Leichhardt Rowing Club formed in 1886 is one of the oldest rowing clubs in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, Australia. The clubhouse has occupied sites on

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's,

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at Leichhardt since 1886. Leichhardt is an all-level competitive and recreational rowing club, with a long history of supporting women's rowing. The club has enjoyed a rebirth in the new millennium partly due to the success of its Masters, Corporate Challenge and learn-to-row programs as well as a cherished partnership with Pymble Ladies College.

History

S.G Davison, the Mayor of Leichhardt presided over a public meeting at the Leichhardt Council Chambers on 29 May 1886 which was called for the purpose of forming a rowing club. Permission was obtained from the Crown for the Leichhardt Park Trustees to permit the use of water frontage for baths and rowing club sheds through the efforts of Solomon Hyam MLA. After a boatshed was built,

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formally opened the new club at a ceremony on 24 September 1887 before the largest group of people ever assembled on Leichhardt Park. The club was established free from the pressure of the amateur principle in place at

and

Mercantile Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. Traders generally negotiate through a medium of cred ...

. It was for both "manual labourers" and "brain toilers" and

Parkes Parkes may refer to: * Sir Henry Parkes (1815–1896), Australian politician, one of the earliest and most prominent advocates for Australian federation Named for Henry Parkes * Parkes, New South Wales, a regional town * Parkes Observatory, a radi ...

, who described rowing as "a healthy, beautiful and manly exercise", expressed his approval of the club's democratic principle regarding membership. The club took delivery of its first boat – a single skiff – in late 1887. Life membership subscriptions paid by some of the foundation directors were used to fund a few further skiff purchases. Leichhardt was admitted to the New South Wales Rowing Association in March 1893. A severe storm fully destroyed the club and its fleet of boats in 1897 but rebuilding and replacement was fully complete by 1900. The club's initial racing colours were buff and blue but by 1902 club equipment was being painted in red and blue, the club's livery ever since. Henry Hauenstein was the club's first selected Olympic competitor, rowing in the men's eight at

Stockholm 1912 The 1912 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad () and commonly known as Stockholm 1912, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, between 6 July and 22 July 1912. The opening ceremony was he ...

. He had regularly appeared in the New South Wales state eight since 1907. Over 100 club members left to see active service in

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and a number fell. After the armistice Hauenstein and fellow club-member Tom McGill rowed (along with Middleton of the

Sydney Rowing Club Sydney Rowing Club is the oldest rowing club in New South Wales, Australia formed in 1870. It has occupied its current site on Port Jackson's Parramatta River at Abbotsford, New South Wales, Abbotsford Point since 1874. The club has a focus on it ...

) in the victorious AIF crew at Royal Peace Regatta who won the cup for eight-oared boats presented by

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. In time, the King's Cup, became the trophy presented to the winning men's eight at the annual

Australian Rowing Championships The Australian Rowing Championships is an annual rowing event that determines Australia's national rowing champions and facilitates selection of Australian representative crews for World Championships and the Olympic Games. It is Australia's pre ...

. At the commencement of World War II the club had 40 active members. By the war's end 90 club members had served in the forces. The Australian Military Forces occupied the park, foreshore and clubhouse from 1943 and the boats were rehoused at the neighbouring Haberfield Rowing Club. Leichhardt Rowing Club began co-operating with nearby ladies rowing clubs from about 1910. Women began rowing for the club in the 1950s. In 1976 the club constitution was changed to admit women as constitutional members. The 1950s was a golden era for the club. Leichhardt won the Sydney premiership four times, including a hat trick, was runner-up four other times and third in the other two years. Four club men were selected for Olympic representation at

Helsinki 1952 The 1952 Summer Olympics (, ), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad (, ) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952, were an international multi-sport event held from 19 July to 3 August 1952 in Helsinki, Finland. After Japan declared in ...

and five for Melbourne 1956.Although rowing no longer is part of the Empire/Commonwealth Games, there was one representative in 1950, four in 1954 (Canada), and eight in 1958 (Wales). The 1950s also produced a small but successful squad of Australian Championship women in four oared events with Lionel Robberds A.M.Q.C as both coxswain and coach. By 1976, the club constitution was amended to include women. Len Macpherson, club life member from 1961, recruited students from neighboring schools and by 1980 had achieved state and national success with representation at New Zealand and the Royal Canadian Henley. The mid-1980's with Michael (Mick) Lowrey as coach, achieved similar outcomes with students from Sydney Girls High School. In 1980, the administration of women's rowing in NSW was transferred to the New South Wales Rowing Association (NSWRA) and with that, the formal development of girls’ college rowing. Coach Lowrey was awarded Coach of the Year by the NSWRA for the 1990 – 1991 season. At one stage, women club members held both the national open and lightweight scull championship simultaneously. By 1994, Gillian Campbell, the first female club captain and 1992 Olympian, had been a sports mistress at Pymble Ladies College. Rowing was introduced to the college sports program and on an initiative by the college principal, Gillian Moore A.O, a strong partnership has been of great benefit to students, members and both parties since the late 1990s. The new millennium has introduced increased participation for both men and women in masters rowing whilst maintaining its junior development program. Club administration is dependent upon the voluntary efforts of the executive and committee. Most recently, at the 2020 annual general meeting, Daniela Borgert was elected club Captain after a successful representative State Masters career having first joined Leichhardt Rowing Club in the 1980s as a coxswain at just 14 years old.

Club Presidents

Fred Walsh was the club's first President, holding the position from 1886 to 1893. FG Baker was president during World War II and instrumental in a new clubhouse built in 1940. However, by 1942, Neil McCallum as Club Captain provided support in negotiation with both council and military officials following wartime waterfront acquisitions in Leichhardt Park. The “new” clubhouse was then relocated to its current site. Since 1946, thirteen members have served as president until 1985. Two of those as life members, Robert (Stan) Jones 1938 and Barry Moynahan 1970, were awarded the O.A.M for services to the club and sport in general. In the period from 1986 to 2001, the position of President was held by Robert W Stone, a former state champion oarsman and national winning coach who was signatory to the 2001 formal agreement with the Uniting Church and Pymble Ladies College. This unique event attracted formal negotiation from both state and national rowing associations. Approval at state government ministerial level was given to the long-term arrangement through a reserve trust. Notwithstanding the club/college partnership, a characteristic of all Presidents over many years has been the ability to actively engage members, parents ad retired rowers in support. * 1886 – 1893: F Walsh * 1894: CC Marshall * 1895 – 1902: HS Brotherwood * 1903: J Keep * 1904 – 1915: G Nixon * 1916 – 1935: TJ Hoskins * 1936: WH Lambert * 1937 – 1945: FG Baker * 1946 – 1948: AD Watts * 1949 – 1953: ACC Kayser * 1954: AC Kayser/ J Hurley * 1955: J Hurley * 1956: DC Tanner * 1957 – 1958: GV Reid * 1959: GV Reid/HCB Edmondson * 1960 – 1963: HCB Edmondson * 1964: RS Jones * 1965: DJ Docherty * 1966 – 1967: RS Jones * 1968: PM Evatt * 1969 – 1970: LR Macpherson * 1971 – 1975: B Moynahan * 1976 – 1977: RS Jones * 1978 – 1979: B Moynahan * 1980 – 1981: V Williamson * 1982 – 1985: NT McCallum * 1986 – 2001: R Stone * 2002 – 2003: B Moynahan * 2004 – 2006: M Bath * 2007 – 2012: T Clare * 2013 – 2015: C Bartlett * 2016 – 2018: J Milne * 2019 – present: S Duff AIF1crew 1919

Members

Notable past members include: * W Lambert was Leichhardt's first state title holder winning the NSW Sculling Championship in 1894,1895 & 1899. He was later a Mayor of Leichhardt. * Lt. Tom McGill was a member of the victorious AIF men's eight at the 1919 Royal Peace Regatta held following the end of

. He rowed in NSW King's Cup crews from 1920 to 1922. *

H.V. Evatt Herbert Vere "Doc" Evatt, (30 April 1894 – 2 November 1965) was an Australian politician and judge. He served as a justice of the High Court of Australia from 1930 to 1940, Attorney-General and Minister for External Affairs from 1941 to 194 ...

the Australian

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, politician and writer who was leader of the

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from 1951 to 1960. * Professor Frank Cotton – Renown athletic physiologist in the identification of athletic potential in the 1950s *

Peter Evatt Peter Maitland Evatt (5 January 1922 – 23 December 1972) was an Australian rower. He competed in the men's coxless four event at the 1956 Summer Olympics. He was the national single-sculls rowing champion in 1953, and won a gold medal in ...

– 1956 Olympian and national representative sculler and coach. * John Harrison and Edward “Ted” Curtain – Both club Life Members and national representatives for their design and development of the “Leichhardt Rowing Ergometer” in the late 1950s based on the “Cotton” principals. Curtain was Club Captain 1956-1957 and 1959–1960. * Steve Roll – Joined the club in 1952. State Champion in both Open and Lightweight rowing and sculling. Australian Sculling Champion in 1958, Commonwealth Games bronze medallist in 1958, Club Captain 1958 and 1961, and Life Member from 1961. In 2019 Steve is still active around the club as a valued coach. *

Lionel Robberds Lionel Philip Robberds, AM, King's Counsel (2 April 1939 – 31 March 2024) was an Australian representative rowing coxswain, national representative and world champion squash player and barrister. In rowing, he was seven times a national c ...

A.M.Q.C. – Australian representative coxswain at 14 years of age at the 1954 Commonwealth Games. Coxswain and coach in many winning State and National Championships over 20 years, Olympian and current Club Patron. * William “Bill” Monaghan – Joined the Club in 1950. Loyal Club rower and volunteer, served as a committee member and active in the Masters rowing category in his 80s. *

Rusty Robertson Russell Robertson (1927 – 17 February 1990), known as Rusty Robertson, was a New Zealand-born, world class rowing coach of New Zealand and later, Australian national representative rowing crews. He was the national rowing coach of New Zealand ...

– New Zealand Olympic and Australian National coach. In the late 1980s became a mentor to Leichhardt coaches and competitive members. Olympic representative members include:http://www.rowinghistory-aus.info/club-histories/leichhardt/Appendix08.php Leichhardt History * Lt. Henry Hauenstein, Olympic competitor

and member of the victorious AIF men's eight at the 1919 Royal Peace Regatta. * Arthur Bull, national sculling champion 1922 & 1923 and Olympic competitor

Paris 1924 The 1924 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad () and officially branded as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The opening ceremony was held on 5 July, but some competitions had al ...

. *

Mervyn Finlay Mervyn David Finlay (17 June 1925 – 2 July 2014) was an Australian judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales and Queen's Counsel. He was a WWII RAAF officer, represented Australia at rowing in the 1952 Summer Olympics and was a NS ...

, Nimrod Greenwood, Geoff Williamson and David Anderson Olympic bronze medallists

. *

Stuart Mackenzie Stuart Mackenzie (5 April 1936 - 20 October 2020) was an Australian rower. He was an Australian champion and Olympic medalist, who also competed for Great Britain at the 1962 World Championships. Club and state rowing Mackenzie was educated at ...

Olympic silver medalist Melbourne1956. * Geoff Williamson, David Anderson, Peter Evatt and

John Harrison John Harrison ( – 24 March 1776) was an English carpenter and clockmaker who invented the marine chronometer, a long-sought-after device for solving the History of longitude, problem of how to calculate longitude while at sea. Harrison's sol ...

Olympic competitors Melbourne 1956. *

Max Annett Max Annett (6 February 1931 – 6 July 2015) was an Australian representative rower. He competed in the men's coxed four event at the 1960 Summer Olympics. Club and state rowing Annett took up rowing at the Nepean Rowing Club and then row ...

Peter Waddington Peter Anthony James "Tank" Waddington (6 March 1947 – 21 March 2018), often credited as P. A. J. Waddington was a British police officer and later an academic at the University of Wolverhampton, in the United Kingdom. He is known for his resear ...

John Hudson John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Ep ...

(cox), and Ted Curtain (coach) were only Australian crew (a 4+) to make a final at Rome 1960. * Peter Dickson Olympic silver medallist

Mexico City 1968 The 1968 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Mexico 1968 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 12 to 27 October 1968, in Mexico City, Mexico. These were the first Ol ...

. *

Gillian Campbell Gillian Margaret Campbell (born 21 August 1960) is an Australian former representative rower. In the six seasons from 1988 to 1993 she was consistently in the top-tier of Australian heavyweight women scullers winning ten national sculling titles ...

competitor at Barcelona 1992 and the club's first female captain 1988–1992.

References

Footnotes

{{reflist

Bibliography

* Kavanagh, Merle (1986) ''On These Bright Waters, A Centennial History of Leichhardt Rowing Club 1886–1986'' (reproduced o
Guerin-Foster
* May, Alan (1970) ''Centennial History of the Sydney Rowing Club'', Sydney Rowing Club (reproduced o
Guerin-Foster
* Kavanagh, Merle (2006) ''Rowing On with Leichhardt''

External links

* http://www.lrc.com.au Rowing clubs in Australia Sports clubs and teams established in 1886 1886 establishments in Australia Sports clubs and teams in Sydney