South Yarra, Victoria
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| South Yarra Melbourne, Victoria |
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 Victorian terrace housing in Park Street |
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| Population: | 17,439 (2001)[1] | ||||||||||||
| Established: | 1850s | ||||||||||||
| Postcode: | 3142 | ||||||||||||
| Area: | 5 km² | ||||||||||||
| Property Value: | AUD $628,000[2] | ||||||||||||
| Location: | 5 km from Melbourne CBD | ||||||||||||
| LGA: | City of Stonnington | ||||||||||||
| State District: | Prahran | ||||||||||||
| Federal Division: | Higgins, Melbourne Ports | ||||||||||||
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South Yarra is an inner city suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. As the name suggests, it is located on the southern bank of the Yarra River.
The area east of Punt Road is in the Local Government Area of the City of Stonnington and the area to the west is in the City of Melbourne.
The main shopping region of South Yarra runs along Toorak Road and Chapel street. Trade along these two arteries are focused on trendy shopping, restaurants, nightclubs and cafe culture. The area of South Yarra centred along Commercial Road is one of Melbourne's gay villages.
South Yarra is also home to some of Melbourne's most prestigious residential addresses in Park Street, Hawksburn and Lawson Grove.
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[edit] Local History
South Yarra was originally inhabited by the Wurundjeri tribe of the Kulin aboriginal nation.
On October 12, 1988, police officers Steven Tynan and Damian Eyre were murdered in Walsh Street, South Yarra .
On July 8, 2002 the Salt nightclub in Daly Street was the site of a dispute which resulted in the murder of three men. On September 19, 2005 seven men were found guilty of murder in the Supreme Court of Victoria. The nightclub is particularly notorious for criminal activity and has several times been threatened with being shut down.
[edit] Local Landmarks
South Yarra has several local attractions. Perhaps the best known is Chapel Street. The South Yarra section of the famous street is the most fashionable and upmarket end. A major landmark is the The Jam Factory, old factories converted into upmarket shopping centre and cinemas. The Como Centre is a large shopping centre on the corner of Toorak and Chapel Streets which combines with an office building, South Yarra's tallest, which houses the headquarters for ATV-10.
The Prahran Market, located in South Yarra, is one of Melbourne's most popular and historic fresh produce markets.
Toorak Road runs off Chapel Street and although not known as well as Toorak Village, is a popular strip that contains a wide range of shops. Just off this street on Darling Street is Christies Auction House is a Melbourne institution housed in a Victorian terrace.
There are also several heritage registered buildings in South Yarra including the Melbourne High School (1928), the former railway station building (1874) and post office (1893).
 Jam Factory shopping centre, Chapel Street |
 Prahran Market 1891 heritage facade |
 Chapel Street, part of the South Yarra section looking south towards Prahran |
 Parts of Commercial Road feature 1930s mock-tudor facades |
[edit] Places of Worship
- Melbourne Synagogue. Built in 1929 to the design of Nahum Barnet feature a giant order portico and a great copper dome.
 Melbourne Synagogue |
[edit] Residential architecture
Several large mansions exist in South Yarra. Heritage registered houses include Como House (1847) one of Melbourne's earliest mansions on its large estate managed by the National Trust, Richmond House (1859), Barwon (1881) and Airlie. Many others have been lovingly restored or operate as guest houses.
The area also has some notable clusters of terrace house. Park Street features rows of Melbourne's best preserved, richly decorated and highly sought after Victorian terrace houses, some as high as three and four storeys. Domain Road, Toorak Road West (overlooking Fawkner Park) as well as Darling and Caroline Street are also known for their double storey terraces.
A notable area is Alexandra Parade along the Yarra, and in particular the small court known as Lawson Grove. This area was subject to renewal in the 1920s and 1930s as a kind of medium density village enclave development. As a result, a large number of large apartment buildings were built in a similar Californian influenced art deco style overlooking the river and the area even has its own convenience store in Lawson Grove. Beverley Hills is the largest of these and a highly sought after apartment building in Melbourne.
 Federation freestyle mansion in Domain Street |
 Edwardian style terraces in Park Street. |
 A row of three storey terrace houses in Park Street. Notable for downstairs basement levels and faceted bay windows. |
 Second Empire styled mansion in Leopold Street |
 Surrey terrace on Surrey Road in Hawksburn. The "royal white" painted terraces are more common the closer you get to Toorak. |
 Art deco apartments typical of the 1930s Lawson Grove complex |
[edit] Public space
South Yarra's parks and gardens include part of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Fawkner Park (large park bordered by offices on St Kilda Road, private residences off Punt Road, Commercial Road and Toorak Road featuring recreational facilities and grand avenues of trees) and smaller gardens such as the former Greville Botanic Gardens, Como Gardens and the public housing open space.
 Royal Botanic Gardens. |
 Fawkner Park |
[edit] Transport
South Yarra has two railway stations: 1) South Yarra railway station, on the Pakenham, Cranbourne, Frankston and Sandringham lines. It is the junction for the Sandringham line. 2) Hawksburn station, on the Pakenham line, serves the eastern part of the suburb.
Tram routes 8, 72, 78 and 79 also run through South Yarra.
Major bus routes run along Commercial Road and Punt Road.
[edit] Education
Melbourne High School is located in South Yarra, and the 1930s gothic main building is a local landmark. Melbourne Girls Grammar School is also located in South Yarra opposite the Royal Botanical Gardens.
[edit] Localities in South Yarra
Hawksburn is a locality in the eastern part of South Yarra bordering Toorak. It is probably best known for its railway station and nearby "Hawksburn Village", a small strip shopping centre on Malvern Road. Many of South Yarra's finest old homes and terraces are situated close to Cromwell Crescent and railway station in the Hawksburn area. The Hawksburn area is a fashionable address, as it is associated with neighbouring Toorak and therefore is home to many Toorak aspirants.
[edit] Notable citizens
- Claire Adams, Hollywood silent film actress had her townhouse in Domain Road during 40s, 50s & 60s
- Dennis Allen - reported to be a major drug dealer in the South Yarra area during the 1980s.
- Joseph Anderson (Commandant) - soldier, penal administrator and politician who was a resident of South Yarra in the 1850s.
- Graham Berry - colonial politician, and 11th Premier of Victoria was a general storekeeper in South Yarra in the 1850s.
- Norman Brookes - Australian tennis champion who died in South Yarra in 1968.
- Rupert Bunny - Australian painter who lived much of his life in France but returned and settled in South Yarra in the 1930s.
- Len Darling - Australian cricketer who was born in South Yarra in 1909.
- Stephen Peak - radio personality, sports manager and lawyer with a practise in South Yarra.
[edit] External links
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- Street map from Street Directory, MSN Maps and Multimap.
- Satellite image from Google Maps, WikiMapia and Terraserver.
- Photos of South Yarra
| Suburbs of the City of Melbourne | |
|---|---|
|
Carlton | Carlton North | Docklands | East Melbourne | Flemington | Kensington | Melbourne CBD | North Melbourne | Port Melbourne | Parkville | Southbank | West Melbourne |
| Suburbs of the City of Stonnington | |
|---|---|
|
Armadale | Glen Iris | Kooyong | Malvern | Malvern East | Prahran | South Yarra | Toorak | Windsor |
