Unknown Soldiers Lane, Castle Hill

This memorial is a laneway in Castle Hill, NSW. It runs between McDougall Lane and Old Northern Road. It is a no through road, closed off to traffic by bollards at the Old Northern Road end. This end is opposite the historic buildings of the former Castle Hill Public School, which are visible in the background of image 4 above. Pedestrian access is available from this end, while cars can only enter from the McDougall Lane side. 

No record has been found of when the name ‘Unknown Soldiers Lane’ was gazetted. Streets signs were erected at both ends of the lane by The Hills Shire Council in 2003; however, they have different spellings. On the Old Northern Road end it is spelt ‘Unknown Soldiers Lane’, whereas the sign on the McDougall Lane end reads ‘Unknown Soldier Lane’. Despite this discrepancy, the signs identify the laneway as a memorial to the many veterans who sacrificed their lives on active service, and whose records are marked with the words ‘No Known Grave’. Their headstones across Europe are marked with the phrases: ‘An Australian Soldier of the Great War, Known Unto God’, or ‘The Remains of an Unknown Australian Soldier’.

For many years, Anzac Day marches in Castle Hill assembled and commenced from the lane. From there, they continued along Old Northern Road to the former memorial in Arthur Whitling Park, on the corner of Old Northern Road and McMullen Avenue. This memorial is listed on the NSW War Memorials Register as Baulkham Hills Shire Memorial (Demolished). It was demolished to make way for the North West Metro's Castle Hill station. It was replaced by The Hills Shire Council Centenary of Anzac Reserve, on the corner of Wrights Road and Harrington Avenue, Castle Hill. Since April 2013, Anzac Day and Remembrance Day gatherings in the Hills Shire have been held in this reserve.