Centenary of Warringah

 

 

 

 

 

 

Council’s official birth date is Tuesday March 7, 1906, when 'Warringah Shire Council' was formed as as a rural outpost of Sydney. Under the then Shires Act, ratepayers with properties worth at least five pounds could vote for up to nine Councillors for a three-year term. To give an idea of how isolated the northern beaches were then - and how easy it was to get elected! - the 1911 Census counted 2,823 people living in 700 households.

The first Council got off to a shaky start, being temporarily installed until proper elections on November 24, 1906. The temporary Chairman was a colourful character called George Brock, about whom a lot more is known than the first elected President, Thomas Fishbourne. George Brock started life as a lowly draper but was lucky enough to inherit £10,000 - a small fortune in those days. He bought up land in Mona Vale and set about building an enormous mansion complete with polo grounds, artificial lakes, a racecourse and a clubhouse. The locals quickly named it ‘Brock’s Folly’.

Undeterred, Brock borrowed another £15,000 on the promise that the Government would extend a tramline through to Newport. His vision was to have holiday makers stay on his enormous estate, but the promised railway never materialised.

The Council first met in Narrabeen Progress Hall on June 14, 1906, moving meetings from 1912 for the next 60 years to the Shire Hall in Brookvale. Work began on a new Dee Why civic centre in 1971, inspired by Sulman Prize-winning architect Edwards, Madigan & Torzillo. The building was completed in 1972 and the Council has remained there since 1973.

Warringah dropped ‘Shire’ from its title when the new Local Government Act was passed in 1993. The Act meant all Councils had to be more business-like in their activities - Shire Clerks became General Managers and Shire Presidents became Mayors.

With its fair share of controversy and three dismissals since the 1960s, Warringah Council has displayed a colourful character like that of its first leader George Brock.

• Presidents, Mayors, Councillors, Shire Clerks and General Managers of
  Warringah Council from 1906 to 2006 (PDF, 3.9MB)
• Local Studies