East Gresford is a village in the

Hunter Region The Hunter Region, also commonly known as the Hunter Valley, is a region of New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately to north of Sydney. It contains the Hunter River and its tributaries with highland areas to the north and so ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

Dungog Shire Dungog Shire is a local government area in the Hunter region of New South Wales, Australia. The Shire is situated adjacent to the Barrington Tops and consists predominantly of very rugged to hilly country which becomes less rugged from north to ...

. The village is located north of

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

and the nearest major centres are

Singleton Singleton may refer to: Sciences, technology Mathematics * Singleton (mathematics), a set with exactly one element * Singleton field, used in conformal field theory Computing * Singleton pattern, a design pattern that allows only one instance ...

some southwest and Maitland to the south. In the , it had a population of 289.

History

The traditional owners of the area are the

Gringai Gringai otherwise known as ''Guringay'', is the name for one of the Australian Aboriginal people who were recorded as inhabiting an area of the Hunter Valley in eastern New South Wales, north of Sydney. They were united by a common language, stron ...

clan of the Wonnarua people, a group of

Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...

. The town is probably named for Gresford in

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

Location

There are actually two small villages with the name 'Gresford'. There is Gresford (or West Gresford) on the Singleton side and East Gresford on the

Maitland Maitland is an English and Scottish surname. It arrived in Britain after the Norman conquest of 1066. There are two theories about its source. It is either a nickname reference to "bad temper/disposition" (Old French, ''Maltalent''; Anglo Norm ...

side. It appears that Gresford is the original township, as it is older and the location of the school and local Anglican church. But East Gresford is much larger and has the main shopping area. It is also home to the Gresford Scorpions Soccer Club. The Gresford & District Community Group produces the Gresford News, a monthly four colour production which reports on activities in the district. It has a circulation of 800. The Community Group is also responsible for the creation of an arboretum featuring endangered and local native trees. Now in its third year of development there is increasing interest by groups to visit and learn about these important shrubs and trees. East Gresford is close to the

Barrington Tops National Park The Barrington Tops National Park is a protected national park located in the Hunter Valley in New South Wales, Australia. Gazetted in 1969, the park is situated between Scone, Singleton, Dungog, Gloucester and East Gresford. The park is part ...

, which includes the highest peak in the Hunter Valley and is a

World Heritage site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

. It also snows in the area each winter. In 2020 the annual Gresford Show was held in March. The highly successful Gresford Billycart Derby was run for many years on Easter Saturday. It ceased due to the Covid outbreak and will not recommence. The showground is used as a camping site as it is located beside the

Allyn River Allyn River, a perennial stream of the Hunter River catchment, is located in the Hunter region of New South Wales, Australia. Course Allyn River rises on Allyn Range, on the slopes of the Gondwana Rainforests Barrington Tops, west of Careys Pe ...

. More information and updates on activities can also be obtained from the monthly publication of the Gresford News which is also available on-line.

Climate

The areas surrounding East Gresford have a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

(''Cfa'') with hot summers and cool drier winters, similar to the

Greater Western Sydney Greater Western Sydney (GWS) is a large region of the metropolitan area of Greater Sydney, New South Wales (NSW), Australia that generally embraces the north-west, south-west, central-west, and far western sub-regions within Sydney's metropoli ...

region.

References

External links

SMH - Gresford - Culture and History

Town website
{{authority control Suburbs of Dungog Shire Towns in the Hunter Region