This suburb was created in 2008 from land which was once part of Caringbah. The land was acquired in part by Thomas Holt who established his Sutherland Estate in the 1860s. It included most of what is currently known as the Sutherland Shire. Holt later leased most of his estate to the Holt Sutherland Estate Land Company who created estates for residential settlement. Part of the area was also once owned by Patrick Dolan. Land in this suburb was made available for sale from about 1910. After 1916 there were several further subdivisions encouraged by the waterfront views of Port Hacking. This suburb also includes historic homes such as Fernleigh a nineteenth century sandstone house. Three main roads Willarong, Port Hacking and Gannons Roads provide access to the area. The tramway line which was in operation from 1911 to 1931 provided better transport to the area and bus services which moved visitors and residents to the waterway from tram stops. Market gardens and poultry farms were the main livelihoods of permanent settlers. Post World War Two saw land taken up be returning soldiers and young families moving to new subdivisions. Amenities and services were slow however to serve their needs.
The oldest house in Caringbah South.
Fernleigh House, in Fernleigh Rd, Caringbah South, was built from sandstone quarried on site and timber sourced locally in the late 1800s.
The 40 acres of land on which it was originally located was purchased by John Connell Laycock in 1858. Ownership of the land was transferred to Thomas Holt after Laycock defaulted on his mortgages, and subsequently sold to Charles York in 1873. It is a matter of some conjecture whether the house was built by Laycock in 1859-60 or by York in 1875, where it was known as York House. The Gannon family acquired the property in 1888 and it is believed they altered the building and renamed it 'Fernleigh' in 1889.
Over the years the house was bought and sold a number of times and several alterations were made before it was purchased by Errol and Ivy Alcott in 1946 or 47. During the Alcott era Fernleigh operated as a private zoo, housing a menagerie including Macaque monkeys, kangaroos, emus, bats, Shetland ponies, dogs and snakes. The property appeared in a number of television shows in the 1960s. Apparently several of the female kangaroos that played 'Skippy' lived at Fernleigh and the launch of 'Tie me Kangaroo Down, Sport' by Rolf Harris, an Alcott family friend, was held on Fernleigh's front lawn.
Fernleigh House has a State Heritage listing that recognises its historical significance.
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