Smithfield is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Smithfield is located west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government areas of the City of Fairfield and Cumberland Council. Located in the Greater Western Sydney region, the suburb is one of the largest in Fairfield City by area.
Established in 1836, Smithfield was the first major settlement of the Fairfield LGA. The original 1838 summary plan of Smithfield shows the suburb laid out in a grid pattern with most of the streets having the same names as they do today. Its altitude ranges from above sea level. Geologically, the suburb sits on the Cumberland Plain. The suburb is a mix of residential, industrial and commercial areas, but is mostly characterized by low-density housing.
Located partially in the suburb, the Smithfield-Wetherill Park Industrial Estate is the largest industrial estate in the southern hemisphere and is the centre of manufacturing and distribution in greater western Sydney. Smithfield West is a locality within the suburb and it is an unofficial designation for the region westwards from Dublin Street to the boundary of Wetherill Park.
History
Aboriginal people from the Cabrogal tribe, a sub-group of the Gandangara tribe, have lived in the Fairfield area for over 30,000 years.
White settlement began in the area in the early 19th century. Smithfield was originally known as Chilsholm's Bush. In 1803, homeless children were becoming a problem after convicts turned their children out into the streets. As a consequence, Governor Philip Gidley King, put aside a large area of for a Male Orphan School. By 1836, some of this land was offered for sale by the colonial government of the time. John Ryan Brenan (1798–1868), an attorney who was appointed Police Magistrate in 1836, bought here. Early settlers were attracted to Smithfield by its good soil, dependable water supply and easy access to the Colony's established towns. Some of the best farming land was in the district to the west and southwest of the Smithfield area. In 1867, Smithfield was a semi-rural settlement populated by vine growers, gardeners, wood timber cutters, orchards and tanneries.
Brenan planned to make money with a meat market and a cattle sale yard. He subdivided the estate and named it Smithfield after the meat markets of London and Dublin. Saleyards opened in 1841 but the project to establish a village around the yards failed. Despite this, Smithfield did become a thriving commercial centre and remains a significant employment centre in south-western Sydney as part of the Wetherill Park/Yennora industrial block.
Smithfield still has the street patterns Brenan planned and the street names he chose. In the subdivision, Brenan offered an extra adjoining allotment to any buyer who built a cottage with a brick chimney and enclosed the property with a fence. The public school opened in 1850 and by the 1880s Smithfield was well provided with churches, many of which still remain today as important relics of Smithfield's rich local heritage.
Transport
The Horsley Drive is the major road that runs through Smithfield. Other major roads include Polding Street, Brennan Street and Victoria Street, with the latter featuring factories.
Bus services are provided by Transit Systems Sydney. The closest train station is Fairfield train station, on the Inner West & Leppington Line and Cumberland Line. Transit Systems Sydney buses 806, 808, 812, 813, 814 and 817, which go through the suburb, link to that station, with 806 also linking to Parramatta railway station and Liverpool railway station.
There is a cycle way called Prospect Creek Cyclepath that runs through the suburb, which is part of the Western Sydney Regional Park recreational route.
Commercial area
The commercial area is centred on The Horsley Drive, which is the main street in Smithfield, the most significant east-west road in the region that runs from Carramar and Wetherill Park. The roadway is ornamented by several curtain figs. The suburb's mains street features health services, a gymnasium, beauty & specialty shops, commercial services, multicultural restaurants such as Italian, Middle Eastern and Chinese among others. There was also a Coles supermarket, before it closed in late 2022 as part of a major redevelopment. A prominent pub on The Horsley Drive and Cumberland Highway called the Smithfield Tavern features a restaurant, a TAB, adult entertainment sessions and concert parties.