Morpeth is a suburb of the

city of Maitland The City of Maitland is a local government area in the lower Hunter region of New South Wales, Australia. The area is situated adjacent to the New England Highway and the Hunter railway line. The Mayor of the City of Maitland is Cr. David Th ...

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 s ...

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 , e ...

, Australia. It is on the southern banks of the Hunter River at the border between the City of Maitland and

Port Stephens Council Port Stephens Council (also known simply as Port Stephens) is a local government area in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. The area is just north of Newcastle and is adjacent to the Pacific Highway which runs through Raymond T ...

LGAs. The major population centre, where almost all residents of the suburb reside, is the historical town of Morpeth which takes its name from

Morpeth, Northumberland Morpeth is a historic market town in Northumberland, North East England, lying on the River Wansbeck. Nearby towns include Ashington and Bedlington. In the 2011 census, the population of Morpeth was given as 14,017, up from 13,833 in the 2001 ...

, near

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne (Received Pronunciation, RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the la ...

, in England.

History

The

traditional owners Native title is the designation given to the common law doctrine of Aboriginal title in Australia, which is the recognition by Australian law that Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander people) have rights ...

and custodians of the Maitland area are the

Wonnarua The Wonnarua people, otherwise written Wanarruwa, are a group of Aboriginal Australian people united by strong ties of kinship, and who survived in family groups or clans scattered along the inland area of what is now known as the Upper Hunter ...

people. The town of Morpeth was initially created through the private actions of Edward Charles Close, who selected a property of 1,000 hectares and developed it as a river port from 1831-1841. The lieutenant built his house, known as Closebourne, on the property. A two-storey Georgian home made of sandstone, the house became an episcopal residence from 1848-1912, which eventually became the nucleus of St John's Theological College on Morpeth Road. The river port grew steadily throughout the 1830s. St James's Church, located on Tank Street, was built from 1837 to 1840 and was partly designed by John Horbury Hunt is now a Local Government Heritage listing. A major merchant at this time was James Taylor, who built a bond store circa 1850 near the bridge that is now heritage-listed. Morpeth Court House was built circa 1861 in a Greek Revival style and a local police station followed in 1879. The construction of the Great Northern Railway in 1857, bypassing Morpeth, meant that

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

developed as the regional port. Morpeth became less significant commercially, but still survived as a township with its own history and heritage. Today, the town is a popular tourist destination due to its many historical buildings and river bank setting.

Heritage listings

Morpeth has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: * 102 Main Road: Morpeth Bridge * Morpeth Road: Morpeth House and Closebourne House * 19 Tank Street: St James' Anglican Church * 90 Swan Street:

Morpeth Railway Station Morpeth is a railway station on the East Coast Main Line, which runs between and . The station, situated north of Newcastle, serves the market town of Morpeth, Northumberland, England. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains ...

Gallery

File:Morpeth_006961.jpg, Morpeth Station, 1954 File:MorpethPostOffice.JPG, Morpeth Post Office, Swan Street File:OldCourtHouse.JPG, Old Court House, Swan Street File:MorpethBondStores.JPG, Morpeth Bond Stores, Swan Street File:Arnott Bakehouse building.jpg, Arnott Bakehouse, Swan Street File:Historic Arnott Bakehouse sign.jpg, Arnott Bakehouse Plaque File:StJamesChurch.JPG, St James's Church (1840), Tank Street

Notes

# The

Australian Bureau of Statistics The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) is the independent statutory agency of the Australian Government responsible for statistical collection and analysis and for giving evidence-based advice to federal, state and territory governments ...

Census Collection District of Morpeth only includes the township. It excludes persons living on some rural properties close to the township in the remainder of the suburb as well as in newer residential areas of the suburb near the township. This means that the actual population of Morpeth is slightly higher than shown. # Average elevation of the suburb as shown on 1:100000 map 9232 NEWCASTLE. # Area calculation is based on 1:100000 map 9232 NEWCASTLE.

References

{{Suburbs of City of Maitland Suburbs of Maitland, New South Wales Towns in the Hunter Region 1821 establishments in Australia Hunter River (New South Wales)