Today, the grand wooden grandstand in Rushcutters Bay Park overlooks its cream picket-fenced oval. 

Its lawn apron is used for outdoor exercising. 

Inside, its rear rooms are a conference facility. 

The general area was used for market gardens from the 1830s to the 1870s when land reclamation began following the Act of 1878, which reserved 6 acres to be set aside for a park. Work finished in 1883 at a cost of ₤20,000. 

The park was proclaimed in 1885, acknowledged with a large pink marble plaque nearby, and almost immediately encroachments began to occur. In 1892 a tram depot and powerhouse were built to winch the cable trams up the steep ascent to Edgecliff. In 1897 a fountain was erected on the south-western side of the oval to commemorate Queen Victoria’s diamond jubilee. 

With the construction of the Bondi ocean outfall sewer, low-lying suburbs needed pumping stations and one was constructed here in 1899. 

More welcome additions to the park were croquet lawns in the 1900s, which were converted to tennis courts in 1923. In 1951 the kindergarten was built on the west side of Waratah Street. A commemoration of early European settlement came with the planting of a swamp mahogany tree and plaque to commemorate Thomas West near the sea wall in 1982. 

Rushcutters Bay Park is typical of parks on reclaimed land from the 1880s. It was a major public work requiring the reclamation of a large area of marsh, the channeling of the creek and the construction of a ballast dyke sea wall. The channel divides the park between the City of Sydney and Woollahra municipality, which is responsible for the eastern half. 

The Reg Bartley Oval, used for cricket and football, was named after a local councillor. It was named in 1959 in recognition of Reg Bartley’s 18 years as an Alderman, as they were then called,  and five years as Lord Mayor. The fill on which the sports oval was built came from the foundations of the Old General Post Office which was demolished in the 1860s. The oval was completed and fenced by 1889. 

The original grandstand was built by 1894 on the north side of the oval. In 1926 another grandstand was built but was damaged by two fires in 1956 and 1957. The grandstand was more lately renovated in 1992 and has featured in the Australian films “The Sum of Us” (1994) and “Babe” (1996).  

It’s a grand old dame still valuable to locals for its picuresque utility and amenity.

By Andrew Woodhouse

Heritage Solutions