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<p data-block-key="ak90y">What if the Kingston Foreshore was actually named The Eastlake Foreshore? And instead of living in Barton, you lived in Telopea? While some of Walter Burley Griffin&#x27;s original suburb names stuck, others were swept aside or used in very different ways across the capital.</p><p data-block-key="dtp94">Between 1913 and 1920, Griffin laid out the apex of suburbs and streets that would form the heart of our city. But in 1927, the suburbs were renamed to honour the leaders of Australian federation.</p><p data-block-key="d606o">Here are some of the suburb names Griffin dreamed of that simply don&#x27;t exist anymore.</p><h2 data-block-key="87cgj">Blandfordia (Forrest)</h2><img alt="IMG_4801" class="richtext-image full-width" height="298" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_4801.width-800.jpg" width="411"><p data-block-key="6sjvv">Blandfordia was one of the earliest suburbs in Canberra, built to the original plans. Named after the Christmas Bell, a flowering plant native to eastern Australia, it was gazetted as a suburb in 1928.</p><p data-block-key="5ic4r">Its circular streets were classic Burley Griffin design and its elegant tree-lined avenues and stately homes were - and still are among the most coveted in the ACT.</p><img alt="IMG_4802" class="richtext-image full-width" height="532" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_4802.width-800.jpg" width="800"><p data-block-key="5lb0m">The original residents of Blandfordia were mostly senior public servants who moved in when Federal Parliament finally moved from Melbourne to Canberra. Blandfordia is now simply a part of the suburb of Forrest.</p><h2 data-block-key="8be1o">Eastlake (Kingston)</h2><img alt="IMG_4789" class="richtext-image full-width" height="378" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_4789.width-800.jpg" width="731"><p data-block-key="aervl">During the initial stages of Canberra&#x27;s formation, the region known as Kingston was ‘Eastlake’. The district of Eastlake was originally used as housing for blue collar works, specifically labourers who had been brought in to build the infrastructure Australia&#x27;s capital city.</p><p data-block-key="8hnc">The neighbouring suburb of Forrest (Blandfordia) was set aside for more &#x27;upper class&#x27; public servants of middle and higher ranks. </p><img alt="IMG_4790" class="richtext-image full-width" height="540" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_4790.width-800.jpg" width="590"><p data-block-key="bj6e2">The Eastlake Football and Cricket Club that still exists in Manuka stands as a memory of Canberra&#x27;s foundation. </p><h2 data-block-key="bag3h">Westlake (Yarralumla) </h2><img alt="IMG_4804" class="richtext-image full-width" height="600" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_4804.width-800.jpg" width="800"><p data-block-key="7qif8">Westlake, now a ghost town, was once a thriving suburb that existed in Canberra from 1922 to 1965. Located on the outskirts of Yarralumla, the site where Westlake once existed is now surrounded by embassies and bushland. </p><p data-block-key="57e2k">Westlake was composed of tradesmen and their families, who came to Canberra to build the capital&#x27;s first buildings (among them the Sydney and Melbourne buildings). Original housing consisted of tents and a community hall, but was soon followed by 61 temporary cottages.</p><p data-block-key="2onoh">Nearby, around 20 timber huts were built for the single men, and this area was known as the Hostel Camp.</p><img alt="IMG_4805" class="richtext-image full-width" height="473" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_4805.width-800.jpg" width="600"><p data-block-key="4qah7">All of the original Westlake cottages were eventually sold off one by one or taken away on the backs of trucks, with the last cottage removed in 1965. A number are now over the border in Queanbeyan and one sits with a new coat of paint in River Street, Oaks Estate.</p><p data-block-key="ba1bd">At its peak, the Westlake area had 700 residents and remnants of original buildings can be found on the shores of Lake Burley Griffin today. </p><h2 data-block-key="5iuk6">The Causeway (Kingston) </h2><img alt="IMG_4799" class="richtext-image full-width" height="571" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_4799.width-800.jpg" width="800"><p data-block-key="7oldf">The Causeway is still a small district within the suburb of Kingston, adjacent to Kingston Foreshore, but was once a much larger community. It was originally planned by Burley Griffin to be parallel to a dam across the Molonglo River, but this never transpired. </p><p data-block-key="ero01">The earliest housing at The Causeway consisted of modest cottages. Around 120 timber cottages were constructed at The Causeway between 1925 and 1926, to accommodate construction workers. </p><img alt="IMG_4798" class="richtext-image full-width" height="805" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_4798.width-800.jpg" width="800"><p data-block-key="2hevp">After WWII, housing at The Causeway and Westlake was considered sub-standard and the wooden cottages were wrapped with brick veneer. Despite major redevelopments of the Kingston Foreshore in recent years, a close-knit community of residents still lives at The Causeway. </p><h2 data-block-key="e60hp">Telopea Park (Barton) </h2><img alt="IMG_4795" class="richtext-image full-width" height="794" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_4795.width-800.jpg" width="800"><p data-block-key="9j6c6">Today, we know Telopea Park as home to one the oldest parks and schools in Canberra. Named after the floral emblem of NSW, Telopea Park was planned at the end of Sydney Avenue by Walter Burley Griffin and originally described the whole area now known as Barton.</p><img alt="IMG_4806" class="richtext-image full-width" height="439" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_4806.width-800.jpg" width="699"><p data-block-key="f6fct">While the suburb itself was established in 1922, it was renamed Barton in 1928 when Sir Edmund Barton was named the first Prime Minister of Australia. The original plans for the area included a parkland full of waratahs (botanical name Telopea). The plans never eventuated, but the name Telopea stuck. </p>

The Canberra suburbs that don't exist anymore, from Blandfordia to Westlake

<p data-block-key="0p7n4">You all loved it when we <a href="/news/if-canberra-suburbs-were-hollywood-celebrities/">matched Canberra suburbs to their Hollywood celebrities</a> last year so this time we&#x27;re taking a punt on Canberra suburbs and their matching Disney movies. (It was way harder than we thought.)</p><p data-block-key="e963v">Did we get it right?</p><h2 data-block-key="1rtjn">New Acton: <i>Cinderella</i> </h2><p data-block-key="bsk9g">If ever there was a Canberra rags to riches story this is it. From neglected lakeside site (and the home of a former convict gaol - yikes) to glamorous, breathtaking precinct, adored by all.</p><p data-block-key="2tcbb">But Acton/New Acton&#x27;s transformation didn&#x27;t happen with the wave of a magic wand (or with the help of a fairy Godmother). The site was purchased by the Efkarpidis family in 1996, who, over two decades, remodelled the area into a vibrant precinct of seven buildings, interspersed with magical walkways and gardens.</p><p data-block-key="cj2it">The glass slippers came in the form of the eco-friendly Nishi building, built in 2013; home to a cinema and the game-changing <i>Hotel Hotel</i>.</p><h2 data-block-key="7ke59">Oaks Estate: <i>The Goofy Movie</i></h2><img alt="Side by side3" class="richtext-image full-width" height="532" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Side_by_side3.width-800.jpg" width="800"><p data-block-key="aaprp">Goofy is that awkward character that no-one understands. Like, is he a cow or a dog? Is he a friend of Mickey or Donald? Isn&#x27;t he actually so old he&#x27;s someone&#x27;s dad?</p><p data-block-key="6uqcu">The same questions could be asked of Oaks Estate: is it a suburb or a town? Does it belong to Canberra or Queanbeyan? Wasn&#x27;t it there before both the ACT and Q-Town?</p><p data-block-key="71gi3">Both are inexplicable.</p><h2 data-block-key="812ok">Barton: <i>Minions </i></h2><img alt="Side by side6" class="richtext-image full-width" height="532" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Side_by_side6_6GFeK6d.width-800.jpg" width="800"><p data-block-key="5oooa">Hundreds of workers reporting to one man with a pointy nose and formidable eyebrows. (Okay that sounds more like John Howard, but we mean Anthony Albanese.)</p><p data-block-key="1boeo">Barton is the place our workforce of loyal public servants stream into and out of every day, although they&#x27;re less about evil plans and more about work that advances our beautiful country. We&#x27;d love to see the Minions in suits and wearing lanyards in their next movie!</p><h2 data-block-key="78l97">Yarralumla: <i>The Little Mermaid </i></h2><img alt="Side by side" class="richtext-image full-width" height="532" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Side_by_side.width-800.jpg" width="800"><p data-block-key="bmqcl">Okay, this is a bit of a stretch because Ariel lives in an ocean and we only have a lake. But if you&#x27;re going to meet a prince on a boat (or a yacht) you&#x27;re totally going to do that in the shallow waters of Yarralumla.</p><p data-block-key="1edbo">Also, the chef from <i>The Little Mermaid</i> would totally work at the Turkish Halal Pide House at the shops, and we&#x27;re sure we&#x27;ve spotted Ursula the Sea Witch in the lake while partying on that boat people hire for their hens and bucks nights.</p><h2 data-block-key="3ccon">Denman Prospect: <i>Moana</i></h2><img alt="Side by side2" class="richtext-image full-width" height="532" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Side_by_side2.width-800.jpg" width="800"><p data-block-key="38uf6">If there&#x27;s one suburb that&#x27;s truly embraced its natural environment, it&#x27;s Denman Prospect. But like the stunning namesake of the movie <i>Moana</i>, Denman Prospect refuses to accept the status quo and longs to be something more.</p><p data-block-key="fvls5">Denman was Australia&#x27;s first solar suburb, and designed to integrate seamlessly with the surrounding landscape and waterways. But it&#x27;s totally future-focused too, with sustainable initiatives baked into commercial buildings and the future Molonglo Valley Centre. <i>Moana</i> would be proud to live there.</p><h2 data-block-key="g17v">O’Malley: <i>The Aristocats </i></h2><img alt="Side by side4" class="richtext-image full-width" height="532" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Side_by_side4.width-800.jpg" width="800"><p data-block-key="ccblc">Ah O&#x27;Malley. The suburb that forces you to rubberneck all the mansions as you drive up and down Hindmarsh Drive. It&#x27;s home to embassies and the blue blood of Canberra (if there is such a thing) and where you move to when you&#x27;ve &#x27;made it&#x27;. Flashy exteriors, stunning interiors and mountain views to die for.</p><p data-block-key="7g35r">Life is gentle, sunny and a little bit slower in O&#x27;Malley - a little bit like lives of the main characters in Disney&#x27;s <i>The Aristocats</i>.</p><h2 data-block-key="96l99">Braddon: <i>Peter Pan</i></h2><img alt="Side by side7" class="richtext-image full-width" height="532" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Side_by_side7.width-800.jpg" width="800"><p data-block-key="2mp00">About 20 years ago, we would totally have chosen <i>Cars</i> as the best Disney movie to match Braddon. But since its (ongoing) extreme makeoever, we feel <i>Peter Pan</i> is more this inner city suburb&#x27;s vibe.</p><p data-block-key="9mesd">The cafes, clubs and trendy businesses lining the streets of Braddon attract the local cool kids, influencers and tourists. As the home of beautiful people, it&#x27;s quite literally the suburb that never wants to grow up.</p>

2 news articles with tag barton

The Canberra suburbs that don't exist anymore, from Blandfordia to Westlake

If Canberra suburbs were Disney movies