North Narrabeen is a suburb

Suburb

The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...

 in northern Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, in the state of New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. North Narrabeen is located 25 kilometres north of the Sydney central business district

Sydney central business district

The Sydney central business district is the main commercial centre of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It extends southwards for about 3 kilometres from Sydney Cove, the point of first European settlement. Its north–south axis runs from Circular Quay in the north to Central railway station in...

, in the local government area of Pittwater Council

Pittwater Council

Pittwater Council is a Local Government Area on the Northern Beaches of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The suburbs which comprise the Pittwater LGA were detached from the Warringah local government area in 1993...

. North Narrabeen is part of the Northern Beaches region.

North Narrabeen lies on the northern shores of Narrabeen lagoon, bounded by Warriewood to the north, Elanora Heights to the west and extends east to the ocean at Turrimetta Beach. Narrabeen is opposite on the southern shore of the lagoon. The beach

Beach

A beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles or cobblestones...

 at North Narrabeen is one of the eponymous northern beaches.

Etymology

One theory on the origin of "Narrabeen" is that it is from an Aboriginal word Narrabine meaning many swans. Other theories include that of Captain Henry Reynolds, a first fleeter settled in the area with his family and killed by bushrangers. The popular belief is that the location was then named after a young Aboriginal girl Narrabine, who lived near the lake, who helped soldiers capture the escaped convicts involved in the massacre. Another says that on 26 January 1801, Lieutenant James Grant and a party of three were walking to Pittwater, where they hoped to find a small rowing boat which had been stolen from Sydney. According to Grant's journal, he was confronted with the problem of crossing a stream at the mouth of the lagoon, which the Aborigines told him was called Narrowbine . James Meehan mentions Narrowbang lagoon in his survey in 1815. It has also been suggested that the name could have been derived from Narrabin, a native plant growing near the lake entrance or narrow beans eaten by early explorers. Another theory suggests that the area was named after Mr Greg Narra an early explorer who after being lost in the area survived on wild beans and would dub the plant Narra's Beans.

History

The first land grants were made to John Lees (40 acres), Philip Schaffer, (50 acres), and James Wheeler, (80 acres), along the south bank of Mullet Creek. Alex Macdonald was granted 80 acres (323,748.8 m²) at the beach in 1815 and west of this land JT Collins had 93.5 acres (378,381.4 m²) by 1857.

During the nineteenth century travellers had to ford the lake until 1880 when the first bridge opened. A second bridge at the mouth of the lagoon in Ocean Street was built in 1925. The extension of tram services to Narrabeen in 1913 provided easier transport, and the whole area around the lake became popular for holidays and camping. A large camping ground became established on the north shore of the lagoon. In 1946 the Wakehurst Parkway was opened to North Narrabeen connecting the whole Pittwater area directly to Frenchs Forest

Frenchs Forest, New South Wales

-Commercial areas:Forestway shopping centre is at the intersection of Forestway and Warringah Roads. During the 1960s and 1970s, this centre had the name Arndale...

 and Seaforth

Seaforth, New South Wales

Seaforth is a suburb of northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Seaforth is located 12 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of Manly Council and is part of the Northern Beaches region....

.

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