Telopea Park

Linking the National Capital with New South Wales

• Location
• Facilities
• History
• A Walter Burley Griffin influence
• A creation of Charles Weston
• For the cyclist, pedestrian and picnicker
• Reference
  

Location

Telopea Park Road, Barton.

• A map showing Inner South Canberra with the location of Telopea Park marked.
• A map of Telopea Park.

Facilities

Picnic and playground areas, cycle and pedestrian paths and time controlled parking areas. There are also public toilets and barbecues.

History

Telopea Park has been the main district park on the south side of Canberra since 1922. It takes its name from the floral emblem of New South Wales. Its informal evergreen/deciduous landscape character and mature trees make it a strong attraction to pedestrians and cyclists from nearby residences, the Kingston and Manuka shopping centres and suburbs further away.

A Walter Burley Griffin influence

The origins of this park can be traced back to Walter Burley Griffin's 1918 plan for Canberra in which he planned a "Telopea Park" terminating Sydney Avenue, one of the ten avenues planned to radiate from the centre of Capital Hill. Most of the other state capital city avenues planned by Griffin were terminated similarly with a park named after the generic botanical name for a native plant from that particular site.

At a later time however Telopea Park School was built on his intended park and the name was transferred in 1928 to the adjacent Waratah Parkway, also intended as a park by Griffin but carrying the common rather than the generic name of the same plant. The naming of the park is reinforced by its location in the early suburb of Barton, named after NSW politician Edmund Barton, Australia's first Prime Minister.

The park is classified by the National Trust and entered on the Register of the National Estate.

A creation of Charles Weston

The initial planting, including species selection and layout was by Charles Weston, Canberra's first Superintendent, Parks and Gardens, in August 1922. A formal planting arrangement was adopted on the periphery of the park however the remainder of the planting is largely informal but influenced to a degree by the stream, eventually concrete lined, which runs the full length of the park.

Weston used a wide variety of exotic and native species in his initial planting. The natives included eucalypts, wattles and the river oak, while the exotics were both evergreen and deciduous. Given the low lying nature of the park it is not surprising that he used poplars and willows in large numbers and these are a dominant feature of the park today.

Notable trees believed to be surviving from Weston's original planing include: Argyle apple (Eucalyptus cinerea), blue gum (Eucalyptus bicostata), white brittle gum (Eucalyptus mannifera ssp. maculosa) and California big tree (Sequoiadendron giganteum).

From the 1960s onwards, many improvements have been made to the park to cope with changing use pressures and the invasion of motor vehicles. However, the character of the park has changed little from that intended by Weston back in 1922.

For the cyclist, pedestrian and picnicker

Telopea Park is a popular venue for small family picnics and it is a pleasant change of scenery for pedestrians and cyclists travelling to and from work. For park users with other interests, it is a pleasant place for those interested in trees, whether native or exotic, and for the associated bird life.

While enjoying a visit to Telopea Park reflect both on its origins in Griffin's plan for Canberra and also Weston's successful contribution to the urban landscape of the National Capital in its formative years.

Reference

Gray, J (1997) The Historical and Cultural Background of Selected Urban Parks in Canberra.