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Old photos of Sydney

55 photographs of Sydney, from 1890 to 2025 — each pinned to the exact place it was taken.

Bondi Beach in 1920 — EU: Bondi Beach, Sydney, Australia: members of Life Saving Clubs put on a display at a surf carnival. Photograph, ca. (1920) 1920 Bondi Beach in 2015 — Bondi Beach 2015
Then and now: Bondi Beach, 1920 vs 2015
Have an old photo of Sydney? A family album, a postcard, a print from the attic. Pin it to the map and it becomes part of the record.
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What the photos show

The 55 photographs of Sydney on PlaceWas span 9 decades, from 1890 to 2025. 20 of them were taken before 1980; the other 35 are recent views of the same streets and landmarks.8 spots were photographed more than once, so you can compare the same street, square or building across the years.53 of the photos carry a written caption explaining what is in the frame. Every picture is pinned to the place it was taken, so the map below shows where the photographers stood.

Pick a decade to filter the photos below and the map above. Open full map ↗

Places in Sydney through time

Spots photographed more than once — compare the same place across the years.

Sydney From The Air, Sydney — photos through time
Sydney From The Air 10 photos · 1900–2024
MLC Tower, Sydney — photos through time
MLC Tower 9 photos · 1900–2024
Dior, Castlereagh Street, Sydney, Sydney — photos through time
Dior, Castlereagh Street, Sydney 6 photos · 1890–2025
Bondi Beach, Sydney — photos through time
Bondi Beach 4 photos · 1920–2015
Sydney Harbor, Sydney — photos through time
Sydney Harbor 4 photos · 1965–2015
Under The Bridge, Sydney — photos through time
Under The Bridge 4 photos · 1930–2018
Pitt Street (Sydney) on rainy day, - by Sam Hood, Sydney — photos through time
Pitt Street (Sydney) on rainy day, - by Sam Hood 3 photos · 1892–2012
King Street, Sydney, Sydney — photos through time
King Street, Sydney 3 photos · 2016

Stories from Sydney

What contributors wrote about these photographs.

Castlereagh St, Sydney, from near King St from Fred Hardie - Photographs of Sydney, Newcastle, New South Wales and Aboriginals for George Washington Wilson & Co, Sydney, 1892
Castlereagh St, Sydney, from near King St from Fred Hardie - Photographs of Sydney, Newcastle, New South Wales and Aboriginals for George Washington Wilson & Co 1892 Castlereagh Street in Sydney, viewed from near King Street, is shown in this photograph taken between 1892 and 1893 by Fred Hardie, part of a series he produced documenting New South Wales streetscapes for the Scottish…
Sydney, looking south from Fred Hardie - Photographs of Sydney, Newcastle, New South Wales and Aboriginals for George Washington Wilson and Co, Sydney, 1893
Sydney, looking south from Fred Hardie - Photographs of Sydney, Newcastle, New South Wales and Aboriginals for George Washington Wilson and Co 1893 A view looking south over Sydney, photographed around 1892-1893 by Fred Hardie as part of a series commissioned for George Washington Wilson and Co. The series documented the city alongside Newcastle and other parts of…
EU: Bondi Beach, Sydney, Australia: members of Life Saving Clubs put on a display at a surf carnival. Photograph, ca. (1920), Sydney, 1920
EU: Bondi Beach, Sydney, Australia: members of Life Saving Clubs put on a display at a surf carnival. Photograph, ca. (1920) 1920 Members of surf life saving clubs perform at a carnival on Bondi Beach, Sydney, in this photograph from around 1920. Surf carnivals of this kind showcased rescue skills and had become a popular public spectacle on…
EU: Sydney, Newlands House an der Elisabeth Street, links der Hyde Park (1938), Sydney, 1938
EU: Sydney, Newlands House an der Elisabeth Street, links der Hyde Park (1938) 1938 Newlands House on Elizabeth Street in Sydney, Australia, with Hyde Park visible to the left, photographed in 1938. Elizabeth Street runs along the eastern edge of the park through the city center, a busy commercial…
EU: Reisefotos Australien. Sydney. Blick von einem Hochhaus auf eine Kreuzung mit Linksverkehr (1938), Sydney, 1938
EU: Reisefotos Australien. Sydney. Blick von einem Hochhaus auf eine Kreuzung mit Linksverkehr (1938) 1938 A view from a high-rise building over a Sydney street intersection in 1938, showing traffic observing Australia's left-hand driving rules. The photograph captures the city's growing skyline in the years before the Second…
MLC Tower, Sydney, 2012
MLC Tower 2012 The MLC Tower, an office building in Sydney, Australia, photographed in 2012. The tower takes its name from the MLC insurance and financial services company, which has had a long association with Australian commercial…
Sydney in 2015, Sydney, 2015
Sydney in 2015 2015 The Sydney Opera House rises above the harbor, its white sail-shaped roof shells catching the light against the city's downtown skyline. Taken from the water in 2015, the image shows the performing arts venue that has…
No.1 Martin Place, former General Post Office, Sydney, 2022, 01, Sydney, 2022
No.1 Martin Place, former General Post Office, Sydney, 2022, 01 2022 The former General Post Office at No. 1 Martin Place in Sydney, Australia, photographed in 2022. Completed in the late 19th century, the sandstone building long served as the headquarters of Australia's postal service…
1890s · 5 photos
King and Elizabeth Street corner from Sydney, 1890 - photographed by Arthur K. Syer, Sydney, 1890
King and Elizabeth Street corner from Sydney, 1890 - photographed by Arthur K. Syer 1890
Pitt St Sydney from near GPO from Fred Hardie - Photographs of Sydney, Newcastle, New South Wales and Aboriginals for George Washington Wilson and Co, Sydney, 1892
Pitt St Sydney from near GPO from Fred Hardie - Photographs of Sydney, Newcastle, New South Wales and Aboriginals for George Washington Wilson and Co 1892
Castlereagh St, Sydney, from near King St from Fred Hardie - Photographs of Sydney, Newcastle, New South Wales and Aboriginals for George Washington Wilson & Co, Sydney, 1892
Castlereagh St, Sydney, from near King St from Fred Hardie - Photographs of Sydney, Newcastle, New South Wales and Aboriginals for George Washington Wilson & Co 1892
Sydney, looking southeast, from Hotel Australia, - photographer Fred Hardie for G. W. Wilson and Co. of Aberdeen Scotland, Sydney, 1892
Sydney, looking southeast, from Hotel Australia, - photographer Fred Hardie for G. W. Wilson and Co. of Aberdeen Scotland 1892
Sydney, looking south from Fred Hardie - Photographs of Sydney, Newcastle, New South Wales and Aboriginals for George Washington Wilson and Co, Sydney, 1893
Sydney, looking south from Fred Hardie - Photographs of Sydney, Newcastle, New South Wales and Aboriginals for George Washington Wilson and Co 1893
1900s · 4 photos
General Post Office from Moore Street, Sydney, Sydney, 1900
General Post Office from Moore Street, Sydney 1900
King Street, Sydney, Sydney, 1900
King Street, Sydney 1900
Sydney, Sydney, 1900
Sydney 1900
King Street, looking west, Sydney, Sydney, 1900
King Street, looking west, Sydney 1900
1920s · 2 photos
EU: Bondi Beach, Sydney, Australia: members of Life Saving Clubs put on a display at a surf carnival. Photograph, ca. (1920), Sydney, 1920
EU: Bondi Beach, Sydney, Australia: members of Life Saving Clubs put on a display at a surf carnival. Photograph, ca. (1920) 1920
EU: Sydney, Telefonstation. Exteriör. (1925), Sydney, 1925
EU: Sydney, Telefonstation. Exteriör. (1925) 1925
1930s · 7 photos
Sydney Harbour Bridge under construction, Sydney, 1930
Sydney Harbour Bridge under construction 1930
Pitt Street (Sydney) on rainy day, - by Sam Hood, Sydney, 1933
Pitt Street (Sydney) on rainy day, - by Sam Hood 1933
EU: Sydney, Newlands House an der Elisabeth Street, links der Hyde Park (1938), Sydney, 1938
EU: Sydney, Newlands House an der Elisabeth Street, links der Hyde Park (1938) 1938
EU: Reisefotos Australien. Sydney, Bondi Beach, Badende (1938), Sydney, 1938
EU: Reisefotos Australien. Sydney, Bondi Beach, Badende (1938) 1938
EU: Travel photos Australia. Sydney, Bondi Beach. Swimming competition of lifeguards on the beach, spectators (1938), Sydney, 1938
EU: Travel photos Australia. Sydney, Bondi Beach. Swimming competition of lifeguards on the beach, spectators (1938) 1938
EU: Reisefotos Australien. Sydney. Blick von einem Hochhaus auf eine Kreuzung mit Linksverkehr (1938), Sydney, 1938
EU: Reisefotos Australien. Sydney. Blick von einem Hochhaus auf eine Kreuzung mit Linksverkehr (1938) 1938
EU: Sydney, Bondi Beach (1938), Sydney, 1938
EU: Sydney, Bondi Beach (1938) 1938
1950s · 1 photo
ANZAC Day - celebration drinks, marching down Pitt Street, April 1950, from Series 02- Sydney people and streets, 1948-1950, photographed by Brian Bird, Sydney, 1950
ANZAC Day - celebration drinks, marching down Pitt Street, April 1950, from Series 02- Sydney people and streets, 1948-1950, photographed by Brian Bird 1950
1960s · 1 photo
Sydney Opera House under construction, Sydney, 1965
Sydney Opera House under construction 1965
2000s · 1 photo
Sydney Harbour facing west, Sydney, 2009
Sydney Harbour facing west 2009
2010s · 27 photos · showing 12, all 27 on the map ↗
MLC Tower, Sydney, 2012
MLC Tower 2012
Newsstand, Sydney, 2012
Newsstand 2012
Sydney NSW 2000, Australia, Sydney, 2013
Sydney NSW 2000, Australia 2013
State Library Of New South Wales, Sydney, 2015
State Library Of New South Wales 2015
Sydney Harbor, Sydney, 2015
Sydney Harbor 2015
Sydney From The Air, Sydney, 2015
Sydney From The Air 2015
Cbd Botanic Gardens And Potts Point, Sydney, 2015
Cbd Botanic Gardens And Potts Point 2015
Sydney NSW 2000, Australia, Sydney, 2015
Sydney NSW 2000, Australia 2015
Sydney in 2015, Sydney, 2015
Sydney in 2015 2015
Circular Quay, Sydney, 2015
Circular Quay 2015
Sydney Opera House, Sydney, 2015
Sydney Opera House 2015
Art Gallery Of New South Wales, Sydney, 2015
Art Gallery Of New South Wales 2015
2020s · 7 photos
No.1 Martin Place, former General Post Office, Sydney, 2022, 01, Sydney, 2022
No.1 Martin Place, former General Post Office, Sydney, 2022, 01 2022
Dior, Castlereagh Street, Sydney, Sydney, 2022
Dior, Castlereagh Street, Sydney 2022
25MartinPlace podium, Sydney, 2024
25MartinPlace podium 2024
25MartinPlace podium west, Sydney, 2024
25MartinPlace podium west 2024
Sydney King Street 104 seen from the southeast, Sydney, 2024
Sydney King Street 104 seen from the southeast 2024
Christmas Tree in Martin Place, December, Sydney, 2025
Christmas Tree in Martin Place, December 2025
MLCTower, Sydney, 2025
MLCTower 2025