Parramatta
Parramatta is technically the second oldest city or as they were called back then, settlements in Australia, being founded in 1788.
The original name was “Rosehill” before being renamed to Parramatta in 1791.
The name comes from the Aboriginal word “Burramatta” which translates to “The place where the eels lie.”
The area Parramatta has its roots in farming when a fellow entrepreneur named Governor Phillip was seeking fertile land to grow food and start his own Suburgia.
In order to do so, he employed 500 convicts to undertake what can only be described as pretty inconvenient.
Years of harsh and cruel conditions followed, but it was finally worth it when a proper settlement was established. Little did Governor Phillip know that the founding of this little settlement would eventually lead to the building of the most important landmark in all of Parramatta; the Westfield Mall.
Parramatta was actually the first in NSW and one of the first settlements in Australia to introduce social services such as a post office, a jail and a shopping centre. Prior to that, people would just go to their friendly neighbourhood Koala for all of their needs. It was during this period of time that Australia realised that Koala’s made for terrible customer service workers.