Places to visit in and around The Rocks NSW

If you want to know more about this fascinating pocket of Sydney, visit the Rocks Discovery Museum. This free museum documents the history and development of The Rocks through 4 exhibitions: Warrane (pre-1788), Colony (1788–1820), Port (1820–1900) and Transformations (1900–today).

Housed in a restored 1850s sandstone warehouse, the museum is home to a unique collection of images and archaeological artefacts found in The Rocks – some of which you can even hold.

The exhibits are filled with interactive fun, audio and visual elements to bring the history of the area alive.

With exhibitions developed with the Metropolitan Aboriginal Land Council, you can learn about the area's traditional custodians and the impact of European settlement. You’ll also learn about the establishment of the English colony and the time when sailors, whalers and traders made The Rocks their home; and the 1970s union-led protests that preserved this unique part of Sydney.

The museum consists of three buildings: Samson’s Cottage, originally built in 1844; Raphael’s Store from 1853; and Mackellar’s Store from 1854. In 1991, the building we see today was reconstructed based on old photos, plans and archaeological evidence to form the entrance to The Rocks Discovery Museum. It sits nestled on Kendall Lane, which served the former stores and provided access between Argyle Street and Mill Lane and has free entry.

To find the mural of Jack Mundey launch, head to the stairs leading up from the foot of Globe Street to Harrington Street.

Here, you’ll find a clever portrait created by Portuguese street artist Alexandre Farto also known as Vhils, who has carved this large portrait on 2 walls of the stairway.

Take a moment to think about the efforts of Jack Mundey, the Australian union and environmental activist who led the successful campaign to protect the heritage and natural environment of Sydney from excessive and inappropriate development.

Located on Gloucester Street, Susannah Place was built in 1844 by Irish immigrant Edward Riley to create homes for the many working-class families who lived in The Rocks. These were places with tiny backyards, outdoor baths and the occasional rat plague.

Susannah Place has been home to more than 100 families throughout history, and while it has survived modern development, you’ll get an amazing glimpse into the past with the tales of the original 4 terrace houses.

The row of buildings are today managed by the Historic Houses Trust (HHT) and include a lovely corner shop – step inside to see what a store would have been like in the 1920s.

You can visit Susannah Place Museum, where their stories unfold, and see the evidence of change, with number 60 reflecting the 1840s and number 62 is as it looked in the 1970s. Number 58 has been conserved for you to see how the buildings have changed throughout their history.

It’s just $12 for adults and $8 for children or concession card holders. Family tickets are $30.

The Argyle Cut is a tunnel cut through the giant sandstone cliffs that enclose The Rocks. While we see these kind of tunnels regularly today, for it to be cut through the sandstone ridge of The Rocks between the 1830s and 1860s would have been a daunting task when done with convict labour.

The work created Argyle Street, which runs below the Cumberland Street Bridge, and provides access to better port facilities at Millers Point.

While this project began with convict labour contracted stonemasons were brought in when convict transportation ended in 1840 to complete the work more efficiently. The stone quarried from the Argyle Cut was often used to construct the many buildings that you’ll see around The Rocks today, including parts of the Argyle Stores.

The Argyle Cut often comes alive during the annual Vivid Sydney festival, when it’s transformed into a canvas for imaginative lighting and artworks.

When you’re wandering along Gloucester Walk, you can realise how much changed in this area with the building of a new bridge in 1911. Not only this this part of Gloucester Street become a walkway, the houses in this area were demolished and new buildings such as the Glenmore Hotel were built facing Cumberland Street.

This history is celebrated in Foundation Park, marked by a steel skeleton of a terrace house that once stood here. The site was once home to 8 houses developed between 1874 and 1880; today, the smallest terrace has been reconstructed in a skeleton form. The foundations of the original houses are incorporated into the design of the park, and furniture replicates what it used to be like. You can seek out views over Circular Quay and in the distance you can see Government House.

The Argyle Terrace on Playfair Street was built between 1875 and 1877. Today, this simple row of terraces is a lovely place to visit smaller artisan shops.

Playfair Street itself has a rich history – a place of street parties in the 1920s and 1930s, fireworks and bonfires on Empire Day, and even the mass protests of the 1970s. Through these successful protests, a fairer approach to development has occurred to ensure the area’s preservation and sensitive re-use or development occurs.

Come and visit on the weekend, when The Rocks Markets come alive on these streets. You’ll enjoy diverse artisan stalls selling beautifully hand crafted goods, delicious bites and tasty treats as well as live entertainment.

In the early days of the colony, wood block paving was used to surface the streets of Sydney, from the 1880s up until the 1930s.

On this small spot on George Street, at the intersection with Atherden Street, you’ll find a recreation of the wood block paving to give you an idea of what the streets would have looked like. This technology came about when stone paving – from sandstone – was found to crumble under the wheels of carts. Australian hardwood was found to be a durable substitute.

Further along George Street, towards Dawes Point, you can see where the original wood blocks are largely still in place beneath the modern bitumen surface. That section has been left buried to protect it for the future.

In 1994 archaeologists worked for almost 6 months to uncover remains of about 30 houses, shops and pubs that had occupied this site, on Cumberland Street, between 1788 and 1900. The buildings that once stood here were demolished between 1905 and 1914, yet these demolitions ended with the outbreak of World War One, protecting much of the area’s Victorian and Georgian architecture.

Two laneways, Cribb’s Lane and Caraher’s Lane, were also uncovered and have been re-opened. Cribb’s Lane is opposite the entrance to the King George V Recreation Centre and allows you access to the archaeological remains, which were preserved and incorporated into the new Sydney Harbour Youth Hostel.

Its free to visit the remains, but you must book first – email sydneyharbour@yha.com.au.

More than 750,000 artefacts were recovered from the dig, some of which can be seen at The Rocks Discovery Museum.

During the 19th century, The Rocks was depicted as a place of vice - where 'slang and vulgarity were mixed in lavish quantities, where harlots and riffraff, ex-convicts and the scum of all the oceans collected'.

"Suez Canal" (supposedly a pun on 'sewers'), was one of the most unsavoury places in Sydney in its time. It was haunted by prostitutes and larrikins, with brothels, sly grog shops and an opium den. People gathered at the end of a laneway in the courtyard near the British Seaman’s Hotel to place their bets on blood sports like cock fighting. It was said that a brave or foolish person who wandered down the alleyways of The Rocks at night.

Today you can view the life-size reproductions depicting some of the infamous characters of the era, generally known as 'larrikins'. Their female associates, noted for their large hats with feathers were known as 'donnahs'.