Currawong Workers' Holiday Camp, Workers' holiday camp in New South Wales, Australia.
Currawong Workers' Holiday Camp occupies a former farm at Currawong Beach, also called Little Mackerel Beach, on Pittwater north of Sydney. The site holds the 1950 camp buildings designed by the Van Dyke Brothers and Hudsen's Homes, alongside Midholme, the homestead the Stiles family built after their first farmhouse burnt down, and Southend near the wharf.
Land at Little Mackerel Beach was first granted to Martin Burke in 1836, and by 1910 Dr Beernhard Stiles owned the farm he called Currawong, where his family kept turkeys and cows and sold milk, butter and eggs to Great Mackerel Beach residents. The Port Jackson & Manly Steamship Company bought all the land between 1942 and 1944 for a planned picnic ground and shark-proof enclosure that was never built. The site was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 12 May 2009.
The camp reflects a pivotal moment when working-class Australians could access leisure spaces through union support. The buildings and their layout tell the story of how this community valued shared time away from work.
The location is accessible via a coastal road, and visitors should allow time to explore the preserved cabins and main building at a leisurely pace. Since the site is in a rural area, it is worth checking in advance which areas are open to the public.
The camp's earlier name, Little Mackerel, recalls the 1836 grant of 40 hectares to Martin Burke, though William Booth had already farmed the land. In 1942–1944 the Port Jackson & Manly Steamship Company bought all of it and planned a picnic ground and shark-proof enclosure, but never built them.
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