Traditional custodians

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people

The City of Canada Bay is part of the traditional lands of the Wangal clan, one of the 29 tribes of the Eora nation. The Wangal people inhabited what is now known as the City of Canada Bay for thousands of years prior to European settlement. The Wangal people held a deep connection to the land and landscape of the City of Canada Bay. The bushlands and foreshore areas were their lands, their home and part of the territory they were responsible for. 

Traditionally, the lives of the Wangal people were strongly focused around the harbour and its foreshore. The local area of Hen and Chicken Bay was traditionally a major meeting place for Aboriginal people from Port Jackson and the wider Sydney region and as such is a significant cultural and historical site within our City. The Parramatta River, as it is now known, provided a large focus for local traditional food gathering, however, the Wangal people also hunted animals, harvested plants and gathered raw materials in the local area. 

Today, some Aboriginal people living in the area may still have ties to the Wangal people and the Eora nation while others living in the City are likely to have ties with other parts of NSW and Australia.

Aboriginal cultural heritage signage

Aboriginal cultural heritage signage was installed at Timbrell Park and on the Bay Run in February 2022. This signage was proudly funded by the NSW Government in association with the City of Canada Bay.

The following podcast and videos can be accessed from these signs via QR codes.

Welcome to Country:

Smoking ceremony:

Click here for a message from the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council.

Click here to learn more about the Bay Run including the local Indigenous culture, history and ecology of the area.