Auburn, New South Wales

Auburn is a suburb in western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales Australia. Auburn is located 19 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre of the local government area of Auburn Council.

History
The suburb was named after Oliver Goldsmith's poem The Desserted Village, which describes 'Auburn' in England as the loveliest village of the plain.

Commercial area
Auburn has a mixture of residential, commercial and industrial areas. A commercial area is located close to Auburn railway station. 'Auburn Central' is a small shopping centre below residential apartments, between South Parade and the Queen Street mall. Auburn Central features a Woolworths supermarket, Big W discount department store, specialty shops and cafes. There are many multicultural restaurants and cafes.

South of the railway station, the commercial area stretches for approximately 1 km and features many Middle Eastern & Asian shops, restaurants and supermarkets. This has made Auburn a focal point for various immigrant groups in Sydney, especially for significant events such as football matches or political developments in the Middle East.

North of the railway station, commercial and industrial developments are also located along the length of Parramatta Road and surrounding streets. Major developments here include:
 * Harvey Norman's biggest store in Australia.
 * Reading Cinemas is on Parramatta Road.
 * Tooheys Brewery.
 * Revolution Racegear - Australasia's largest race equipment stockist

Transport
Auburn railway station is on the Southern line and Western line of the CityRail network.

Landmarks

 * Auburn Hospital with basic 24-hour emergency facilities is on Norval and Hargrave Streets.
 * Auburn Botanical Gardens

Schools

 * Auburn Girls High School
 * Auburn North Public School
 * Auburn West Public School
 * Auburn Public School
 * St John of God Primary school
 * St Joseph The Worker Primary School
 * Trinity Catholic College
 * Sydney Adventist College, Auburn Campus

Mosques
The Auburn Gallipoli Mosque took thirteen years to construct and was largely funded by the Turkish community in the area. The name of the mosque reflects the legacy of Gallipoli in Turkey and the shared bond between Australian society and the Australian Turkish Muslim Community who constructed the mosque.

Architect Omer Kirazoglu designed it in the Classical Ottoman Style of Architecture characterised by a central dome and minarets. The builder was Ahmet Asim who donated much of his time. It is a source of pride for the local community and whilst considered a Turkish mosque it is frequented by all sections of the Islamic community and is one of Sydney's busiest mosques.

Demographics
Auburn prides itself as having one of the largest refugee communities in Australia. The traditionally Anglo-celtic European population has slowly been replaced by a high percentage of immigrants from Turkish, Lebanese and Vietnamese backgrounds. Auburn also has fast growing Bosnian, Iraqi, Iranian, Afghan, Sudanese and Chinese communities. The five most prominent religions in Auburn are Islam (40.9%), Catholicism (15.3%), No religion (10.3%), Buddhism (6.8%) and Anglican (3.6%).

Notable residents

 * Brad Fittler former rugby league footballer was born in Auburn
 * Jack Lang had a long and close association with Auburn, setting up a successful real estate business there. He went on to serve on the local council, eventually becoming Mayor. He died in Auburn in 1975.
 * Warren Mundine is the first Aboriginal president of the Australian Labor Party. Born in Grafton in 1956, Warren and his family lived in Auburn in the mid-1960s.
 * Channel Seven newsreader Chris Bath was born in Auburn.
 * Parramatta Eels Lock Feleti Mateo was born in Auburn.
 * Newcastle Knights Player Zeb Taia was born in Auburn.
 * Sydney FC and Australian International Footballer Scott Jamieson was born in Auburn.

Pop culture

 * SBS television drama East West 101 was filmed in Auburn.