Suburb Profiles
Overview
Woollahra is a suburb in the Eastern Suburbs located 5 kilometres east of the Sydney CBD, in the local government area of the Municipality of Woollahra. The Municipality of Woollahra takes its name from the suburb but its administrative centre is located in Double Bay. Woollahra is famous for its quiet, tree-lined residential streets and village-style shopping centre.
Woollahra is an Aboriginal word meaning camp or meeting ground or a sitting down place. It was adopted by Daniel Cooper, the first speaker of the legislative assembly of New South Wales, when he laid the foundations of Woollahra House in 1856. It was built on the site of the old Henrietta Villa (or Point Piper House). Cooper and his descendants were responsible for the establishment and progress of the suburb and its name was taken from the house.
Among the cafes and restaurants are a number of antique shops and art galleries. The suburb is also the location of many government consulates, including Serbia, Germany, Russia, Poland and Turkey.
Woollahra is an extremely affluent suburb, due in part to its proximity to the city and the shopping centre at Bondi Junction, plus a wide range of picturesque homes, mostly in various Victorian styles. Moncur Street and Queen Street are particularly affluent areas, with a mixture of residential and commercial buildings and an extraordinarily high number of heritage-listed buildings. High-rise development has been avoided, maintaining the heritage character of the suburb.