The A to Z of 2205: Dowling St

Named by the solicitor James Arthur Dowling, a grandson of the early Chief Justice, Sir James Dowling. (The Origins of the Street Names of the Municipality of Rockdale, compiled by R.W Rathbone, 1990)

There are some seriously gorgeous houses in Dowling St, mainly towards the Wollongong Rd end, where there are some magnificent Victorian and Federation houses, nicely restored. Most of these are opposite Athelsatne Public School (which was once a beautiful Victorian mansion).

Below: Athelstane Public School





Below: Looking along Dowling St from Wollongong Rd; fence of Athelstane PS on left.

Below: The mixed business shop on the corner of Wollongong Rd - the Dowling St aspect.

Below: The next few pics are the beautiful Victorian and Federation houses





















Below: And possibly the not-quite-so-beautiful?

Below: 19 Dowling St was once a Federation house, but these days its the place to get along to if you want to denounce homosexuality or celebrate the resurrection of the founder's dead daughter. It's now called the Life Centre. As their website explains:

"The church was founded by Pastor Elizabeth Brookshaw in 1982, just after her daughter was miraculously raised from the dead. From this incident, her whole family surrendered their whole lives to God and committed themselves to true repentance. From here, her whole family started to gather together to pray and worship God. This home fellowship continued to grow into a church that was known by the name of The Body of Christ Mission Centre and was blessed with a 2700 square metre property in Arncliffe, Sydney.In November 2003, the senior leadership of the church was handed over to her son and daughter-in-law; Ben & Cisca Irawan, leading a new generation church with a Godly influence. In November 2004, the church formally changed its name to Life Centre. "

“We firmly stand against and denounce homosexuality, adultery, sexual perversion, same-sex marriages, pornography, gambling, drug use & partaking of intoxicants, physical abuse, satanism, or divination in any form.”

Below: Looking towards Wollongong Rd, across Hirst St
Below: With back to Hirst St, looking along Dowling St

Below: From Gipps St to Hirst St

Photos taken 2001, July 2006 and 17 August 2008

The A to Z of 2205: Done St

Done St runs between Wollongong Rd and Firth St. It was named in memory of Rev. John Done, Anglican rector of the Parish of St George in the 1870s. (The Origins of Street Names in the Municipality of Rockdale, compiled by Alderman Ron Rathbone, 1990)

Below: From Firth St

Below: The corner of Forth and Done Sts



Below: From Wollongong Rd







Below: I adore this tree, growing out of the sandstone cutting.

Photos taken 17 August 2008

The A to Z of 2205: Cook St

Cook St was named after Henry Aloe Cook, an early landowner in the area.(The Origins of Street Names in the Municipality of Rockdale, compiled by Alderman Ron Rathbone, 1990)

Above and below: The older style street signs, above, which was black on white wood, have been replaced by the metal blue on yellow in most places. A few of the older style remain.

Below: A fabulous castle in Cook St

Below: One of the things I love about the area are the flights of steps you come across in various places there are rocky outcrops or ridges, enabling you to cut through from one street to another

Arncliffe Community Life Centre

Formerly the The Body of Christ Mission Centre

From their website :

"The church was founded by Pastor Elizabeth Brookshaw in 1982, just after her daughter was miraculously raised from the dead. From this incident, her whole family surrendered their whole lives to God and committed themselves to true repentance. From here, her whole family started to gather together to pray and worship God. This home fellowship continued to grow into a church that was known by the name of The Body of Christ Mission Centre and was blessed with a 2700 square metre property in Arncliffe, Sydney.In November 2003, the senior leadership of the church was handed over to her son and daughter-in-law; Ben & Cisca Irawan, leading a new generation church with a Godly influence. In November 2004, the church formally changed its name to Life Centre. "

The congregants appear to be mainly Indonesian, and there are weekly services held in Indonesian.

What they believe: http://www.lifecentre.org.au/beliefs.html

A taster:

“We firmly stand against and denounce homosexuality, adultery, sexual perversion, same-sex marriages, pornography, gambling, drug use & partaking of intoxicants, physical abuse, satanism, or divination in any form.”

If all that makes your head hurt, you can have it read, utilising the services of their own psychological service - HUM Psychology (Headz Up Ministeries) - see here.

One of the buildings is an old Federation style house, address 19 Dowling St.