Concord, New South Wales
Concord is a suburb in the inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Canada Bay. Concord West is a separate suburb, to the north-west. History. Concord takes its name from Concord, Massachusetts, in the USA, which was the site of the Battle of Concord, one of the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War (1775–1778). Some historians believe the Sydney suburb was named Concord to encourage a peaceful attitude between soldiers  and settlers. The first land grants in the area were made in 1793. The original Concord Council was established in 1883. Concord Council amalgamated with Drummoyne Council in 2000 after 117 years of self governance to form the City of Canada Bay. It is also the name of the surrounding parish. In 1933, 'Concord Jubilee 1833–1933: a history of the municipality of Concord: with illustrations', compiled by G. M. Shaw was published. Commercial area. Concord features Majors Bay Road Shopping Village. It includes several cafes, restaurants, Coles supermarket (currently in renovation to become Coles Local), post office, medical centre and  other commercial enterprises. There is also a small shopping strip on Cabarita Road known as 'Cabarita Junction' and just up the road as you head towards Breakfast Point you will find a small cafe and restaurant precinct on the corner of Mortlake Street and Brays Road. Churches. St Luke's Anglican Church is one of the oldest churches in Concord. The church is over 150 years old and is located at Burton Street near Concord Oval. Its current organ was donated by Dame Eadith Walker, of the famous Walker family on her 21st birthday in 1883. St Mary's Catholic  Church is a prominent architectural landmark on Parramatta Road. The first church on the site was built in 1845 until a new church was built in 1874. A school operated in the original church building until a separate school building was built and opened by Cardinal Moran in 1894. A convent for the Sisters of Charity was erected next to the church in 1898. The present church building was completed in 1929. Parks. Concord has many parks, including: Transport. Transit Systems operate 6 routes via Concord: Concord West railway station and North Strathfield railway station service the Concord area. The  stops are on the Northern line approximately 14 km (9 miles) from Central Station. Sydney Ferries service the Concord area stopping at Cabarita Wharf. Historically (1901-1948), Concord was also served by a tram line, which connected Mortlake and Cabarita junction, through Majors Bay Road in Concord, to Burwood Road (formerly Wharf Street on the Concord side of Parramatta Road) south to Burwood town centre. From here, the tram line proceeded through Enfield to a depot in resent-day Croydon Park, in Tangarra Street, then east to Ashfield station. The original part of this tram line was built in 1891 , from Ashfield to Enfield, and it was extended north to Mortlake in 1901, and a branch to Cabarita Park was built in 1909. The system was electrified in 1912. The line was never connected to any of the other tram lines in Sydney, although its eastern terminus, at Ashfield station, was only one station away (on the main suburban railway line) from the nearest tram terminus at Summer Hill station. Bus services between Mortlake/Breakfast Point and Cabarita to Burwood (and eventually to Ashfield via Enfield, i.e. routes 464 and 466) follow the old tram lines through the suburb, which  were removed in 1948. Few hints of Concord's trams remain today apart from the extra width of Majors Bay Road and Brewer Street in order to accommodate a double track tramway and the existence of Tramway Lane and Cabarita Junction which is where the tram tracks split, with one track providing the Mortlake branch and the other the Cabarita branch. Schools. Schools in the suburb are Population. Demographics. At the 2016 census, there were 14,533 residents in Concord. 62.1% of whom were born in Australia. The most common other countries of birth were Italy 6.4%, China 5.3%, England 2.0 %, South Korea 1.8% and India 1.5%. In Concord 57.6% of people only spoke English at home, compared to the national average of 77.0%. Other languages spoken at home included Italian 11.0%, Mandarin 5.8%, Cantonese 3.4%, Greek 3.3% and Arabic 3.3%. The most common responses for religion in Concord were Catholic 45.4%, No Religion 20.2% and Anglican 7.8%. Notable residents. Notable people who have resided in the suburb have included: