Maroubra, New South Wales

Maroubra is a local Aboriginal word meaning place of thunder. In 1861, the first house was built in the area by Humphrey McKeon.[3] A number of other settlers arrived on the land in the 1870s to work on the wool scouring works located at the northern end of the bay.[4]

Maroubra Beach, Kerry and Co., c.1900

The Hereward wrecked on Maroubra Beach, May 1898

The suburb first made headlines on 6 May 1898, when the Hereward, a fully rigged iron ship weighing 1,513 tons was caught by the gale-force winds and shipwrecked at the northern end of Maroubra Beach while heading north toward Newcastle.[5][6][7] The shipwreck remained on the beach for a number of years until a failed attempt to refloat it was made by building a coffer dam around the wreck.

The wreck was slowly washed out to sea afterwards; and by 1937 only a triangle dorsal fin was visible above sea level.[8] In 1950, Randwick Council feared the danger that the remains posed, especially to surfers and swimmers, and had the remains blasted; such that by 1967 it appeared that there was nothing left of the ship.[9]

In recent times, on various occasions, due to large swells and sweeping currents, large amounts of sand had moved off the sea floor and had exposed extensive portions of the Hereward which were once thought to be destroyed and lost forever. In March 2013 after large seas, extensive portions of the ship's metal hull, along with mast and engine pieces were exposed to a greater extent than they ever had been before.[10][11][12][13][14][15]

Hereward Street in Maroubra is named after the event.

Maroubra subdivision plan, 12 January 1918, Z/SP/M8

Major residential development only began in the 1910s after Herbert Dudley, a real estate developer, subdivided the land into residential blocks. Herbert Dudley also lobbied for the extension of the tramline to Maroubra Junction in 1912, where he had built Dudley's Emporium which has just recently been redeveloped. In 1918 sixty-five allotments on Crown Lands bordered by Maroubra Bay Road, Cooper Street and Broad Road were auctioned by Stanton and Son Limited.[16] The tram line was extended to Maroubra Beach in 1921.

Between 1925 and 1934, the Olympia Motor Speedway was located in South Maroubra at the corner of Anzac Parade and Fitzgerald Avenue. However, due to the dangerous nature of the concrete track, a number of deaths occurred and it was closed after only nine years of operation. Coral Sea Park and surrounding estates was announced on the site in 1947 and formally completed in 1961. The estates and park was given its namesake from the 1942 battle; The battle of the Coral Sea.[17][18]

In 2005, Maroubra was named as one of the suburbs involved in the Cronulla Riots, after more than 100 cars were vandalised in relation to the riots between Middle Eastern and Anglo youth.[19] In 2006, Maroubra Beach became the second Australian beach to be named a National Surfing Reserve (the first beach being Bells Beach in Victoria).[20] It is also an incredibly popular place for people learning to surf[21] due to its beginner friendly conditions.

Maroubra Junction is one of the main shopping areas in the district and is home to Pacific Square shopping centre (built on the area once known as Stockland Mall, Maroubra). Pacific Square shopping centre has an outdoor eating area on Anzac Parade, Coles and Aldi supermarkets, Glamabags, many specialty shops as well as being home to the area's Australia Post outlet.[22] Commercial developments are also found along Anzac Parade, Maroubra Road and surrounding streets, including Dudley's Emporium which was the first shopping centre in Maroubra Junction built in 1912 and has been recently redeveloped.

There are also a handful of shopping districts besides Maroubra Junction including the areas surrounding Maroubra Beach. McKeon Street and Marine Parade are home to multiple cafes and restaurants, and other retail facilities such as surf shops, yoga schools, a chemist and newsagent, the Maroubra Seals Club and The Bay Hotel.

South Maroubra Shopping Village, known as "The Village", is located in South Maroubra and is home to many well-known shops including a late night pharmacy, Walsh's Pharmacy as well as Maroubra's only Woolworths supermarket.It is also next door to the Sands Hotel. The Village and South Maroubra Village Green are home to Christmas Carols every year.[23][24][25][26]

• Glasshouse (Since 1947) – The licence of the Golden Grove Hotel was transferred from Darlington to new premises on the corner of Anzac Parade and Boyce Road, Maroubra Junction in February 1947. The hotel has more recently changed its name to the Glasshouse Hotel.[27]
• The Sands Hotel (Since 1972) – A hotel in South Maroubra alongside South Maroubra Shopping Village.
• Maroubra Junction Hotel (Since 1926) — A hotel in Maroubra Junction across Maroubra Road from Pacific Square.[28]
• Ocean View Tavern (Since 2010) – In an attempt to popularise the mostly vacant area surround Maroubra Beach, the Maroubra Bay Hotel premises was revitalised and re-opened under the name of the Ocean View Tavern.[29]
• Juniors @ The Junction (Since 2009) – The result of a merger with South Sydney Junior Rugby League Club (Kingsford) and the struggling Maroubra Returned and Services League (RSL) Club. The club is on the site of the former Maroubra RSL club on Anzac Parade and Haig Street.[30]

• Maroubra Bay Hotel (1926–2010) – Popular after World War I due to the extension of the tram line to the beach, the construction of a promenade and bathing sheds. Due to a downturn in trade the hotel closed in early 2010.[31][32]
• Trade Winds (1984–2002) – Maroubra Junction on Maroubra Road. 2002 saw the hotel converted into apartments. The Trade Winds Brasserie is all that's left of the old hotel.
• Maroubra RSL (2000[33]–2009) – The struggling Maroubra Returned and Services League (RSL) Club merged with South Sydney Junior Leagues Club in order to keep the premise open due to poor income. It was reopened under the name "Juniors @ The Junction".[30]

The CBD is located 10 kilometres north-west from Maroubra via Anzac Parade, via Kensington, Kingsford and Moore Park.

Regular bus services run from Maroubra Junction to the city including route numbers 394, 399, 396 and 397. The 394 and 399 originate from La Perouse and Little Bay (respectively) while 396 and 397 originate from Maroubra Beach and South Maroubra, respectively.

Route 400 runs from Maroubra Junction in two directions; Bondi Junction, Randwick and Waverley to the north and Eastgardens and Sydney Airport to the south. Central Station and Railway Square can be accessed through the Railway Square buses (393 and 395). Other routes run through Maroubra providing local services to more suburban areas such as Coogee, South Coogee, and Randwick.

The CBD and South East Light Rail which became fully operational in April 2020, connects the Sydney CBD to Randwick and Kingsford.

The former Maroubra tram line opened from Anzac Parade to Maroubra Bay in 1921. The line branched off the main line to La Perouse at the intersection of Anzac Parade and Maroubra Road, travelling east along Maroubra Road, Cooper Street, French Street and Mons Avenue before terminating in a balloon loop in Marine Parade at Maroubra Bay Beach. The line was double track throughout, and passed through several tram reservations on its descent down to the beach. Direct services operated from Circular Quay and Railway Square. The line closed in 1961. The current route of bus 397 now covers this route.

Due to the large size of Maroubra beach, it has also been used for sports other than surfing. One of the more highly covered events was the 2007 Beach Cricket series which saw Maroubra Beach play home to Round Three of the series between Australia, England and West Indies. The round saw Australia and England progress to the finals which were played the following day, again at Maroubra.

• St Spyridon College
• Lycée Condorcet (The International French School of Sydney)
• Maroubra Bay Public School
• Maroubra Junction Public School
• Mount Sinai College
• South Sydney High School
• St Aidan's Primary School
• St Mary St Joseph Primary School
• Champagnat Catholic College Pagewood
• Our Lady of the Annuciation Primary School

• Maroubra High School (1962–2002): premises now in use by Lycée Condorcet
• Maroubra Bay High School: premises no longer existent – residential estate in place of former grounds. Famous for being the school used for the TV Series Heartbreak High.
• Brigidine College Maroubra: moved to Randwick and became Brigidine College Randwick. The grounds have since been redeveloped into St Brigid's Green, a retirement village.

In the 2016 Census, there were 30,688 people in Maroubra.[1]

• 43.2% were married and 10.0% were either divorced or separated.
• 51.0% were born in Australia.
• The next most common countries of birth were China 6.6%, England 3.3%, Indonesia 2.7%, New Zealand 1.7% and Hong Kong 1.7%.
• The most common ancestries in Maroubra were English 16.4%, Australian 14.5%, Chinese 12.7%, Irish 8.3% and Greek 5.4%.
• 27.4% had both parents born in Australia, 11.3% had one parent born overseas, and 54.7% had both parents born overseas.
• 55.5% spoke only English at home.
• Other languages spoken at home included Mandarin 6.9%, Greek 5.0%, Cantonese 4.5%, Indonesian 2.8% and Spanish 1.9%.
• The most common responses for religion were No Religion 28.8% and Catholic 27.6%.