Norwood, South Australia


Norwood is a suburb of Adelaide, about 4 km east of the Adelaide city centre. The suburb is in the City of Norwood Payneham & St Peters, the oldest South Australian local government municipality, with a city population over 34,000.

History

Norwood is named after Norwood, London. It was first laid out in 1847. In 1970, residents organised protests and a green ban in order to stop the destruction of the Norwood Velodrome for high-rise flats.

Geography

The suburb consists of four segments, being divided into north and south by the major thoroughfare of The Parade and east and west by Osmond Terrace. It is bounded on the south by Kensington Road, on the north by Magill Road, on the east by Portrush Road and on the west by Fullarton Road. It is a leafy suburb many of whose streets are lined with plane trees and older houses, though in recent years, due to a State Government initiative of "urban-infill", there have been more higher density developments. It is now a sought-after suburb to live in, but this was not always the case.
Osmond Terrace is a street with a wide median strip featuring a prominent war memorial commemorating ANZAC soldiers who fought in the first and second World Wars.
The most visible landmarks in Norwood are the Norwood Town Hall and the Clayton-Wesley Uniting Church on the north east corner of Portrush Road and The Parade. Actually located in Beulah Park, the church, built over 150 years ago, is visible all the way up The Parade.

Demography

Norwood attracted many European migrants post-World War II. It still has a very high concentration of people of Italian background. This is reflected in the restaurants and fashion boutiques of The Parade. Norwood's heritage and bohemian character can be ascertained from the political voting patterns; it tends to be more left-wing in nature than the other eastern suburbs around it.

Transport

Several Adelaide Metro bus routes serve the suburb. Many route numbers and timetables were changed on 16 January 2011.
These routes now run through or adjacent to Norwood 300 : cross city route traversing Portrush Road.
B10, H30, H31: Magill Road
H20, H21, H22, H23, H24, N22: The Parade
141,142: Kensington Road

Sport

Norwood Oval on The Parade is home to the Norwood Redlegs, a South Australian National Football League team. Also the home of Adelaide Bite.

Attractions

The queen of Adelaide’s eastern suburbs: hip, sassy and smitten with cafe life. The parade contains the business centre of the suburb, which includes some professional services but it is better known for its restaurants, cafes, fashion boutiques and hairdressers.

Odeon Theatre

The Star Theatre is on the corner of The Parade and Queen Street. Originally the Star Theatre, with its entrance on The Parade, the operator was D. Clifford Theatres/Star Theatres by 1946. Later it was taken over by Greater Union Cinemas and renamed the Odeon Theatre. It closed as a cinema, reopening in 1986 as a live theatre specialising in childrens productions, at which time the entrance was moved around the corner onto Queen Street, and the original foyer converted into restaurant.
, the venue is home to Australian Dance Theatre, which offers dance classes to adults. The venue is hired out for various performing arts events, such as the Adelaide Festival, Adelaide Fringe and State Theatre Company of South Australia performances.

Churches

Saint Bartholomew's in Norwood and St Matthew's in nearby Kensington are two churches with a close association with each other, with three church ministers involved in both congregations. They are both evangelical and conservative Anglican churches, with a large number of young adult members.
Saint Ignatius Catholic Parish Church, built in the 1860s by the Society of Jesus and finished by 1872, is also a significant feature in the suburb. The accompanying presbytery housed Mary MacKillop, founder of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart, where she took refuge after her excommunication by Bishop Sheil.

Notable residents

Many famous South Australians have resided in Norwood, including: