 0.5%. The most common responses for religious affiliation were Catholic 28.0%, Anglican 27.1% and Uniting Church 7.4%. [8]

References

External links


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