Forrest, Australian Capital Territory
| Forrest Canberra, Australian Capital Territory | |||||||||||||||
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| Population | 1,191 (2006 census)[1] | ||||||||||||||
| • Density | 759/km2 (1,970/sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| Established | 1926 | ||||||||||||||
| Gazetted | 20 September 1928 | ||||||||||||||
| Postcode(s) | 2603 | ||||||||||||||
| Area | 1.57 km2 (0.6 sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| District | South Canberra | ||||||||||||||
| Territory electorate(s) | Molonglo | ||||||||||||||
| Federal division(s) | Canberra | ||||||||||||||
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Forrest (postcode: 2603) is a suburb of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia. Forrest is named after Sir John Forrest, an explorer, legislator, Federalist, premier of Western Australia, and one of the fathers of the Australian Constitution. Streets in Forrest are named after explorers and governors.[2]
Forrest is one of the few suburbs in Canberra built to the original Canberra plans. It contains many circular and geometric patterns in its streets and can be quite confusing to drive in. Forrest was renamed from the earlier suburb Blandfordia (the name of the Christmas Bell) and gazetted as a suburb in 1928. South Blandfordia became part of the new suburb of Griffith at the same time.
The original residents of Forrest were mostly senior public servants who were moved from Melbourne.
Demography
On Census night 2006, Forrest had a population of 1191 people.[1]
Education
Forrest Primary School is situated in Hobart Avenue in Forrest. It caters for students in years P-6. The students wear red and yellow. The school celebrated its fiftieth anniversary on 4 April 2008.
Suburb amenities
The suburb includes part of the Manuka shopping centre. The suburb also contains a government run primary school.
Forrest together with the northern parts of Deakin and Red Hill (sometimes called "old Deakin" and "old Red Hill"), represent the most prestigious residential area in Canberra. Most of the area is detached dwellings in which a 1600 m2 block would be on the small side, and 2000 m² blocks are not atypical.
Notable places
Urban conservation area
The suburb is subject to conservation measures to preserve its character. Important values being preserved in the suburb are:
- The majority of the precinct was constructed in 1926 – 27 to meet the urgent need to provide housing for public servants prior to the opening of the provisional Parliament House in 1927.
- The Melbourne firm Oakley, Parkes and Scarborough won a 1924 competition to design the housing for the precinct.
- The street layout is directly derived from Griffin’s 1913 plan which defined the major axes of Melbourne and Hobart Avenues radiating from Capital Hill and concentric circles. The road layout and subdivision pattern of the precinct is mirrored on the opposite side of Melbourne Avenue.
- The public domain landscaping of the precinct is associated with Thomas Charles Weston, Superintendent of Parks, Gardens and Afforestation, Canberra 1913-1926. Weston’s use of Australian native species was an unusual practice for this period.
- The precinct is also a repository of a small number of compatible privately built dwellings designed by early local architects including Kenneth H Oliphant, one of Canberra’s first independent architects. Oliphant’s work has contributed notably to the character of the urban architecture of Canberra.[3]
Street furniture
The remnants of street furniture, that is street signs, fire hydrants and footpath lighting and other elements including kerbs and gutters and examples of brick drains, are valued for their contribution to the aesthetic of a twentieth century 'Garden City' planned subdivision. The furniture is now protected.[3]
Forrest residences
These buildings are in the block bounded by Canberra Avenue, Empire Circuit, Manuka Circle and Fitzroy Street. They were completed in 1938 and include a former fire station. The buildings are considered important examples of Australian Early Modern Architecture and illustrate a distinctive comparison with the "Federal Capital Architecture" that dominated in Canberra in the 1920s and 30s.
Geology
Mount Painter Volcanics dark grey to green grey dacitic tuff is found in all except the northeast side. There are a few outcrops of sediments in amongst the volcanics containing shale and sandstone. On the northeast a patch of Ordovician Pittman Formation greywacke outcrops along Canberra Avenue. Black Mountain Sandstone is near St Andrew's church in the north north east. Canberra Formation, calcareous shale is found in the north. The Deakin Fault runs from State Circle to Manuka separating the Mount Painter Volcanics from the other sediments.
References
- ^ a b Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Forrest (State Suburb)". 2006 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 2009-04-30.
- ^ "Suburb Name search results". ACT Planning & Land Authority. Retrieved 30 April 2009. [dead link]
- ^ a b "Forrest Garden City Heritage precinct" (pdf). The Territory Plan online; Variation number 173 of November 2003. ACT Planning and Land Authority. 2003. Retrieved 2006-05-28. [dead link]
External links
Media related to Forrest, Australian Capital Territory at Wikimedia Commons