The Wallumettagal and the Field of Mars
The Wallumettagal Aboriginal tribe lived between two rivers, the Lane Cove and the Parramatta. In 1792 Governor Arthur Phillip began granting parcels of land to marines, and the district was marked on his maps as the Field of Mars, named for Mars, the Roman god of war.
The Field of Mars covered a wide area. It took in the ground that became Epping, and it stretched over Ryde and Marsfield as well. The land later broke up into farms and orchards, and the old name lived on at the railway station that opened in the district in 1886.
A station, a post office and a new name
A station opened on 17 September 1886, at first named "Field of Mars", and it was renamed "Carlingford" on 5 April 1887. A post office followed on 16 October 1889, at first named "East Carlingford".
The suburb name Epping was adopted in 1899, on the suggestion of a local landowner, William Midson (1849 to 1924), who took it from a town close to Epping Forest in Essex, his father's birthplace. Both the post office and the railway station took the new name.
The Wallumettagal Aboriginal tribe lived between two rivers, the Lane Cove and the Parramatta.
Farms give way to suburbia
After World War II the district began to convert to residential use. Sydney's population was growing and many people moved to the outer suburbs, and suburban development followed. In 1948, ground that had been reserved under the green belt scheme became available.
When the railway line from Sydney was extended in the 1950s, it connected the suburb to the city and encouraged more people to settle there. The area grew more suburbanised and diverse, and became increasingly attractive to professionals because of its convenient public transport links, its proximity to employment centres and its schools.
Studios, councils and a metro line
The Seven Network's headquarters and television production studios were in Epping until 2009, and the site is now the Meriton Epping Park residential complex. Three councils once covered parts of the suburb: Hornsby Shire, the City of Ryde and the City of Parramatta.
In 2015, a review of local government boundaries proposed bringing all of Epping under the City of Parramatta, and this took effect on 12 May 2016. A new metro station on the North West Rail Link opened in Epping on 26 May 2019.
Timeline
- 1792Governor Arthur Phillip began granting parcels of land to marines.
- 1886A railway station opened, first named "Field of Mars".
- 1887The station was renamed "Carlingford".
- 1889A post office opened, first named "East Carlingford".
- 1899The suburb name Epping was adopted, on the suggestion of William Midson.
- 1948Ground reserved under the green belt scheme became available.
- the 1950sThe railway line from Sydney was extended, linking the suburb to the city.
- 2009The Seven Network's headquarters and television production studios were in Epping until 2009.
- 2016All of Epping came under the City of Parramatta.
- 2019A new metro station on the North West Rail Link opened in Epping.
Living in Epping
Epping sits 18 kilometres north-west of central Sydney, in the City of Parramatta, and is the most north-eastern part of that council area. The suburb lies in the Northern Sydney region. North Epping lies to the north and is a separate suburb under Hornsby Shire.
The suburb has a railway station that opened in 1886 and a metro station on the North West Rail Link that opened in 2019. The Meriton Epping Park residential complex stands on the site of the television studios the Seven Network had in Epping until 2009. In 2021 the suburb had 29,551 people and a median age of 36.
Questions people ask
- What is the postcode for Epping?
- Epping's postcode is 2121. The suburb is in the City of Parramatta.
- How many people live in Epping?
- In 2021, Epping had 29,551 people. The median age was 36.
- What is the history of Epping?
- The Wallumettagal Aboriginal tribe lived between the Lane Cove and Parramatta rivers. Governor Arthur Phillip began land grants to marines in 1792 in the district mapped as the Field of Mars, and the suburb took the name Epping in 1899.
- What is living in Epping like?
- Epping is 18 kilometres north-west of central Sydney, in the City of Parramatta. It has a railway station that opened in 1886 and a metro station that opened in 2019. North Epping lies to the north and is a separate suburb under Hornsby Shire.