# Ryde, New South Wales

Ryde is a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Ryde is located 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) north-west of the Sydney central business district and 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) east of Parramatta. Ryde is the administrative centre of the local government area of the City of Ryde and part of the Northern Sydney region. It lies on the north bank of the Parramatta River. People from Ryde are colloquially known as Ryders, Rydiens or Rydemen.
North Ryde, West Ryde, and East Ryde are separate suburbs from Ryde.

## History

Ryde was named after the town of Ryde on the Isle of Wight, perhaps by G. M. Pope, who came from Ryde on the Isle of Wight, who settled in the area and opened the "Ryde Store".
Originally known by its Aboriginal name Wallumatta, it was named Eastern Farms when the first 10 land grants were made in 1792. Within a few years this had changed to Kissing Point. The road from Ryde to Parramatta was called Kissing Point Road until changed to Victoria Road in 1887. The name Ryde was used from the 1840s and adopted as the name of the municipality in 1870. The suburb contains the oldest settler's cottage in Australia, Addington, on Victoria Road. Addington was built by the emancipist James Stewart, c. 1800. James Shepherd bought the property in 1810 and added a six-room house to the original sandstone cottage. Addington House, also known as "New Farm", is included on the NSW Heritage Register and the National Trust of NSW.
Other historic buildings in the area include the police station on Victoria Road and Willandra, Willandra Street. The police station, a simple sandstone structure, was designed by Colonial Architect Mortimer Lewis and built in 1837. Willandra is a two-storey Georgian home built by the Devlin family c. 1845, and more recently used as an art gallery and headquarters for the Ryde and District Historical Society. Both Willandra and the police station are listed on the Register of the National Estate.
In 1892, the public school at 2 Tucker Street was opened. The building, which still survives, is the Infants Department, a two-storey, sandstone building which is heritage-listed.
The cottage Riversdale, in Wade Street, was the home of a well-known riverboat captain by the name of Robert Gascoigne, who lived in the area c. 1900. In 1973 a Builders Labourers Federation organised a green ban to save Dunbar Park from becoming a rubbish tip.
As Ryde was located at the top of the hill it also became known as 'Top Ryde'. Ryde Swimming Centre was demolished and rebuilt as Ryde Aquatic Leisure Centre, and hosted events of the 2000 Summer Olympics.

### Trams

The majority of services operated from Fort Macquarie and Circular Quay down George Street to Broadway and Parramatta Road. In the peak hours and other busy periods, supplementary services operated from Railway Square.
Tram services to Drummoyne and Ryde were serviced by the Rozelle Tram Depot. The service, after departing the depot traveled along The Crescent and Commercial Road (now City West Link Road) in Glebe, turning left onto Victoria Road. It then crossed the Iron Cove Bridge and the former Gladesville Bridge before turning right onto Blaxland Road. It then wound its way along Blaxland Road, behind the site of the current council chambers, terminating near the intersection of Pope and Devlin Street in Ryde.

## Heritage listings

Ryde has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
* 782 Victoria Road: Willandra, Ryde
* 808-810 Victoria Road: Ryde police station
* 813 Victoria Road: Addington House
* 817 Victoria Road: The Retreat, Ryde
* 46 Church Street: St Anne's Ryde Anglican Church and Cemetery

## Commercial areas

Top Ryde is an unofficial locality within Ryde, which contains the commercial area of the suburb, centred on the intersection of Devlin Street and Blaxland Road. Top Ryde City is a major shopping centre located on the intersection of Devlin Street and Blaxland Road. The original Top Ryde shopping centre on this site was the second of its type to be built in Australia.
Top Ryde is the location of the City of Ryde council office, and library.
2RRR is a community radio station in Sydney, Australia broadcasting to the Ryde area on 88.5 FM.

## Transport

The Ryde Bridge links Ryde south to Rhodes, over the Parramatta River. Busways and Transit Systems operate a number of services in Ryde including:
* 500X - Town Hall station to West Ryde station
* 287 - Milsons Point via Lane Cove (Weekday AM peak service)
* 410 - Marsfield via Lane Cove Road Hurstville via Campsie
* 458 - Burwood via Concord Hospital & Strathfield
* 501 - Railway Square via Victoria Road & Pyrmont Parramatta station
* 515 - Eastwood station to Top Ryde City
* 516 - Chatswood via North Ryde
* 517 - Macquarie University to Top Ryde City
* 518 - Meadowbank ferry wharf Macquarie Centre via Denistone East
* 533 - Chatswood via Lane Cove North Sydney Olympic Park via Rhodes
The main closest train station for the access to Ryde is West Ryde railway station which is on the Main Northern railway line.

## Schools

Schools in Ryde include government schools such as Ryde Secondary College (formerly Malvina High School) and Ryde Public School, Tucker Street, which is heritage-listed. It also includes the private schools Holy Cross College and Northcross Christian School. The German International School Sydney operated in Ryde from 1992 to 2008 and moved to Terrey Hills in August 2008.

## Places of worship

* St Anne's Anglican Church
* St Charles Borromeo Catholic Church
Ryde contains St Anne's Anglican Church, Church Street, which has the grave of Maria Ann Sherwood Smith, in whose orchards the Granny Smith apple was first found. Every year, in the suburb of Eastwood, the Granny Smith Festival is held in her honor. The church was built in 1826 and extended in later years. It was a central feature in the early life of the area and is now listed on the Register of the National Estate. Church Street is also the location of Ryde Wesley Uniting Church. C3 Church Ryde is located on Blaxland Road.

## Parks and recreation

Santa Rosa Park is located between Quarry Road and Bridge Road. It features a separated pathway for walking and bike riders. Shrimptons Creek runs through the park in a north-easterly direction flowing into the Lane Cove River. The park is used for football and cricket. Gannan Park was once a quarry and brickworks and is accessed from Buna Court, Minga Street and McAuley Park. Ryde Park is located between Blaxland Road, Princes Sreet and Argyle Avenue. It features 2 rugby fields, 1 cricket field and a basketball court as well as a play area. There is also a dog park and a cafe.
Ryde Aquatic Leisure Centre was home to water polo events for the 2000 Summer Olympics. The pool is owned by Ryde City Council.

## Population
### Demographics

At the 2021 census, Ryde recorded a population of 129,123. Of these:

#### Age distribution

    Ryde residents' median age was 37 years, lower than the national median of 38. Children aged 0–14 years made up 16.2% of the population (national average is 18.2%) and people aged 65 years and over made up 15.0% of the population (national average is 17.2%).

#### Ethnic diversity

    47.5% of people were born in Australia. The most common countries of birth were China 12.4%, India 4.0%, South Korea 3.7%, Hong Kong 2.8% and Philippines 2.1%. Only 16.1% identify their ancestry as Australian. The most common ancestry in Ryde was Chinese at 26.1% with the next most common ancestries being English 16.9%, Italian 6.1% and Irish 6.1%. 46.3% of people only spoke English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Mandarin 13.8%, Cantonese 7.2%, Korean 4.5%, Italian 1.7% and Arabic 1.6%.

#### Religion

    The most common responses for religion were No Religion 36.7%, Catholic 22.9%, Anglican 6.6% and Hinduism 4.3%.

#### Income

    The median weekly household income was $2,098, above the national median of $1,746.

#### Housing

    69.1% of private dwellings were family households, 26.5% were single person households and 4.4% were group households. Of occupied private dwellings in Ryde, 44.6% were flats or apartments, 40.8% were separate houses and 14.2% were semi-detached.

### Notable residents

* Iggy Azalea - Australian rapper born in Ryde Hospital
* Bennelong - One of the most notable Indigenous Australians, who served as a link between the colony at Port Jackson and the Eora people, is buried in present-day Putney.
* Jesse Curran - Scottish Premiership footballer who plays for Dundee F.C. as a defensive midfielder
* Laura Forster - World War I surgeon and nurse who was born in Ryde.
* David Gower - rugby league player.
* Richard Lee – chairman of Ruralco and former first-class cricketer
* Spencer Martin - racing driver
* Karen Moras - Olympic bronze medalist in swimming and world record holder, was born in Ryde in 1954.
* John Robertson - Former Leader of the Australian Labor Party in New South Wales and the Leader of the Opposition from 2011 to 2014.
* Susan Schardt (1872–1934) Founder of the Royal Rehabilitation Hospital
* Maria Ann Smith - Credited with producing the Granny Smith apple lived in Eastwood and is buried in Ryde.
* James Squire - Convict brewer, who is claimed to have created Australia's first commercial brewery.
* James Tedesco - rugby league player.
* Hayden Turner - Zookeeper and TV presenter.
* John Watkins - The former Deputy Premier of NSW and Minister for Transport and Finance in NSW.

## Gallery

* Ryde Public School, Tucker Street
* Ryde police station, designed by Mortimer Lewis, located on Victoria Road
* Court House, Victoria Road
* Addington House, c. 1800, Victoria Road
* Riversdale, the former home of a Ryde riverboat captain