Wentworth Park - History

History

Wentworth Park was originally a rugby league park in the Glebe area, the home ground of the Glebe Dirty Reds who were a part of the New South Wales Rugby League premiership back in its inception. Greyhound racing is held each Friday and Saturday night.

Wentworth Park was not always a football oval. It commenced its life as a creek and swamp, known from the 1830s as Blackwattle Cove Swamp. Between the 1830s and 1860s various noxious industries were established along the shore, including, in particular, abattoirs and boiling down works. The pollution from these works so befouled the swamp that even after the removal of these establishments from the area, the local council lobbied to have the area in-filled because of the stench that continued to arise from the water and mud.

Infilling of the creek and head of the swamp commenced in 1876 and continued until 1880. Silt dredged from the harbour was used to carry out the process and numerous sea walls and dykes were constructed as part of the program. When the area was filled Trustees were appointed to manage the new park and a competition was announced to design the new facility. After numerous complaints regarding the management of the competition the construction commenced and by 1882 opinion had turned favourably to the new ovals, greens, paths, lakes and other facilities offered in the Park, now named Wentworth after the politician of the same name.

Throughout the 1880s and 1890s the park came to serve as a focus for community activities including concerts, celebrations, moving pictures and in particular the home of Glebe Dirty Reds rugby league team and sport in general. The commencement of hostilities for World War I led to a downturn in patronage of the Park's amenities although community functions, such as stretcher drills and polling were carried out here. The main effect of World War I was the introduction of a large number of timber sheds used to store wool for the war effort. These sheds lingered on at the park for a number of years after the war.