With its spectacular harbourside location, graced by the northern approaches to the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Bradfield Park is one of the most significant public open spaces in Sydney.
Named after Dr John Job Crew (JJC) Bradfield (1867-1943), chief engineer for the Bridge and the Metropolitan Railways, Bradfield Park was created from land resumed by the NSW Government to build the Bridge.
The former streets and houses of Milsons Point that occupied the site – mainly working-class terraces – were demolished from 1923 onwards for the construction of the Bridge’s northern approaches.
JJC Bradfield was involved in the donation of the parkland to North Sydney Council following completion of the Bridge in 1932. His plans called for Australian native trees, although many exotics were also planted. Council completed the northern rockery and Milsons Point Station entry section of the park in 1934. However, plans for further works were disrupted by the Great Depression of the 1930s.
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Fulfilling JJC Bradfield’s predictions of a second crossing, construction began on the Sydney Harbour Tunnel in 1988. This work involved the lower section of Bradfield Park being used as a construction depot. Alterations to the seawall and landscaping also resulted from the disruption. The tunnel was completed in 1992. A large ventilation unit, clearly visible on the lower slopes of the park, is an ever-present reminder of its existence.
During a 2003 upgrade of Bradfield Park North, archaeologists found remnants of buildings that had occupied the site before work began on the Bridge. The footprints of these buildings are now marked on the park’s surface with paving. Many small artefacts were also uncovered, reflecting the daily life and leisure activities of the occupants of the Alfred Street terraces in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, such as glass bottles, crockery fragments, a cricket ball, and a child’s China doll. These are now held in Stanton Library’s archives.
The Bradfield Park Heritage Walk was unveiled in 2007 as part of the celebrations for the 75th anniversary of the Bridge, to interpret the history of the traditional owners, the Cammeraygal clan, to the present day.
In recent years, Bradfield Park has been the subject of controversy due to the proposed construction of a ramp to provide cycle access to the Sydney Harbour Bridge. In April 2022, Transport for NSW announced the selection of a linear ramp design through Bradfield Park North. North Sydney Council and many in the community remain opposed to any ramp exiting within Bradfield Park North, due to the severe impacts it will have on the amenity, heritage, and useability of the park.
Historical Services, North Sydney Council.