Woolloomooloo is home to Artspace, an independent, not-for-profit, contemporary art space which is located in the heritage-listed Gunnery building.

The current spelling of "Woolloomooloo" is derived from the name of the first homestead in the area, Wolloomooloo House, built by the first landowner John Palmer.

To the east lies a hill with windmills and a "New Prison", and land grants on the peninsula that is now the suburbs of Potts Point and Elizabeth Bay.

[4] The area slowly started to change after expensive houses were built in Elizabeth Bay and further east and a road was needed from Sydney.

In February 1973, the Builders Labourers Federation placed a two-year long green ban on the suburb to stop the destruction of low-income housing and trees.

51.5% of people were born in Australia; the next most common countries of birth included England 5.4%, New Zealand 3.7%, China (excluding Special Administrative Regions (SARs) and Taiwan) 2.4%, Vietnam 1.6%, and the United States of America 1.5%.

The area's commerce was dominated by shipping at the wharf and by the regular influx of sailors and officers from the Garden Island base of the Royal Australian Navy.

[11] A new complex was approved to replace the wharf in Woolloomooloo Bay, but when demolition work was due to begin in January 1991, locals blocked entrance to the site.

Notable residents include actor Russell Crowe, who lives in a $14 million penthouse which as a result has become famous in Australia and abroad and one of the most expensive and sought after places in the country.

Devoted to the development of certain new ideas and practices in contemporary art and culture, since the early 1980s Artspace has been building a critical context for Australian and international artists, curators and writers.

[14] The Andrew "Boy" Charlton Pool, sits on the western side of Woolloomooloo Bay, amongst the Royal Botanic Gardens.