In 1806 what the Sydney Gazette described as a ‘select party of ladies and gentlemen’ went to the peninsula for a picnic: its lush vegetation, and a ‘pure and unadulterated spring’ reminded one of the guests of the spa at Bad Pyrmont in Germany. John Macarthur, ex-officer of the NSW Corps, who had been granted land here, adopted the name. By a curious coincidence, the members of the Cadigal band who then occupied the area called it Pirrama.

Industrial heartland

In the 1890s, Pyrmont and Ultimo were thriving industrial suburbs with a combined population of 19,177. Rail connected the suburbs to the port and trams took workers to their jobs. The railway yards, wharves, wool stores, power stations and mills created employment for local residents. By 1900, Pyrmont and Ultimo were providing Sydney with power for its lights and trams and were a centre for the distribution of Australian wool, flour, milk, sugar and other foodstuffs.

Photograph, Darling Harbour, from a full plate glass negative,
Kerry and Co, Sydney, Australia, c1884-1917.
Kerry and Co images such as the one above and below, left,
are part of the Tyrrell Collection of glass plate images.

On the sheep's back
By the 1870s the wool industry was successful and expanding rapidly. Auctions were transferred from London to Sydney, requiring city storage. Ultimo, with its deep water harbour and the Darling Harbour goods lines was ideal. The steep slopes leading to the ridge on the peninsula were perfect for handling wool bales — in at the top, examined, displayed, auctioned, and out at the bottom.

Sydney's first wool store was the Richard Goldsbrough warehouse built on the corner of Pyrmont and Fig streets in 1883. From World War II until the 1960s, wool stores on the peninsula employed thousands of men. With lanolin oil soaked into thousands of feet of wood, fires were a constant hazard. In 1935 the Goldsbrough and Mort store went up in a blaze lasting two weeks, filling the suburb with the smell of burning wool and grease.

Colonial Sugar Refinery (CSR)
Colonial Sugar Refinery (CSR) refined and manufactured sugar and sugar by-products. The sweet smell of molasses and sugar is burnt into the memories of everyone who lived in Pyrmont and Ultimo. From 1875 CSR dominated the northern tip of the peninsula. The company created work, controlled housing and polluted the air and water. Horse and drays, ships and trains transported goods in and out of the peninsula.

The 1919 lithograph above shows a bird's-eye view of Jones Bay.
In the lower half of the image are the Darling Harbour goods yards and the
Navy Victuals Store on Darling Island. In the lower left is Pyrmont power station
and above Harris Street to the right is the Colonial Sugar Refinery.

The Colonial Sugar Refining Company (CSR) first`acquired land at Pyrmont in 1878, and eventually
owned 31 acres (77 hectares). Houses and`streets – such as Jones St between Bowman St
and the Harbour – disappeared as CSR`expanded. CSR provided thousands of jobs,
some of them unpleasant, dangerous and unhealthy. Products included not only sugar,
golden syrup and molasses from the refinery but industrial alcohol and rum from the distillery,
and particle board from the caneite factory. Operations were finally wound down by the early
1990s, and much of the former CSR site is now occupied by the Jacksons Landing residential
development. 

Quarry Sites

The tough quality of Pyrmont sandstone was well known by 1855: when the entrance and steps of the Australian Museum had to be replaced, the Colonial Architect insisted that the stone must come from the
‘best bed of the Pyrmont Quarries’. Buildings using Pyrmont stone include Sydney University, the General Post Office and the Art Gallery of NSW, along with many other government buildings, insurance companies and banks. The quarries would provide many jobs, but would contribute to changing the peninsula from an attractive retreat to having a blasted, treeless appearance. ‘Paradise’ Quarry was one of several run by the Saunders family, along with ‘Purgatory’ and ‘Hell Hole’ .

A busy household and a strong sense of community
Joseph and Mary O'Toole raised their six boys and three girls in Pyrmont. Their son Phillip (born 1913) has vivid memories of a busy childhood — swimming in the baths, playing soccer and rugby for local teams — and a strong sense of local community. Starting off as a carrier with his own horses and carts, in 1916 Joseph O'Toole bought three motor lorries and founded the Austral Sawdust Company. Collecting sawdust from the seven timber mills at Pyrmont, he sold it to horse owners, butchers and grocers.

Special thanks to http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/index.asp