Auburn, New South Wales

The suburb was named after Oliver Goldsmith's poem The Deserted Village, which describes 'Auburn' in England as the loveliest village of the plain.[3]

The Auburn area was once used by Aboriginal people as a market place for the exchange of goods, a site for ritual battles and a 'Law Place' for ceremonies. The area was located on the border between the Darug inland group and the Eora/Dharawal coastal group. The Wangal and Wategoro, sub-groups or clans, are the groups most often recognised as the original inhabitants of the Auburn/Homebush Bay region.

Bennelong, one of the most famous Aboriginies of the time, was a member of Wangal, as was his wife, Barangaroo. Pemulwuy, who organised tribes to resist the white settlement of the Sydney region from 1790 to 1802 was also a member of the Wangal.

On 5 February 1788, soon after the landing of Captain Phillip at Sydney Cove, Captain John Hunter and Lieutenant William Bradley sailed up what is now known as the Parramatta River, as far as Homebush Bay. Captain Hunter was the first white person to set foot within the Auburn Local Government Area.

Ten days later, the Governor, along with a well-armed party in three boats, reached Homebush Bay. They ventured about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) inland. The following day a party of explorers traced the river in a westerly direction, coming to the place where the Duck River enters the Parramatta River. They explored the tributary as far as the depth of water permitted.

Seeing what appeared to be ducks rising out of a swamp covered with reeds, they named the river Duck River. The ducks were actually Eastern Swamp Hens, but the name Duck River remained. The Eastern Swamp Hen featured prominently on the Council's Coat of Arms and was part of the former Auburn City Council logo.

In February 1793 Auburn area was established as the first free-agricultural settlement thanks to Governor Phillip's repeated applications to the British government for free settlers. Phillip was of the opinion that only free settlers with the assistance of convicts will be able to create an environment in which a country could support its inhabitants. Secretary Dundas endorsed Governor's opinion and secured an agreement with several farmers, some of them were members of Religious Society of Friends – Quakers, to settle in the colony. The first grants were given to Thomas Rose, Frederic Meredith, Thomas and Joseph Webb as well as Edward Powell. The deeds of the land described the farms' location as Liberty Plains and this is the name given to the neighbourhood of their farms by the first settlers, although the actual area bearing that name was a little further, lying at the upper part of Port Jackson. Dwellers of the Liberty Plains Parish were very proud of the fact that in the colony of felons they were the first people who came to Australia as free men and were given a privilege of choosing their own grants. When in 1876 Auburn adopted its name, inspired by Oliver Goldsmith's poem The Deserted Village, describing the English village of Auburn as "the loveliest village of the plain", the people of Auburn still wanted to emphasise the fact that they were free settlers. Hence, the first Auburn coat of arms depicted this in its motto: "Liberty, with steady zeal".

One of the early settlers in the area was Fred Chisholm, who had an estate west of the present site of Auburn railway station. In the 1880s, John Buchanan, a timber merchant, purchased land from Fred Chisholm and built his home, Duncraggarn Hall, a two-storey Italianate mansion with a central tower and elaborate wrought-iron balconies. In 1892, Buchanan sold his thirteen-acre estate to the Sisters of Charity, who turned the house into St Joseph's Hospital for Consumptives. In 1903, extensions to the hospital were constructed and the house itself became a convent for the sisters. Further modifications and extensions took place over the years, with the eventual result that the old hospital site became St Joseph's Village—a retirement village—with a modern hospital next door. Duncraggarn Hall is heritage-listed.[4]

The formal Auburn Local Government Area was formed in 1948, when Auburn and Lidcombe Councils merged into Auburn Municipal Council. In 2006 it became the City of Auburn which in 2016 was split between other local government areas.[5]

In the late 20th century, Auburn became a popular point of settlement for successive waves of immigrants. In the post-World War II era, immigrants from the Ukraine, Russia, Italy and Greece settled in Auburn, who were succeeded in the 1960s by immigrants from Turkey and Vietnam. More recently, a large number of immigrants have settled in Auburn from China and Afghanistan. The history of immigrant settlement in Auburn has resulted in a suburb which is noted for its multicultural environment.[6][7]

Auburn railway station is on the Western and Inner West & Leppington lines of the Sydney Trains network, where there are frequent services.

The Auburn Maintenance Centre, a large maintenance and storage facility which services Sydney Trains rolling stock, is located to the northwest of the town centre, close to Clyde station.

Auburn also has a number of bus services, which service Auburn and the surrounding areas.[10]

Transdev NSW has four bus services that operate outside Auburn Station on the South Parade entrance:[11]

• 909: Bankstown to Parramatta
• 908: Merrylands to Bankstown
• 911: Bankstown via Bass Hill
• S3: Auburn Botanical Gardens via Auburn Public School

The State Transit Authority also operates two routes that run from Monday - Friday, located outside the local Soccer Club, on the Rawson Street entrance

• 540: Silverwater Remand Centre via Newington[12]
• 544: Macquarie Centre via Eastwood[13]

NightRide Services also operate from Auburn Station:

• N60: Fairfield Station to City (Town Hall)[14]
• N61: Carlingford Station to City (Town Hall)[15]

According to the 2016 census of Population, there were 37,366 residents in Auburn. 29.5% of people were born in Australia. The most common countries of birth were China 12.7%, Nepal 6.5%, Afghanistan 6.1%, Pakistan 5.5% and India 5.0%. 12.9% of people only spoke English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Arabic 13.3%, Mandarin 12.0%, Turkish 8.4%, Cantonese 6.8% and Nepali 6.7%. The most common responses for religious affiliation were Islam 43.0%, No Religion 15.5%, Catholic 9.7% and Hinduism 8.8%.[1]

• Stanley Llewellyn Perry, Lieutenant-Colonel of the 48th Battalion during World War 1
• Hippolyte De La Rue, Senior RAAF Commander
• Jack Lang, former Premier of NSW (1925–1927, 1930–1932), had a long and close association with Auburn, setting up a successful real estate business there. He went on to serve on the local council, eventually becoming Mayor. He died in Auburn in 1975
• John Moulton was a general surgeon in Auburn
• Warren Mundine, the first Indigenous president of the Australian Labor Party. Born in Grafton in 1956, Warren and his family lived in Auburn in the mid-1960s.
• Chris Bath, television and radio journalist
• Brad Fittler, former professional rugby league footballer, born in Auburn.
• Feleti Mateo, rugby league player with New Zealand Warriors
• Zeb Taia, rugby league player with Newcastle Knights
• Scott Jamieson, football (soccer)
• Ahmad Elrich, football (soccer)
• Tarek Elrich, football (soccer)
• Tomi Juric, football (soccer)
• Alex Gersbach, football (soccer)
• Jamal Idris, rugby league player with Penrith Panthers
• Daniel Tupou, rugby league player with Sydney Roosters
• Myuran Sukumaran (1981–2015), executed drug trafficker and co-ringleader of the Bali Nine[20]
• Salim Mehajer, suspended deputy mayor of Auburn City Council. Attracted national infamy for his grossly exuberant wedding,[21] criminal record,[22] allegations of corruption and electoral fraud.[23]