Watsons Bay is a harbourside eastern suburb of Sydney, located 11 km east of the Sydney. It sits on the end of the South Head peninsula and takes its name from the sheltered bay and anchorage on its western side, in Sydney Harbour.
The original inhabitants of the area were the Cadigal people. The Cadigal referred to the area as Kutti. This indigenous group of people fished and collected shellfish in the waters and bays off South Head. They acquired their resources from Camp Cove and carved rock engravings there, which have since eroded from the cliff faces and rock surfaces that line the coastline.
Watson’s Bay was named after Robert Watson (1756–1819), formerly of HMS Sirius. Watson was appointed harbour pilot and harbourmaster of the port of Sydney in 1811 and the first superintendent of Macquarie Lighthouse in 1816.
The first grant of 20 acres (81,000 m2) was made to Edward Laing in 1793 in the Camp Cove Area. Watsons Bay was an isolated fishing village until development began in the 1860s. It remains Australia’s oldest fishing village.
