History
Freshwater, formerly named Harbord, was named to honour the wife of the NSW Governor. Before her marriage, Lady Carrington was the Honourable Cecilia Margaret Harbord. For many years, the beach and the district behind it was known as Freshwater, possibly because of a freshwater stream running between what are now Wyuna and Wyndora Avenues. However, not long after the naming of Harbord Estate, residents began to believe that the holiday image of Freshwater should be upgraded by a name change to Harbord. The change of name attracted a great deal of controversy and debate. When the first local district school was built in 1912, a petition was sent to the Minister of Education requesting it should be called Harbord Public School. The Minister declined and officially opened it Freshwater Public School. Pressure was then directed towards renaming the post office. The Postmaster-General finally accepted the views of those who wanted a residential image and Freshwater officially became Harbord on 1 September 1923.
The Harbord Chamber of Commerce submitted a request to Warringah Council in 2003 to support an application to the Geographical Names Board of New South Wales to rename the suburb of Harbord to Freshwater. In public consultation 774 voted in favour and 161 voted against with the results recorded in council minutes on 8 March 2005. Harbord was finally officially renamed Freshwater on 12 January 2008.
Freshwater is believed to be the birthplace of surfing in Australia. In 1915 the Hawaiian legend Duke Kahanamoku gave an exhilarating demonstration of wave riding. Whilst staying at the Boomerang Camp at Freshwater, the Duke fashioned a traditional board from the local timbers, and it was with this board that he first introduced to Australia the ancient craft of Hawaiian kings.
Schools, Education & Institutions
Freshwater has three local schools, Freshwater Public School, Freshwater Senior Campus and St John The Baptist Primary School. In addition, locals also have a choice of great schools in a close vicinity.
Shopping, Restaurants and Entertainment
The Freshwater shopping village is the thriving town centre of the suburb with a number of cafes, restaurants, shops, supermarkets and thriving businesses. There is a vast variety of cuisines including Thai, Indian, Modern Australian and Italian would cater to everyone’s taste buds. With a post office, butcher, dry cleaner, hairdressing salons, florist, real estate agent, boutique fashion shops, fitness club, doctors, financial services, an IGA supermarket and more.
Situated on Freshwater Beach is Pilu restaurant which is a well renowned restaurant around Sydney. The restaurant was established in 2004 by owners Giovanni Pilu and Marilyn Annecchini and is an award winning restaurant, proudly receiving two chef’s hats in the Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide for consecutive years since opening.
Sitting on the headland of Freshwater is Harbord Diggers Club, which is a major drawcard in the district. You can enjoy the club’s many sporting facilities (including a gym and bowls), reasonably priced restaurant, bar and function rooms.
The Harbord Hilton is the friendly local pub with a quality restaurant, beer garden, live entertainment and a drive through bottle shop. It is known as a great place to go after a hard days work for a few quiet drinks and a bite to eat with friends.
Distance from CBD & Transportation
Situated on the Northern Beaches, Freshwater is just 17km from the CBD. Regular buses travel to Manly or the City. Other buses service The Forest area, Chatswood, Narraweena and Warringah Mall. With a five minute drive down to Manly Wharf, a ferry departs every 30 minutes to Circular Quay.