Origin of the place name – St Clair

This suburb’s name is a controversial one, as it has no historical links with the area. Originally it was the name given to a residential housing development established in 1970 by the Latex Finance Company, a subsidiary of the Cambridge Finance Company which went bankrupt in 1976. The whole area was formerly called South Creek and consisted of several large land grants. It was later, unofficially, known as South St. Marys, with the southern section being Erskine Park. The Land Commission of New South Wales acquired the land after the bankruptcy and extended the area to create a large suburb. The Geographical Names Board eventually made the decision in late 1981 to divide the area into two separate suburbs named St Clair and Erskine Park, rather than call the whole area Erskine Park as many people wanted.

Origin of the place name – Chatsworth

The original site of this neighbourhood of St. Clair was Chatsworth Nursery, a branch of Darling Nursery which had been established in 1827. The owner, Thomas Shepherd, developed an irrigation system utilizing water from Eastern Creek and the whole area was later covered in orchards. The nursery, famous for its camellias, was moved to Colyton and existed till the end of last century.

Origin of the place name – Ropes Creek

This watercourse, which forms the eastern boundary of the City of Penrith, was named after Anthony Rope who was a convict who arrived with the First Fleet in 1788. He married a female convict, Elizabeth Pulley in May 1788. Rope learned bricklaying whilst working at Brickfields near Sydney and later moved to the Nepean District. In 1806, the Ropes were renting 48 acres on the Nepean and by 1820 had been granted 20 acres in the district. Anthony Rope died at Castlereagh in 1843. James “Toby” Ryan (1818-1899) was the grandson of Anthony Rope.