Chatswood Garden of Remembrance

The Garden of Remembrance in Chatswood commemorates the Australian men and women from the Willoughby district who died during the Boer War, First and Second World Wars, Korea, Malaya, and Vietnam. It also provides a place to reflect at any time of year on the sacrifices made by service men and women. On each side of the main path are rose bushes with named plaques that commemorate the dead. The Garden also has other memorials to men and women who have severed in the Australian Defence Forces. 

History

The suggestion to create a Garden of Remembrance on the site was first made in 1936, and two buildings and some fruit trees were removed in the late 1930s. Two underground air raid shelters were built on site during the Second World War, and demolished after the war. In 1949-50, the lawns were laid and a grass mound, shaped like the tin hats worn by First World War soldiers, was constructed at the southern end of the garden. During this time shrubs and roses were planted and the paths laid out. 

In 1952, the Boer War memorial was moved from the south-east corner of Chatswood Park to the Garden. The first Anzac Day service was held on site in 1955. In 1961 and 1963, the Garden was awarded the best garden under 2 acres in a Sydney Morning Herald competition. The Cross of Remembrance was erected on the grass mound and the Garden was dedicated on Anzac Day 1964. In 1972, the Mayor of Dunkirk laid a wreath and planted Picardy roses in the presence of 40 veterans of the 1940 Dunkirk evacuation. In 1988, rose diseases and new buildings being constructed next door resulted in some redesigning of the Garden, as has the development of Chatswood Railway Station/Interchange.