Stanwell Tops War Memorial Park

The Stanwell Tops War Memorial Park is a memorial site situated in a triangular block of land, directly opposite the Princess Marina Track. It is a much-used memorial, with surrounding communities holding services at the site on Anzac Day and Remembrance Day each year since its construction.

The memorial was a project by the Lions Club of Helensburgh, established because at the time there was no memorial in either Helensburgh or the surrounding local area. The Office of the Lord Mayor of Wollongong, then-Councillor Frank Arkell, was approached to consider granting the Lions Club suitable land. Wollongong City Council offered an area that was conveniently between all areas of the community.

The site was dedicated and consecrated on Saturday 17 April 1982 by chaplins from the Defence Force and by local ministers of religion, representing both the Army and the family of Warrant Officer Kevin “Dasher” Wheatley. Mrs Wheatley and her family were in attendance on the day to lay a tribute to her husband, and she planted the first white cross in the field.

The park contains several memorials including an anchor, a garden and a stone pillar. 

The pillar is over 15 metres high and is made of local stone. It is topped by a flagpole and a bronze bollard. It existed prior to the construction of the memorial park, erected in the 1930s. A memorial plaque bearing a dedication was attached in 1982.

The addition of the anchor was proposed by then Naval Warrant Officer Dennis J. Weatherall to his then Rear Admiral Sir David Martin, with the intention of adding a nautical object as a place of pride in the memorial park. The anchor was originally from the HMAS Sydney II and was collected from storage at the Naval Supply Depot. The Lions Club intends to upgrade the site in 2019, including the addition of memorabilia from both the Army and Royal Australian Air Force, and another plaque for those who served in wars post–1982.