History & Heritage of Kings Cross
-According to historian and academic Peter Kirkpatrick, during the 1920s Kings Cross began to become “a focus for the artistically inclined … The popular perception of Darlinghurst was to change with the coming of flats to upper William Street and Potts Point, and the modern high-rise culture they brought with them: a new, ‘free’ style of city living …” (Peter Kirkpatrick, The Sea Coast of Bohemia, p.48).
-Following from the increasing population, resulting from the advent of large scale flat construction during the 1920s, the character of Kings Cross was influenced by historical events and corresponding shifts of population and patterns of use from the late 1930s through to the 1970s and beyond. Perhaps the first of these was an influx of refugees accompanying the rise of Fascism in Europe during the 1930s. Kings Cross had attracted migrants since the 1880s and by the end of the 1920s was known as the place where Continental Europeans chose to live in Sydney (Peter Spearritt, Sydney Since the Twenties, p.244).
-During World War II Kings Cross was inundated with American servicemen who resided while on leave in a number of the old mansions and other residences adapted for their use. It has been suggested that the “Americanisation of the Cross, the growth of night clubs and strip clubs, black market trading and rampant prostitution, dates largely from World War 2” (Elizabeth Butel and Tom Thompson, Kings Cross Album, p.105).
- During the 1950s, following on from the Government’s immigration policies, an influx of people from Europe and the Mediterranean regions found their way to Kings Cross, further improving its social and culinary ambience. The character of the area began to change from a residential to a tourist-oriented precinct (Rennie Ellis, Kings Cross, Sydney, pp.20-23).
By Roy LumbyHeritage ArchitectChairman, The 20th Century Heritage Society of NSW
Crimes and drugs
-Organised crime and police corruption was well entrenched in the area-one of Sydney's most notorious illegal casinos operated with impunity for many years, although it was known to all and located only yards from Darlinghurst police station. Much of this activity can be related with Abe Saffron, commonly known as Mr Sin or "the boss of the Cross". This inevitably led to a rise in crime, vice and corruption, a massive increase in the influx and use of heroin, much of which was initially brought in by American servicemen in the pay of drug rings.
From Wikipedia accessed on 30 June 2010
- At the crossroads Sydney Morning Herald (September 18, 2004)
The Cross was once a cosmopolitan hub or an island of sleaze, depending on your view. But now, as the expensive apartments and designer homewares move in, it's just another trendy suburb, writes Tim Dick.
Marijuana, cocaine, amphetamines and, most notably, heroin have all made their mark. But since the heroin drought and the controversial arrival of the medically supervised injecting centre on Darlinghurst Road, the number of discarded syringes in the area has dropped, as have the incidents of people seeing drug users inject in public. But the centre could become isolated, if Anthony Trueman-Farrell is right. The real estate agent believes "there's not going to be anything on that strip except a boutique retail strip".
The injecting centre's existence is defended as staunchly as it is attacked, although the evaluation of its trial period found 78 per cent of residents supported it.
Dr Ingrid van Beek, who runs the centre, doubts whether changes in the Cross will do much to change the presence of drugs. "In 30-plus years, the police service certainly has been successful in containing supply, but certainly has not been successful eliminating [it]," she says. "The only way it could possibly result in less drug users is if there was pressure by new residents in the area to adopt what's called a zero-tolerance approach. From a public health point of view, for marginalised people it is very counter-productive."
-Police blitz a well-behaved Kings Cross
Author: Michael Gormly
Posted: Thursday, 17 December 2009
At times in Kings Cross late on Friday night there seemed to be more police than punters, in every shade of blue – regular police, Riot Squad, plain clothes officers, mounted police, police vehicles of all shapes and sizes and frequent sniffer dog patrols
