Hughes, Australian Capital Territory Explained

Type:suburb
Hughes
State:act
City:Canberra
Lga:Woden Valley
Postcode:2605
Est:1963
Elevation:592
Area:1.8
Pop:3,210
Coordinates:-35.333°N 149.094°W
Stategov:Murrumbidgee
Fedgov:Canberra
Dist1:8
Dir1:SSW
Location1:Canberra CBD
Dist2:16
Dir2:W
Location2:Queanbeyan
Dist3:103
Dir3:SW
Location3:Goulburn
Dist4:300
Dir4:SW
Location4:Sydney
Near-Nw:Curtin
Near-N:Deakin
Near-Ne:Deakin
Near-E:Red Hill
Near-W:Curtin
Near-Sw:Phillip
Near-S:Garran
Near-Se:Garran

Hughes is a suburb in the Canberra, Australia district of Woden. The postcode is 2605. The area of the suburb is 1.81 km2.

History

Hughes is named after The Right Honourable William Morris "Billy" Hughes, seventh Prime Minister of Australia from 1915 to 1923. Streets in the suburb are named with the theme of World War I armed services personnel and contemporaries of William Hughes.[1] The suburb was gazetted on 20 September 1962, with a population of nine. Residential construction began in 1963, and by 1974 Hughes had a population of 4050.

Geography

Hughes adjoins the suburbs of Deakin, Garran, Phillip and Curtin. It is bounded by Carruthers Street to the North, Yarra Glen and Yamba Drive to the west, and the Red Hill area of Canberra Nature Park to the east and south.

Geology

Hughes has several different kinds of rock from the Silurian period. Shale from the Yarralumla Formation is in the south west. Cream coloured rhyolite from the Mount Painter Volcanics is found in the north west. Dark purple rhyodacite from the Deakin Volcanics is found in the north of Hughes. In the south east tuff forms a layer on top of the Mount Painter Volcanics. An inactive north west – south east trending fault runs through the middle of the suburb. Movement was down on the north east side.[2]

Demographics

At the, Hughes had a population of 3,210 people.

Suburb amenities

Shopping

A small shopping centre consists of a take-away restaurant, chemist/sub-newsagency, bakery/cafe, supermarket, post office, dry cleaner, hairdresser, real estate agent, and service station and mechanical workshop.

Recreation

Sporting facilities are North Woden Tennis club[3] and Clarrie Hermes Park (Hughes Oval), as well as three local area playgrounds.

Walking trails commence in the north-east of the suburb which run to the north of Federal Golf Course through to Red Hill Nature Reserve. Parts of the suburb have views over the Woden valley and the Woden town centre to the northern reaches of the Brindabellas.

Education

Located in the suburb are Hughes primary school[4] and Hughes pre-school.

Religion

There are three churches in Hughes: Jehovah's Witnesses, Canberra Christadelphians and the Baptist Church[5]

Other

St Andrews village is a retirement village, that was controversially built next to Yarra Glen, the highway bounding the west side of the suburb.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Suburb Name search results. ACT Environment and Sustainable Development. 5 February 2014.
  2. Henderson, G. A. M.. Matveev, G.. Geology of Canberra, Queanbeyan and Environs . 1:50000 . 1980.
  3. Web site: Home.
  4. http://www.hughesps.act.edu.au/
  5. http://www.hughesbaptist.org/