The upper classes are on the high lands and the lower classes live beneath them and the buildings – gaols, courts, police lock-ups, churches, and schools – are there to process the haves and have-nots through the stages of their very different lives. Here are the stories from Sydney’s shadows – of crime and courts, poverty, pacifists, and palliative care, war and water, military, Mardi Gras and memorials, federation and Frog’s Hollow – all waiting to be told. We will travel along streets broad and narrow - Oxford, Bourke, Albion and Devonshire – looking at lives straight and twisted, so the hidden can be revealed. Meet at the Anzac Memorial, south-side Hyde Park 10 minutes before the tour starts so it can commence on time.
This walk will go ahead whatever the weather, except where the guide deems there to be a threat to health and safety. In this situation you will be contacted with an alternative date. Please ensure your mobile phone number is up-to-date with WEA before enrolling and ensure that you have it with you on the day in case the tutor needs to contact you.
- Anzac Memorial
- Jewish Museum
- St Vincent’s Hospital, The Wall
- National Art School (former Darlinghurst Gaol)
- Bourke St Police station
- Albion St: Frog’s Hollow; Children’s Court
- Prince Alfred Park
By the end of this course, students should be able to:
- Identify the features that reveal changes in how the land has been used over time
- Explain the significance of some of the interesting old buildings in this area
- Recount some of the darker historical stories of Sydney
