Windback Wednesday - Hazelwood Park

The first blocks of what would become the suburb of Hazelwood Park and its surrounding areas was first laid out in 1848, when it was known as the village of Knightsbridge. The Kaurna people, the Traditional Owners of the Adelaide Plains, were the first to live in this area and have cared for this land for thousands of years.

Knightsbridge encompassed parts of what are now the suburbs of Hazelwood Park, Leabrook, Erindale, and Burnside. Designed by Captain Hall of Port Adelaide, the village was divided into eight blocks, with Knightsbridge Road running through the centre. The first home in the area, Knightsbridge House, was built in 1854 by grocer George Taylor. Notably, part of the house was constructed half-underground to better cope with the harsh Australian summers.

In 1853, Francis and Caroline Clark purchased 45 acres and made their home at Hazelwood House, near what is now Olive Grove and Hawthorn Crescent. Originally built in 1847 for Thomas Burr, Deputy Surveyor General, and known as Grove Cottage, the house on this land was renamed by the Clarks in honour of Hazelwood School in Birmingham, England, founded by Caroline’s father, Thomas Wright Hill. In 1915, the Clarks sold their property to the State Government for a modest sum, with the stipulation that it would be preserved as a public park in perpetuity. After being gazetted as a "pleasure resort," Hazelwood Park was initially managed by the Tourist Bureau, before being transferred to the Burnside Council in 1964.

The suburb is named after the historic property, which remains a much-loved park frequented by hundreds of visitors daily.

Photograph: Hazelwood Park, 1920. Burnside Local History Collection.