Gosford, New South Wales

Gosford is a city located on the Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia, approximately 76 km north of the Sydney central business district. The city is situated at the northern extremity of Brisbane Water, an extensive northern branch of the Hawkesbury River estuary and Broken Bay.

The city is the administrative centre of the Central Coast region, which is the third largest urban area in New South Wales after Sydney and Newcastle. Gosford is considered a major commercial centre of the Sydney Metropolitan Area, and has been designated as an important growth centre under the NSW Metropolitan Strategy. The city's population was 155,271 in the 2006 census.

Gosford is considered an exurb of the Sydney metropolitan area, with a significant proportion of the population commuting for work or study. This can be attributed to a lower cost of living, lack of employment and educational opportunities in the area, lifestyle factors and the development of strong transport links like the Sydney-Newcastle Freeway and Cityrail's Newcastle and Central Coast railway line. These factors have caused Gosford, and the wider Central Coast's population to grow rapidly in recent years.

History

Along with the other land around the Hawkesbury River estuary, the Brisbane Water district was explored during the early stages of the settlement of Sydney. In the early 19th century some pioneering European settlers began occupying the land, for timber-cutting (mainly ironbark and Australian red cedar), lime production and grazing.

Gosford itself was explored by Governor Phillip between 1788 and 1789. The area was of difficult access and settlement did not start before 1823. By the late 19th century the agriculture in the region was diversifying, with market gardens and citrus orchards occupying the rich soil left after the timber harvest. The first road between Hawkesbury, (near Pittwater) to Brisbane Water was only a cart wheel track even in 1850.

Convicts once lived and worked in the Gosford area. In 1825, Gosford's population reached 100, of which 50% were convicts.

East Gosford was the first centre of settlement. Gosford was named in 1839 after Archibald Acheson, 2nd Earl of Gosford – a friend of the then Governor George Gipps.

In 1887, the rail link to Sydney was completed, requiring a bridge over the Hawkesbury River and a tunnel through the sandstone ridge west of Woy Woy. The introduction of this transport link, and then the Pacific Highway in 1930 accelerated the development of the region.

Gosford became a town in 1885 and was declared a municipality in 1886.

Climate

City centre

In the centre of Gosford is a shopping and community precinct, including Kibble Park, William Street Mall, Gosford City Library, the Imperial Shopping Centre, the Gosford Town Shopping Centre and a full range of shops, cafes, banks and services, especially along William Street Mall.

More recently, the Gosford CBD has suffered a decline as more commercial activity has relocated to nearby Erina, particularly Erina Fair. To address this, there have been proposals to revitalise the city centre by more adequately connecting it to the waterfront, and provide more employment and entertainment areas.

More recently the city has redeveloped its park in the city centre, including a stream, a restaurant and outdoor performance facilities. This will be the beginning of the redevelopment of the CBD.

A small number of high rise developments have been built in the area as well, to encourage a concentration of residence in a bid to stimulate the economy of local business, and the local population, with more high rise developments planned.

Facilities

Notable people

Notable residents

Sister cities and twin towns

See also

References

External links

Category:Cities in New South Wales Category:Coastal cities in Australia Category:Suburbs of Central Coast, New South Wales