Tuesday 19 December 2023

Christmas in Strathfield Square, 1959

Strathfield Square, December 1959. Courtesy Strathfield Local Studies

This photo from 1959 shows the Christmas tableau in Strathfield Square. President Mr A.M. Wilcoxon of the Strathfield Chamber of Commerce addressed Strathfield Council’s meeting of 1 December 1959 to request Council’s assistance in decorating Strathfield Square for Christmas. A committee was formed which included Aldermen Boyce, Sumner and Ward, with Council contributing £150 towards materials and lighting for the project.

The building behind the tableau, in Churchill Avenue, is recognisable today. Valuation records show that it was built c.1940 and consisted of three shops, a garage and a guest house. Rainbow Cakes is visible in the background. The Rainbow Cake Shop had opened by 1941 on this site and operated here until April 2023. This shop is now occupied by Machi Machi. The upper level was operating as a private hotel in 1959 as Strathfield Private Hotel still does on the same site today. The Shell garage on the right is now Gloria Jean’s coffee shop. Behind the shops, the old house Presteign (later known as Kingsburgh) can just be seen. Strathfield Plaza now rises behind these shops.

The parade of cars has certainly changed over the years and the lawn, palm tree, lights and rose gardens have been replaced by the now paved Strathfield Square, which also includes the carpark in the foreground. The fountain now stands roughly in this location, surrounded by a number of trees.

Strathfield Square, 19 December 2023. Courtesy Strathfield Local Studies

Sutherland House, on the left in the main 1959 photo, housed the dental practice of two Keith Sutherlands – father, Keith Cecil Theodore Sutherland and his son, Keith Craig Sutherland although the elder had probably retired by this time. The sign for Sutherland House can just be seen between the upper second and third windows. Today, awnings shade the windows of the upper level, which has been rendered. An estate and business agents’ business can be seen just below the signs advertising two upcoming shows – ‘The Rebel Maid’ at Ashfield Town Hall and a Christmas Variety Concert at Strathfield Town Hall on 4 December. Barone cafe is now on this corner site of the Boulevarde and Churchill Avenue.