Macquarie Park is an urban suburb located about 13 kilometres north-west of the Sydney CBD. The fast-growing suburb is famous for its modern development, historical significance, educational facilities and recreation opportunities. Besides its enormous commercial importance and friendly community, the suburb of Macquarie Park has many hidden facts and interesting features that keep both locals and visitors spellbound and wondering what they may encounter next in this vibrant neighbourhood. If you’re wondering the same thing, we’re here to uncover the mystery of Macquarie Park through the many interesting facts about the suburb’s history, culture, people, and prominent residents.

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Macquarie Park is located about 17 kilometres (23 minutes drive) northwest of the Sydney central business district.

Macquarie Park falls in the local government area of the City of Ryde in the state of New South Wales.

Before becoming an independent suburb on 5 February 1999, Macquarie Park was a part of North Ryde starting from the late 19th century.

Many businesses in Macquarie Park still use North Ryde in their address.

The postcode of Macquarie Park is 2113, which it shares with the suburb of North Ryde.

Macquarie University, which is located within the suburb of Macquarie Park, has its separate postcode of 2109.

British settlement in the region that is now Macquarie Park began in the early 19th century when Lachlan Macquarie, a British military officer, became the Governor of New South Wales in 1810.

The suburb of Macquarie Park was, in fact, named after Lachlan Macquarie.

Before this, the area was covered with forests, bushland, market gardens and waterfalls.

The establishment of Macquarie University in the mid-1960s commenced the suburban development of the area. It involved the migration of 'Green Belt' bushland to make space for industries.

The planned development of Macquarie Park was inspired by the concept of a hi-tech industrial area surrounding a major university (same as Palo Alto in California near Stanford University).

Thanks to the presence of the University and rising industrial significance, the suburb is now home to the headquarters and offices of many prominent businesses across science, technology, electronics, computing and other sectors.

The Sydney global economic corridor, which includes the suburb of Macquarie Park, is home to many Australian and International corporations, including corporate headquarters of companies such as AstraZeneca, Canon, Fujitsu, Ford Australia/Premiere Automotive Group (Aston Martin, Jaguar, Volvo, Land Rover), General Motors (Holden & Saab), Hitachi, Hyundai, Johnson & Johnson, Microsoft, Oracle Corporation, Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and more.

In 2001 alone, Macquarie Park’s industries created around 32,308 jobs.

Macquarie Centre is one of the largest shopping centres in the region.

According to the 2021 census, Macquarie Park had a population of 11,071, of which 29.6% were born in Australia, while other top countries of birth included China 16.7%, India 10.2%, South Korea 4.0%, Hong Kong 3.5% and the Philippines 3.3%. The most commonly spoken languages by residents at home were English 33.3%, Mandarin 18.4%, Cantonese 6.6%, Hindi 4.5%, Korean 4.4% and Persian (excluding Dari) 2.4%.

Macquarie Park was the birthplace or has been home over the years to several prominent personalities, including artists, actors, writers, singers and more.

Some of the most famous residents of Macquarie Park include Johnny O’Keefe, Australia’s first international pop star, Kathleen Butler (Hagarty), known as Bridge Girl and a pivotal contributor to the creation of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Lottie Lyell, Australia’s first major silent film star, and Sir John Kerr, the man who sacked the Whitlam Labor Government.

The Macquarie Park Cemetery is home to the graves of several notable people who were either born here or lived in the suburb.