Drinking Trough Animal MemorialPrint Page

The Memorial attempts to create the atmosphere of the New South Wales State abattoirs which operated on the current site of Sydney Olympic Park between 1913–1988.  

Five animal drinking troughs, salvaged from the Abattoir, are buried in the ground and planted with flowers including “Forget-Me-Nots”. The animal troughs are set up to resemble graves and at the end of each of them is a timber headstone upon which is attached a hand made ceramic tile. Each tile features the verse of a nursery rhyme, a reminder of how our stories, culture and industry are intertwined.

The Abattoirs were officially opened in 1913 and by 1923 the Homebush Abattoir was the biggest of its kind in the Commonwealth and employed up to 1600 men. It had a killing capacity of 18000 to 20000 sheep, 1500 cattle, 2000 pigs and 1300 calves per day. The economic viability of the Abattoir declined with time and it was officially closed in June 1988.

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