Newtown Research

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newtown,_New_South_Wales

• The street reputedly follows an ancient Aboriginal track that branched out from the main western track,now beneath Broadway and Parramatta Road, and which continued all the way to the coastal plains around Botany Bay.
• was established as a residential and farming area in the early 19th century
• Newtown’s most rapid development occurred in the late 1800s, with many former farmland other large properties being subdivided and developed as row-houses,known popularly as "2 up ,2 down terrace houses"
• 1870 onwards, Newtown had a large proportion of its residents living in terrace houses,much of which was "two-up two-down" with rear kitchen.
  
• A house of 1 1/2 width at the corner of the street, this last being a commercial premises, or "Corner Store".
• late 1800s onwards, the Newtown area became a major commercial and industrial centre.
• late 1800s, during the first half of the 20th century, and especially during the depression,the area became increasingly run down.
• Many parts of Newtown had gradually become a working class enclave, and for much of the 20th century,
  
• Newtown was a low-income blue collar suburb, often denigrated as a slum.
• post-war period attracted newly-arrived European migrants, and Newtown's population changed radically,becoming home to a sizeable migrant community.
  
• Newtown began to attract university students in the 1960s and 1970s due to cheap rent.
• The trend of gentrification has led to another significant shift in Newtown's demographics. From the 1970s onwards,many major industrial and commercial sites in the Newtown area were closed or vacated