| Fyshwick Canberra, Australian Capital Territory |
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| Population: | 54 (2006 census)[1] | ||||||||||||
| • Density: | 5.53/km² (14.3/sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Gazetted: | 20 September 1928 | ||||||||||||
| Postcode: | 2609 | ||||||||||||
| Area: | 9.76 km² (3.8 sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| District: | South Canberra | ||||||||||||
| Assembly Electorate: | Molonglo | ||||||||||||
| Federal Division: | Canberra | ||||||||||||
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Fyshwick (postcode: 2609) is an industrial suburb of Canberra, located east of the South Canberra district. On Census night 2006, Fyshwick had a population of 54 people.[1]
It is known for its adult entertainment industry, along with Mitchell, one of the two places in the ACT where there is a strip club and legalised prostitution (which was decriminalised but limited to those two suburbs in 1992). It also has many stores that sell goods wholesale, as well as hardware and car shops, and some fast food outlets.
It was named after Sir Philip Fysh, a Tasmanian politician who assisted in bringing about Australia's Federation. The suffix "wick", from Old English, means "dwelling place" - and, by extension, "village" or "district". Its streets are named after Australia's industrial towns and regions - for example, Mount Isa is represented by Isa Street and Townsville is represented by Townsville Street. The suburb consists mainly of light industrial and retail space.
The only railway line into Canberra runs through the middle of Fyshwick dividing the area into two halves. Ipswich and Newcastle Streets as well as the Monaro Highway cross the railway line uniting both halves of Fyshwick.
The Fyshwick sewage treatment works was built in 1967 to treat waste water that could not easily be pumped to the other side of Canberra. It has been recently converted to use a modern portable pressurised treatment system developed by ACTEW called CRANOS. It is now used to treat industrial waste water, which is then used to water the Duntroon grounds and golf course.[2][3]
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One noteworthy portion of Fyshwick, located between the railway line and Canberra Avenue, was built as an internment camp during early 1918. It was known as the Molonglo Internment Camp, although it was also referred to as a concentration camp. The site was intended to accommodate 3,500 German and Austrian nationals being expelled from China, however once the camp had been established in May 1918 these internees were no longer destined for Molonglo. Instead, the camp housed 150 internees transferred from the Bourke Camp in New South Wales. The camp was closed in late 1919 after the internees were deported to Germany. Most of the camp's building were sold off, with the remaining buildings being converted to house construction workers, some of whom were unemployed returned servicemen. Gradually the camp buildings were moved to other camp sites around Canberra and the roads used to service the camp became the first streets of Fyshwick.[4][5]
The internment camp's hospital at what is now Tennant Street became the Molonglo Public School. This school closed in the 1942 and then became a naval auxiliary wireless station. This operated until 1946. The station consisted of one wooden T shaped building and a fibro mess hall. This station operated the receivers for the strategic fixed radio links to Australia for Whitehall, Halifax and Bombay Fort. During this period 14 WRANS operated the equipment. Marion Stevens was a Petty Officer in charge of the station from 1943 to 1946. She was notable as the only woman in charge of a transmitting station.
The station was part of the Harman radio network, as was connected via a landline to the main Harman site. Equipment at the Molonglo station included teletypes for use when reception was good. During poorer radio propagation periods morse code radiotelegraphy had to be used.
After the war the Molonglo station became a dog training school. In the early 1980s the buildings were demolished.
Most of the north of Fyshwick is underlain by Canberra Formation, calcareous shale. On top of this to the east and west of Jerrabomberra creek are Tertiary pebble gravels, and also quaternary alluvium. There are two andesite dykes intruded across Gladstone Street.
South of the South Fyshwick fault is the dacitic andesite of the Ainslie Volcanics.
The South Fyswick Fault starts in Narrabundah, runs east from Lithgow St to Tennant Street, crosses the Molonglo river and heads north east to Dundee Hill to join Sullivans Fault.