Cecil Park

Cecil Park was officially gazetted as a suburb on 7 April 1972. Cecil Park was originally a much larger area, covering the present-day suburbs of Cecil Park, Cecil Hills and Elizabeth Hills.

Colonial Land Grants

Cecil Park is made up of what were originally two extensive land grants endowed to John Wylde and Barron Field who were each granted 810 hectares in 1817.

Cecil Park is named for the farm Cecil Hills, established by Wylde, and named after his home Cecil Lodge in Hertfordshire. Cecil Hills farmhouse was built between 1818-1824 and still stands today on Sandringham Drive.

John Wylde did not live on the farm but closer to the city where he was working as the Colony’s Judge Advocate. The farm produced large quantities of meat for the government stores; in 1818, Cecil Hills was contracted to supply 6,000 pounds (2,720kgs) of meat. In 1824 Wylde’s post as Judge Advocate was abolished, and he relocated to Cecil Hills. He remained only briefly before returning to England with a son and a daughter in 1825. His wife Elizabeth, pregnant with their ninth child, remained at Cecil Hills with their six other children and managed the farm successfully for some time. The farm was then worked for a number of years under leaseholders.

In 1992 the area was subdivided, and the new suburb of Cecil Hills was created, named after the Wylde’s property. In 2009 it was further subdivided, and another new suburb was formed, named Elizabeth Hills after his wife.

^{Cecil Park farms by Boyd & King & Cantle, 1885. Courtesy of the National Library of Australia [MAP LFSP 1365, Folder 93]}

Barron Field named his property Hinchinbrook. Other smaller early land holders were John Sherrard, Simeon Lord and John Wylde’s father, Thomas Wylde. These smaller grants were all later amalgamated into Cecil Hills.

Businesses

Cecil Park Post Office opened on 16 July 1897 and closed in 1966.

The Sydney International Shooting Centre was established at Cecil Park for the shooting events at the 2000 Summer Olympics.