Dural, New South Wales facts for kids

Dural is a lovely semi-rural suburb located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It's about 36 kilometres north-west of the main city centre. Dural is part of the beautiful Hills District. It's managed by two local councils: Hornsby Shire and The Hills Shire. A small area called Round Corner is also part of Dural.

A Glimpse into Dural's Past

The land where Dural now stands was originally home to the Darug people. The name Dural comes from an Aboriginal word, Dooral-Dooral. It means a smoking hollow tree.

In April 1817, a surveyor named Richard Dundiate marked the name Dooral on his map. Back then, this name covered a much larger area. It included places like Glenorie, Galston, Arcadia, and Middle Dural.

Dural is located on the Old Northern Road. This historic road was built by convicts between 1825 and 1836. It helped connect early Sydney with the fertile Hunter Valley to the north.

One of the first land grants in the area was given to George Hall in 1879. Before that, a local settler named James Roughley donated land for a church. A sandstone chapel was built around 1846. This chapel, known as St Jude's Church, is now a protected historical site. Dural also got its own Post Office on August 1, 1864.

Who Lives in Dural?

According to the 2021 census, about 7,900 people live in Dural. Most residents, around 64.1%, were born in Australia. However, Dural is a diverse place! Many people have also come from countries like China (4.1%), England (4.0%), India (3.0%), South Africa (2.0%), and Malaysia (1.6%).

English is the main language spoken at home by 69.1% of people. Other languages you might hear include Arabic (3.4%), Cantonese (2.6%), Persian (1.4%), and Italian (1.4%).

When it comes to religion, the most common choices are Catholic (28.1%), No Religion (25.9%), and Anglican (14.9%). Buddhism is also followed by 3.8% of residents.

Families in Dural generally have a higher income than the national average. Most homes are separate houses (80.3%), and many have four or more bedrooms (64.5%). A large number of people in Dural own their homes (81.0%).

Schools in Dural

Dural has several schools, offering different types of education:

• Lorien Novalis School
• Dural Public School
• Redfield College
• Pacific Hills Christian School
• Warrah Rudolf Steiner School
• Middle Dural Public School

Sports and Fun in Dural

Dural is a great place for sports and recreation! It's home to several clubs:

• Dural Rugby Club
• Dural Country Club (which also has soccer teams)
• Redfield Lions Soccer and Rugby Clubs
• Pacific Hills Pumas Soccer Club

The Dural Rugby Club also organises a fun game called Wallatag in the summer. It's played on Friday nights at the Bernie Mullane Sports Complex in Kellyville. The Hills Hawks Junior Rugby League Football Club has its home ground at Dural Park.

Getting Around Dural

Dural doesn't have its own train station. However, you can easily get around using bus services run by CDC NSW. These buses connect Dural to Castle Hill metro station and Pennant Hills railway station. There's also a CDC NSW bus depot located on New Line Road.

Dural on TV

Dural has been a filming location for a few TV shows!

• Between 1985 and 1987, the game show It's a Knockout was filmed here. It was shown across Australia on the Ten Network.
• Dural was also the setting for the wealthy Hamilton family's home in the soap opera Sons And Daughters. This show ran from 1981 to 1987.
• Le Chateau, a famous manor house in Dural, was used as the set for Beauty and The Geek.