Sydney has so much to offer for the family looking for a little adventure. From museums to parks, zoos to aquariums, beaches to the bush – we have it all. Many are unaware that scattered throughout the CBD and suburbs are numerous historic sites hidden in plain sight awaiting discovery. Our little family of four have been on a mission to discover as many as possible.
Hidden in Plain Sight is a new little project we’re working on as we take a magnifying glass to our city map and unveil all the extraordinary spots just waiting for us to discover them. First on our list – 3 decommissioned military sites.
The Defence History of Sydney is fascinating with waves of military construction occurring quite early in the first settlement. Sydney’s earliest forts were Fort Phillip, Fort Macquarie, and Dawes Battery. We found our curiosity piqued when we learned that Australia had been terrified that there would be a Russian invasion and constructed a number of defensive sites in the second half of the 19th Century. We had to find them!
Bare Island
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Bare Island in La Perouse was our first destination. Back in 1885 a huge concrete military fort was constructed to protect Sydney’s back door from those scary Russians. It was an active military site before being decommissioned and transformed into a retirement home for the Crimea, Sudan, and China war veterans, a women’s refuge and then part of National Parks NSW. All of the large guns and steel infrastructure were stripped back and sold. While it never actually saw any military action (those dreaded Russians never came!) it is still quite a fascinating site to explore.
Not far from some of Sydney’s favourite beaches, this site is hidden in plain sight and open for you to visit every Sunday from 1.30 pm with tickets available for purchase at the the La Perouse Museum. A family ticket will set you back $45.00.
So does Sydney have any more Military Forts hidden in plain sight? It does indeed!
Middle Head
Middle Head boasts a fort a lot larger than that on Bare Island. Better yet, it’s free and doesn’t require you to book a tour. The site was part of our military’s outer harbour defence and was originally built in 1801. The last battery was constructed in 1942. It has had a few uses over the years including the training of soldiers heading off to Vietnam. It was in the tunnels here that they were taught how to withstand torture and interrogation. You can still spot some of old tiger cages built for the trainees!
Newington Armory
Our other great decommissioned military site hidden in plain view is the Newington Armory. Formerly the Royal Australian Naval Armament Depot (RANAD), the Newington Armory is hidden within Sydney Olympic Park. You can access parts of the site by foot but can only explore some of the buildings via a Sunday tour.
Accessible only by tour is Building 39 which houses an armament exhibition. The exhibition features an array of ammunition, bombs and missile replicas. The tour takes you around on a historic railway which the kids will love. It’s not to be missed.
Where to next?
Of course, Sydney has a number of other sites to visit that will help to explore our military history. You could head to Hyde Park Barracks, the National Maritime Museum, Cockatoo Island, Fort Denison, Thomas Walker Estate, Dredges Cottage, NSW Lancers Memorial Museum, Action Stations and Georges Head just to name a few. There’s always somewhere you can explore and it might be closer than you think!
These are right up my alley! The cafe at Newingston Armory is fabulous but that is as far as I have gotten 🙂
I love the cafe! Yummmmmm!! Yes, explore further. The site has so many surprises
I have been wanting to visit Newington Army for a while. Hopefully we can get to it during the next school hols.
You should Karyn! It has so many places to explore.
Just had brunch at Burnt Orange yesterday and was thinking that I should bring the toddler to Middle Head – what a great place to climb around and enjoy a gorgeous view. These spots are such an interesting part of Sydney history.
These are great places to visit! Thanks for sharing the history – some great information. Another place of Military History is Garden Island on Sydney Harbour. We have lived here on and off for almost 6 years and while it is a secure, military base – part of it is accessible to the public via ferry (from Circular Quay to Garden Island). There are 2 museums, a great little cafe and lots of guns, cannons and other naval bits and pieces for kids to climb all over. You can also access the top of the signal tower which has 360 degree views around the harbour and there is a huge part area for a great picnic by the harbor. Let me know if you come there and I’ll meet you for a coffee!!
Sold!!! I’m adding it to our ‘must-see’ list.
Great post! Will do these holidays!
Fantastic! Come back and let us know what you think about each site!