Homebush, New South Wales

Homebush Sydney, New South Wales
Library, Rochester Street
Homebush
Coordinates	33°51′51″S 151°4′56″E / 33.86417°S 151.08222°E / -33.86417; 151.08222Coordinates: 33°51′51″S 151°4′56″E / 33.86417°S 151.08222°E / -33.86417; 151.08222
Population	6,195 (2011 census)
Postcode(s)	2140
Location	15 km (9 mi) west of Sydney CBD
LGA(s)	Municipality of Strathfield
State electorate(s)	Strathfield
Federal Division(s)	Reid
Suburbs around Homebush: Flemington Sydney Olympic Park North Strathfield Homebush West Homebush Strathfield Strathfield Strathfield Strathfield

Homebush is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located 15 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the Municipality of Strathfield. Homebush is located south of Homebush Bay, an inlet of the Parramatta River. and north Homebush West.

The first name of settlement at what is today called Homebush was "Liberty Plains". This was a group of grants given to the Colony's first free settlers, who came on the ship "Bellona", in 1793. Most of the original settlers soon departed for agriculturally more attractive places, like the Hawkesbury. One of them, Edward Powell, later returned and established there the Half Way House Inn, on Parramatta Road just west of the creek that now bears his name. Later, when the Great Western Railway line came through there, with a station just behind Powell's inn, the name Homebush was borrowed from the nearest large estate, that of D'Arcy Wentworth. A shopping centre by the name of Homebush has since grown around the railway station of that name. There also used to be a Ford factory in Homebush, which manurfactured the Telstar and the Laser. But the factory closed in 1994.

It is commonly thought that the property and house with the name of Homebush was established and named by the Colony's then assistant surgeon D'Arcy Wentworth. Historian Michael Jones who had been commissioned by Stathfield Council to write the history of that Municipality wrote: "Wentworth is popularly credited with having called the area after his 'home in the bush', although Homebush is also a place in Kent". It is considered unlikely that it was named after the village in Kent as D'Arcy Wentworth was Irish and had no links to the English county. According to local historian David Patrick it wasn’t D'Arcy Wentworth who named Homebush but an earlier grantee on the land – that being the military figure Thomas Laycock. It would appear that after Laycock became mentally ill, following his direct involvement in suppressing the Castle Hill convict rebellion D'Arcy Wentworth became his doctor. It has been reputed that D'Arcy Wentworth either bought the Laycock Homebush Farm from Laycock or, more fancifully, won the property in an unfair game of cards from the ailing Laycock. Wentworth retained Thomas Laycock's name of the property and added to its extent. Laycock had been granted 40 hectares in 1794 and increased this to 318 hectares by 1803 and named it "Home Bush". A notice that Laycock placed in the newspapers about his property "Home Bush" is from before when Wentworth acquired the land from him. Later on, Wentworth acquired more land there himself and the estate had grown to 990 acres by 1811. Homebush once had a very famous racecourse, established by Wentworth.