Sydney Rows, A Centennial History of Sydney Rowing Club, by Alan May, published in 1970, is reproduced on the Guerin-Foster History of Australian Rowing website. We thank Andrew Guerin for making this book readily accessible.

Sydney Rowing Club is the oldest rowing club in New South Wales. On March 7 1870, a meeting of seven men in the Oxford Hotel, in King Street , Sydney, formally decided on the establishment of a rowing club. On August 27 in the same year, the official opening of the club, to be known as the Sydney Rowing Club and situated at East Circular Quay, was performed by the then Governor of the Colony of New South Wales, the Right Honourable, the Earl of Belmore.

The main activities of the club did not remain for long at East Circular Quay, as heavy water traffic soon forced a move to a large, two storey timber building at Woolloomooloo. Unfortunately, this boathouse, containing a fleet of boats and many valuable mementos, was totally destroyed by fire in March, 1922. A new boathouse was constructed on the same site and officially opened in November of the same year.

The first captain of the club, was Quarton L. Deloitte, an outstanding figure in the history of the club and, indeed, of rowing in New South Wales. It was Deloitte who in 1872, secured the present site at Abbotsford Point. At the time, the land was occupied by the Red House but was, and still is referred to as the Red Cow Inn, a hostelry originally built in 1825 to serve travellers crossing the river at Bedlam Point by ferry on the Great North Road route as well as voyagers by river, to or from the then seat of government, Parramatta and the Port of Sydney. Guests of "mine host", James Bibb, ranged from regimental guards in charge of convict change gangs, to the drovers and landholders from the surrounding rugged Field of Mars district which extended north to the Hawkesbury region.

Later, when the Gladesville Bridge came into being, the Bedlam Punt became a mere memory. A sandstone wall, built into the rear of the Bradley Lounge, is the only remaining portion of the Red Cow Inn. The four nails fixing the plaque to the wall are hand made square nails salvaged from the flooring of the original cottage.

The club retained the licence of the Red Cow Inn, the old bar was transformed into a dining room, a boathouse was built and in later years, the premises were extended to provide a billiard room, living quarters for guests and crews in training as well as a small dance floor.

The election of an architect, Gilbert N Hughes, to the position of honorary secretary in 1927, led to a rebuilding program. The committee realised what an asset the club possessed in this valuable property and working bees were soon at work under the supervision of club captain, Cyril Bluett and honorary secretary G N Hughes

The old building, with its rock hewn cellar, was completely preserved and to cater for the needs of associate members, new dining and lounge rooms were added and a nearby tennis court was made available to members.

At a later date, further additions were made in the form of residential quarters and a larger dance floor for social functions. Unfortunately, from both a club and historical perspective, the main portion of the Red Cow Inn was destroyed by fire on August 25 1934, leaving only the domestic quarters of the building.

In addition to the loss from the fire, of valuable trophies, photos and records dating back to 1870, was the regrettable destruction of a large oil painting of the late Q L Deloitte. Besides being the founder of the club, he was already being referred to as the "father of rowing" in New South Wales. The club is fortunate to have been presented with a fine oil painting of Q L Deloitte, to replace the original destroyed in the 1934 fire.

In 1946 the club decided to discontinue all its activities in the busy Woolloomooloo area and to make "The Branch" at Abbotsford, the focal point of all future developments. The Woolloomooloo boathouse was dismantled and re-erected at Abbotsford Point on the site of the former boathouse. The "Memorial Boathouse", a tribute to club members who served in the Armed Forces in both World Wars, was officially opened on March 15 1947 by the then Governor of New South Wales, Sir John Northcott.

The last fifty years have seen further extensions and renovations. The area previously occupied by the dance floor has been increased and now houses the new club restaurant with its expansive river views. The bar has been re-located and modernised, a members lounge, once again, taking advantage of the view toward the 2000 Olympic site at Homebush Bay. New carpet has been laid throughout. The car park has been extended and fully sealed, with additional boat storage and gymnasium in the area below the restaurant.

In recent years, work has been carried out on the pontoon and boathouse, with repairs to foundations, new electrical wiring and the addition of women's facilities to the once all male environment. This has extended the life of the boathouse for a few more years. However, the growth of the sport in recent times is placing pressure on the club to provide additional, updated facilities for active members, whose ranks now include a significant complement of female members and the new category of active, non-competitive recreational rowers. A strategic plan has been developed in recent years to cater for future development, to provide even better amenities for members, based on available funds

Many of the newer and younger members may not realise, when they are competing in, or viewing regattas from the club grounds, that they are standing on the site of the original Red Cow Inn, a historic landmark in the early history of New South Wales.

This is but a brief history of the Sydney Rowing Club. While it does not detail the rowing activities of the club, too lengthy to be included here, it must be emphasised that the main purpose for which the club was established, is the development and promotion of the sport of rowing.

To this day, through participation, success and reversal in rowing, the Sydney Rowing Club has always been held in the highest esteem by its peers in the sport. With representatives at Club, State and National level, the club continues to be recognised as a leader in the sport. This is due to the example passed on to us by our predecessors, who believed in and gave us our motto: Mens Sana in Corpore Sano which translates into A Sound Mind in A Sound Body.