Baulkham Hills, New South Wales

Baulkham Hills is a suburb in the Hills District of Greater Western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 31 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district within the local government area of The Hills Shire, with a small portion south of the M2 Motorway in the City of Parramatta. Baulkham Hills is the administrative seat of The Hills Shire, an outer metropolitan shire within Greater Sydney. The suburb is also the most populous within the Hills Shire. It is known colloquially as “Baulko”.
Geography.
Baulkham Hills is predominately a residential suburb of the Hills District, with Norwest Business Park in the northern part of the suburb. Baulkham Hills Junction is the intersection of three major roads; Windsor Road, Old Northern Road, and Seven Hills Road. It is also bound by Old Windsor Road and the North-West T-way in the west; and the Hills Motorway in the south, forming part of the National Highway.
History.
The land that is now called Baulkham Hills was originally home to the Bidjigal people, who are believed to be a clan of the Darug people, who occupied all the land to the immediate west of Sydney. The best-known Aboriginal person from that time is Pemulwuy, a Bidjigal leader who led the Indigenous resistance movement against the British forces, including sacking farms in Castle Hill, before his eventual capture and execution by the British militia.
The Bidjigal people are today commemorated by Bidjigal Reserve which straddles the suburbs of , Baulkham Hills, , and .
The first European settler in the Baulkham Hills Shire was William Joyce. In 1794 he was given a grant of 30 acres (121,000 m²) in what became Baulkham Hills. The suburb was largely made up of land grants until the mid 19th century, when many of these started to be subdivided into farms. This was accelerated by the construction of the Rogans Hill Railway Line. Urban developments were expedited from the 1960s. The name Baulkham Hills was given to the area by Andrew McDougall, a settler from Buckholm Hills, County of Roxburgh, Scotland. The name, which reminded McDougall of his homeland, was officially recognised in 1802. Baulkham Hills Post Office opened on 1 April 1856.
On 29 June 2018, a small portion of the Baulkham Hills suburb was proclaimed as part of the new suburb of Norwest.
Heritage listings.
Baulkham Hills has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
Demographics.
According to the , there were 37,050 residents in Baulkham Hills. 60.1% of residents were born in Australia. The most common countries of birth were China 6.9%, India 4.8%, England 2.7%, South Korea 2.0% and Sri Lanka 1.6%. 61.8% of residents spoke only English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Mandarin 8.3%, Cantonese 4.1%, Korean 2.6%, Hindi 2.3% and Tamil 1.6%. The most common responses for religious affiliation were Catholic 26.6%, No Religion 23.6%, Anglican 14.2% and Hinduism 5.7%.
Transport.
Baulkham Hills is primarily accessible by road. At the intersection known as Baulkham Hills Junction several major roads meet including: Seven Hills Road, Old Northern Road and Windsor Road. The fastest route from the Sydney CBD is via the M2 Hills Motorway, exiting at Windsor Road.
Baulkham Hills is serviced by the Hillsbus bus company, which provides services to the nearby commercial centres of Castle Hill, Parramatta and frequent services to the Sydney CBD. Hillsbus provides services to the City via routes 610/610X which cover the previous , 614X and 615X. The 610/610X services can also be caught in the westbound direction serving Kellyville. Services are also provided to St. Leonards, Milsons Point and North Sydney, through route 612X.
 provides a high-frequency service to the areas around Parramatta, Pennant Hills and Hornsby.
There is no railway station in Baulkham Hills. In the past, there was the Rogans Hill line, connecting the suburb to Parramatta. Railway Street near Baulkham Hills Junction is a reminder of this. It was closed down in 1930 due to traffic problems on Windsor Road and large financial losses. Land owned by the rail authority was sold to the Hills Bowling Club in the mid-1970s to build their two front bowling greens. The closest Sydney Metro Northwest stations are Castle Hill, Hills Showground and Norwest.
Commercial area.
Stockland Baulkham Hills is a shopping centre, located on the intersection of Windsor Road and Old Northern Road. It features supermarkets operated by Coles, Woolworths, and Aldi plus 70 specialty shops. A redevelopment was completed in 2008 to significantly expand the floor space of the centre.
In the northern part of the suburb, there is another shopping centre called Norwest Marketown, together with many other businesses. The Norwest Business Park located nearby is partially in Baulkham Hills and mostly in Bella Vista.
Hospital.
The Hills Private Hospital on Windsor Road (near the corner of Merindah Road) was redeveloped into a rehabilitation and mental health hospital, after the previous hospital's owners, Healthscope, moved its operations to the nearby Norwest Business Park. The hospital includes a 92-bed rehabilitation unit and a 19-bed mental health unit, providing both inpatient and day program services.
Parks and reserves.
Baulkham Hills features a number of parks and reserves, such as the Bidjigal Reserve (previously known as Excelsior Reserve), with native fauna such as koala, swamp wallaby, echidna, and eastern water dragon. Smaller reserves include the Sophia Doyle reserve and the Crestwood Reserve, which are habitat to brushtail and ringtail possums and a wide range of birds and lizards.
The Baulkham Hills Shire Bushland Conservation Committee is a voluntary committee of Council that assists with the management of the Shire's bushland.
Schools.
Baulkham Hills High School also has an Army Cadet Unit, which is open only to students at Baulkham Hills High School.
Places of worship.
Baulkham Hills has some 15 places of worship belonging to various Christian denominations including:
A Baha'i Spiritual Assembly is also located in the suburb.
Culture.
Baulkham Hills has a public library. It does not have a theatre or a cinema; although these are found in the adjacent suburb of Castle Hill where many residents make use of them. The regions community radio station, Alive 90.5, broadcasts from studios and a transmission tower in the suburb.
Events.
The annual Orange Blossom Festival is held in Baulkham Hills Shire each September. The HYPE Festival is held every April during National Youth Week and again in September during the Orange Blossom festival and attracts large crowds of youths each year. It has featured high-profile Australian music acts such as Gerling, Something With Numbers, Parkway Drive, and The Getaway Plan.