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Archaeological evidence indicates that human beings have inhabited the area around
Newcastle, New South Wales Newcastle, also commonly referred to as Greater Newcastle ( ; ), is a large Metropolitan area, metropolitan area and the second-most-populous such area of New South Wales, Australia. It includes the cities of City of Newcastle, Newcastle and Ci ...
for at least 6500 years. In 2009, archaeologist uncovered over 5,534 Aboriginal artefacts, representing three occupation periods. In the 1820s, the Reverend Lancelot Threlkeld worked with local Awabakal man
Biraban Biraban ( – 14 April 1846) was a leader of the Awabakal people, an Aboriginal Australian people who lived in the area around what is today Lake Macquarie. His native name prior to Awabakal initiation was We-pohng; his naming as Biraban is ref ...
to record the Awabakal language. Since 1892, the Indigenous people of Newcastle have come to be known as the Awabakal. The first European to explore the area was Lieutenant
John Shortland John Shortland (5 September 1769 – 21 January 1810) was an officer of the Royal Navy, the eldest son of John Shortland.Sydney Cove Sydney Cove (Eora language, Eora: ) is a bay on the southern shore of Sydney Harbour, one of several harbours in Port Jackson, on the coast of Sydney, New South Wales. Sydney Cove is a focal point for community celebrations, due to its central ...
. On his return, Lt. Shortland entered "a very fine coal river", which he named after New South Wales' Governor,
John Hunter John Hunter may refer to: Politics *John Hunter (British politician) (1724–1802), British Member of Parliament for Leominster * John Hunter (Canadian politician) (1909–1993), Canadian Liberal MP for Parkdale, 1949–1957 *Sir John Hunter ( ...
. The
coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal i ...
mined from the area was the
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
colony's first export. Newcastle gained a reputation as a "hellhole" as it was where the most dangerous convicts were sent to dig in the coal mines as punishment. Newcastle remained a penal settlement until 1822, when the settlement was opened up to farming. Military rule ended in 1823 and prisoner numbers were reduced to 100 while the remaining 900 were sent to
Port Macquarie Port Macquarie, sometimes shortened to Port Mac and commonly locally nicknamed Port, is a coastal city on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, north of Sydney, and south of Brisbane, on the Tasman Sea coast at the mouth of the ...
. After the town was freed from the influence of penal law it began to acquire the aspect of a typical Australian
pioneer Pioneer commonly refers to a person who is among the first at something that is new to a community. A pioneer as a settler is among the first settling at a place that is new to the settler community. A historic example are American pioneers, perso ...
settlement, and free settlers soon poured into the hinterland. Today, the Port of Newcastle remains the economic and trade centre for the resource rich
Hunter Valley The Hunter Region, also commonly known as the Hunter Valley, Newcastle Region, or simply Hunter, spans the region in northern New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately to north of Sydney. It contains the Hunter River and its ...
. It is the world's largest coal export port and Australia's oldest and second largest tonnage throughput port. The old
central business district A central business district (CBD) is the Commerce, commercial and business center of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides wit ...
contains a considerable number of historic buildings, dominated by Christ Church Cathedral. Other noteworthy buildings include Fort Scratchley, the Ocean Baths, the old
Customs House A custom house or customs house was traditionally a building housing the offices for a jurisdictional government whose officials oversaw the functions associated with importing and exporting goods into and out of a country, such as collecting ...
, the 1920s
City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...
, the 1890s Longworth Institute, and the 1930s
art deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...
University House.


Pre-European settlement

The
Worimi The Worimi (also spelt Warrimay) people are Aboriginal Australians from the eastern Port Stephens and Great Lakes regions of coastal New South Wales, Australia. Before contact with settlers, their people extended from Port Stephens in the sou ...
, peoples are the
traditional owners Native title is the set of rights, recognised by Australian law, held by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander groups or individuals to land that derive from their maintenance of their traditional laws and customs. These Aboriginal title rig ...
of the land that now makes up the lower
Hunter Region The Hunter Region, also commonly known as the Hunter Valley, Newcastle Region, or simply Hunter, spans the region in northern New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately to north of Sydney. It contains the Hunter River (New Sout ...
. The Pambalang people called the area Mulubinba, after an indigenous fern called the mulubin. Archaeological evidence indicates that human beings have inhabited the landscape of Newcastle for at least 6500 years. In 2009, archaeologist uncovered artefacts including a hearth and factory at the site of the former Palais Royale on Hunter Street. Over 5,534 Aboriginal artefacts were recovered, representing three occupation periods dating from 6,716 - 6,502 years BP (before present). This site was identified as a site of ‘high to exceptional cultural and scientific significance’. Over the millennia, the artefacts manufactured there, on what came to be known as Cottage Creek, were probably traded across the region, and across many territories or countries. The Reverend Lancelot Threlkeld, a missionary stationed at Newcastle and
Lake Macquarie The City of Lake Macquarie is a local government area (LGA) in the Hunter Region in New South Wales, Australia. It was proclaimed a city on 7 September 1984. It is adjacent to the city of Newcastle and is part of the Greater Newcastle area. The ...
during the 1820s onwards, recorded that the Aboriginal people of the Newcastle Tribe were called Mulubinbakal (men) and Mulubinbakalleen (female). Threlkled worked with local Awabakal man
Biraban Biraban ( – 14 April 1846) was a leader of the Awabakal people, an Aboriginal Australian people who lived in the area around what is today Lake Macquarie. His native name prior to Awabakal initiation was We-pohng; his naming as Biraban is ref ...
of Lake Awaba to record the Awabakal language. Since 1892, the Indigenous people of Newcastle have come to be known as the Awabakal.


Founding and settlement by Europeans

The first European to explore the area was Lieutenant
John Shortland John Shortland (5 September 1769 – 21 January 1810) was an officer of the Royal Navy, the eldest son of John Shortland.Sydney Cove Sydney Cove (Eora language, Eora: ) is a bay on the southern shore of Sydney Harbour, one of several harbours in Port Jackson, on the coast of Sydney, New South Wales. Sydney Cove is a focal point for community celebrations, due to its central ...
. While returning, Lt. Shortland entered what he later described as "a very fine coal river", which he named after New South Wales' Governor,
John Hunter John Hunter may refer to: Politics *John Hunter (British politician) (1724–1802), British Member of Parliament for Leominster * John Hunter (Canadian politician) (1909–1993), Canadian Liberal MP for Parkdale, 1949–1957 *Sir John Hunter ( ...
. He returned with reports of the deep-water port and the area's abundant coal. Over the next two years,
coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal i ...
mined from the area was the
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
colony's first export. Newcastle gained a reputation as a "hellhole" as it was a place where the most dangerous convicts were sent to dig in the coal mines as harsh punishment for their crimes. By the turn of the century the mouth of the Hunter River was being visited by diverse groups of men, including coal diggers, timber-cutters, and more escaped convicts.
Philip Gidley King Captain Philip Gidley King (23 April 1758 – 3 September 1808) was a Royal Navy officer and colonial administrator who served as the governor of New South Wales from 1800 to 1806. When the First Fleet arrived in January 1788, King was detai ...
, the Governor of New South Wales from 1800, decided on a more positive approach to exploit the now obvious natural resources of the
Hunter Valley The Hunter Region, also commonly known as the Hunter Valley, Newcastle Region, or simply Hunter, spans the region in northern New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately to north of Sydney. It contains the Hunter River and its ...
. In 1801, a convict camp called King's Town (named after Governor King) was established to mine coal and cut timber. In the same year, the first shipment of coal was dispatched to Sydney. This settlement closed less than a year later. A settlement was again attempted in 1804, as a place of secondary punishment for unruly convicts. The settlement was named Coal River, also Kingstown and then renamed Newcastle, after England's famous coal port. The name first appeared by the commission issued by Governor King on 15 March 1804 to Lieutenant Charles Menzies of the
Royal Marines The Royal Marines provide the United Kingdom's amphibious warfare, amphibious special operations capable commando force, one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighting arms of the Royal Navy, a Company (military unit), company str ...
, appointing him superintendent of the new settlement. The new settlement, comprising
convict A convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison". Convicts are often also known as "prisoners" or "inmates" or by the slang term "con", while a common label for former convicts ...
s and a military guard, arrived at the Hunter River on 27 March 1804 in three ships: , the ''Resource'' and the ''James''. The convicts were rebels from the 1804
Castle Hill convict rebellion The Castle Hill convict rebellion was a Convicts in Australia, convict rebellion in Castle Hill, New South Wales, Castle Hill, Sydney, then part of the British colony of New South Wales. Led by veterans of the Irish Rebellion of 1798, the poorly ...
. The link with
Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...
, UK, its namesake and also from whence many of the 19th century coal miners came, is still obvious in some of the place-names – such as
Jesmond Jesmond ( ) is a suburb of Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England, situated north of the city centre and to the east of the Town Moor. Jesmond is considered to be one of the most affluent suburbs of Newcastle upon Tyne, with higher aver ...
,
Hexham Hexham ( ) is a market town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, on the south bank of the River Tyne, formed by the confluence of the North Tyne and the South Tyne at Warden nearby, and close to Hadrian's Wall. Hexham was the administra ...
, Wickham,
Wallsend Wallsend () is a town in North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England, at the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall. It has a population of 43,842 and lies east of Newcastle upon Tyne. History Roman Wallsend In Roman times, this was the site of the fort of ...
and
Gateshead Gateshead () is a town in the Gateshead Metropolitan Borough of Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank. The town's attractions include the twenty metre tall Angel of the North sculpture on the town's southern outskirts, ...
.
Morpeth, New South Wales Morpeth is a suburb of the city of Maitland in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. It is on the southern banks of the Hunter River (New South Wales), Hunter River at the border between the City of Maitland and Port Stephens Council L ...
is a similar distance north of Newcastle as
Morpeth, Northumberland Morpeth is a historic market town in Northumberland, England, lying on the River Wansbeck. Nearby towns include Ashington, Northumberland, Ashington and Bedlington, Northumberland, Bedlington. In the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census, th ...
is north of Newcastle upon Tyne. Under Captain James Wallis, commandant from 1816 to 1818, the convicts' conditions improved, and a building boom began. Captain Wallis laid out the streets of the town, built the first church of the site of the present Christ Church Cathedral, erected the old gaol on the seashore, and began work on the breakwater which now joins
Nobbys Head Nobbys Head ( Aboriginal and dual name: ''Whibayganba'') is a headland located on the southern entrance to Newcastle Harbour, New South Wales, Australia. The headland is situated above the Hunter River and the Tasman Sea of the South Pacific Ocea ...
to the mainland. The quality of these first buildings was poor, and only (a much reinforced) breakwater survives. During this period, in 1816, the
first school Three-tier education refers to those structures of schooling, which exist in some parts of England, where pupils are taught in three distinct school types as they progress through the education system. Terminology In a three-tier local educa ...
was built in Newcastle. Newcastle remained a penal settlement until 1822, when the settlement was opened up to farming. As a penal colony, the military rule was harsh, especially at Limeburners' Bay, on the inner side of Stockton peninsula. There, convicts were sent to burn oyster shells for making lime. Military rule in Newcastle ended in 1823. Prisoner numbers were reduced to 100 (most of these were employed on the building of the breakwater), and the remaining 900 were sent to
Port Macquarie Port Macquarie, sometimes shortened to Port Mac and commonly locally nicknamed Port, is a coastal city on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, north of Sydney, and south of Brisbane, on the Tasman Sea coast at the mouth of the ...
.


Civilian government

After removal of the last convicts in 1823, the town was freed from the infamous influence of the penal law. It began to acquire the aspect of a typical Australian
pioneer Pioneer commonly refers to a person who is among the first at something that is new to a community. A pioneer as a settler is among the first settling at a place that is new to the settler community. A historic example are American pioneers, perso ...
settlement, and a steady flow of free settlers poured into the hinterland.


Early steamers

The formation during the nineteenth century of the Newcastle & Hunter River Steamship Company saw the establishment of regular steamship services from Morpeth and Newcastle with Sydney. The company had a fleet of freighters as well as several fast passenger vessels, including PS ''Newcastle'' and PS ''Namoi''. ''Namoi'' had first-class cabins with the latest facilities. Passengers on overnight passage to Sydney arrived fresh for the new day, and was preferable to the long and arduous railway journey. Because of the coal supply, small ships plied between Newcastle and Sydney,
Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
,
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
and
Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...
, carrying coal to gas works and bunkers for shipping, and railways. These were commonly known as
sixty-miler Sixty-miler (60-miler) is the colloquial name for the ships that were used in the coastal coal trade of New South Wales, Australia. The sixty-milers delivered coal to Sydney from ports and ocean jetties to the north and south. The name refers to ...
s, referring to the nautical journey between Newcastle and Sydney. These ships continued in service until recent times.


World War II

During
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, Newcastle was an important industrial centre for the Australian war effort. In the early hours of 8 June 1942, the Japanese submarine '' I-21'' briefly shelled Newcastle. Among the areas hit within the city were dockyards, the steel works, Parnell Place in the city's now affluent East End, the breakwall and Art Deco ocean baths. There were no casualties in the attack and damage was minimal.


Economic history


Coal

Coal mining began in earnest in the 1830s, with collieries working close to the city itself and others within a radius. Most of Newcastle's principal coal mines (Stockton, Tighes Hill, Carrington, the
Australian Agricultural Company The Australian Agricultural Company (AACo; ) is a public-listed Australian company that, as of 2018, owns and operates feedlots and farms covering around of land in Queensland and the Northern Territory, roughly one percent of Australia's land ...
, the Newcastle Coal Mining company's big collieries at
Merewether Merewether () is a former Municipality and today a suburb of Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia, located from Newcastle's central business district with a population of around 11,000. The suburb stretches from Merewether Beach in the east to ...
(includes the Glebe),
Wallsend Wallsend () is a town in North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England, at the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall. It has a population of 43,842 and lies east of Newcastle upon Tyne. History Roman Wallsend In Roman times, this was the site of the fort of ...
, and the Waratah collieries), had all closed by the early 1960s. They had been replaced over four decades by the larger coal mining activities further inland at places such as
Kurri Kurri Kurri Kurri is a small town in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia, in the Cessnock LGA. At the , its population was 6,174. Kurri Kurri is the largest town in a group of towns and hamlets, including Stanford Merthyr, Pelaw Main, We ...
and Cessnock. On 10 December 1831, the
Australian Agricultural Company The Australian Agricultural Company (AACo; ) is a public-listed Australian company that, as of 2018, owns and operates feedlots and farms covering around of land in Queensland and the Northern Territory, roughly one percent of Australia's land ...
officially opened Australia's first
railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
to carry export coal from near the Anglican Cathedral at Newcastle to the wharf area.


Copper

In the 1850s, a major copper smelting works was established at Burwood, near Merewether. An engraving of this appeared in the ''
Illustrated London News ''The Illustrated London News'', founded by Herbert Ingram and first published on Saturday 14 May 1842, was the world's first illustrated weekly news magazine. The magazine was published weekly for most of its existence, switched to a less freq ...
'' on 11 February 1854. The English and Australian Copper Company built another substantial works at
Broadmeadow Broadmeadow is a locality in the Hunter region of the Australian state of New South Wales. It is the geographic centre of the Newcastle city and suburban area. Its main commercial hub is located at the "Nineways".
circa 1890, and in that decade a
zinc Zinc is a chemical element; it has symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodic tabl ...
smelter was built by Sulphide Corporation inland, by Cockle Creek, known as the
Cockle Creek Smelter Cockle Creek Smelter was a zinc and lead smelter located at the northern end of Lake Macquarie near Boolaroo in Newcastle, New South Wales. The smelter was built in by the Sulphide Corporation in 1896 and the first attempts to refine zinc using t ...
.


Soap

The largest factory of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere was constructed in 1885, on a site between the suburbs of
Tighes Hill Tighe's Hill () is a north-western suburb of Newcastle, New South Wales and was named after A.A.P. Tighe, an early resident, who in 1843 bought the estate. It is primarily a residential area, though it also includes the current Tighes Hill TAFE ...
and Port Waratah, by Charles Upfold, from
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, for his Sydney Soap and Candle Company, to replace a smaller factory in Wickham. Their soap products won 17 medals at International Exhibitions. At the Sydney International Exhibition they won a bronze medal "against all-comers from every part of the world", the only first prize awarded for soap and candles. Following
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
the company was sold to Messrs Lever & Kitchen (today Lever Bros), and the factory closed in the mid-1930s.


Steel

In 1911,
BHP BHP Group Limited, founded as the Broken Hill Proprietary Company, is an Australian multinational mining and metals corporation. BHP was established in August 1885 and is headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria. As of 2024, BHP was the world� ...
chose the city as the site for its steelworks due to the abundance of coal. The land put aside was prime real estate, on the southern edge of the harbour. In 1915, the BHP steelworks opened, beginning a period of some 80 years dominating the steel works and
heavy industry Heavy industry is an industry that involves one or more characteristics such as large and heavy products; large and heavy equipment and facilities (such as heavy equipment, large machine tools, huge buildings and large-scale infrastructure); o ...
. As Mayfield and the suburbs surrounding the steelworks declined in popularity because of pollution, the steelworks thrived, becoming the region's largest employer. In 1999, the steelworks closed after 84 years’ operation, and had employed about 50,000 in its existence, many for decades.


Disasters


1989 Newcastle earthquake

On 28 December 1989, Newcastle experienced an earthquake measuring 5.6 on the
Richter scale The Richter scale (), also called the Richter magnitude scale, Richter's magnitude scale, and the Gutenberg–Richter scale, is a measure of the strength of earthquakes, developed by Charles Richter in collaboration with Beno Gutenberg, and pr ...
, which killed 13 people, injured 160 and destroyed or severely damaged a number of prominent buildings. Some had to be demolished, including the large George Hotel in Scott Street (city), the Century Theatre at
Broadmeadow Broadmeadow is a locality in the Hunter region of the Australian state of New South Wales. It is the geographic centre of the Newcastle city and suburban area. Its main commercial hub is located at the "Nineways".
, the Hunter Theatre (formerly 'The Star'), the Newcastle RSL in Perkins Street, and the majority of The Junction school at Merewether. Part of the Newcastle Workers' Club, a popular venue, was destroyed and later replaced by a new structure. The city and suburbs suffered significant property damage also. The following economic
recession In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction that occurs when there is a period of broad decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be tr ...
of the early 1990s meant that the city took several years to recover.


June 2007 storms

On 8 June 2007 the
Hunter Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, ...
and Central Coast regions were battered by the worst series of storms to hit
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
in 30 years. This resulted in extensive flooding and nine deaths. Thousands of homes were flooded and many were destroyed. The
Hunter Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, ...
and Central Coast regions were declared natural disaster areas by the
Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...
,
Morris Iemma Morris Iemma (; born 21 July 1961) is an Australian former politician who was the 40th Premier of New South Wales, serving from 3 August 2005 to 5 September 2008. From Sydney, Iemma attended the University of Sydney and the University of Techn ...
, on 8 June 2007 . Further flooding was predicted by the
Bureau of Meteorology The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM or BoM) is an executive agency of the Government of Australia, Australian Government that is responsible for providing Weather forecasting, weather forecasts and Meteorology, meteorological services to Australia a ...
but was less severe than predicted. During the early stages of the storms the -long
bulk carrier A bulk carrier or bulker is a merchant ship specially naval architecture, designed to transport unpackaged bulk cargo—such as Grain trade, grain, coal, ore, steel coils, and cement—in its cargo holds. Since the first specialized bulk carrie ...
ship, ''
Pasha Bulker ''Pasha Bulker'', later known as MV ''Drake'' and now MV ''Anthea'', is a Panamax bulk carrier of operated by the J. Lauritzen A/S, Lauritzen Bulkers shipping company and owned by Japanese Disponent Owners. While waiting in the open ocean outsid ...
'', ran aground at Nobby's Beach after failing to heed warnings to move offshore. ''Pasha Bulker'' was finally refloated on the third salvage attempt on 2 July 2007 despite earlier fears that the ship would break up. After initially entering the port for minor repairs it departed for major repairs in Asia under tow on 26 July 2007.


Maritime

The most tragic maritime accident of the twentieth-century in Newcastle occurred on 9 August 1934 when the Stockton-bound ferry ''Bluebell'' collided with the coastal freighter, ''Waraneen'', and sank in the middle of the Hunter River.
The Bluebell Collision The sinking of the Newcastle harbour ferry ''Bluebell'', after colliding with the coastal freighter ''Waraneen'' in 1934, was one of the worst maritime tragedies in Newcastle, Australia, in the 20th century. Collision Carrying between 40 a ...
claimed three lives and fifteen passengers were admitted to the
Newcastle Hospital Newcastle Hospital in Toodyay, Western Australia was completed in 1894 and was the only purpose-built hospital for the town then known as Newcastle. It ceased operating as a hospital in 1940. History Construction of this building commenced in ...
, with two suffering severely from the effects of immersion. It was later found that the ferry pilot was at fault.


Aviation

On 16 August 1966, a
Royal Australian Air Force The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is the principal Air force, aerial warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Australian Army. Constitutionally the Governor-Gener ...
F-86 Sabre The North American F-86 Sabre, sometimes called the Sabrejet, is a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as the United States' first swept-wing fighter that could counter the swept-wing Sov ...
crashed into the inner city suburb of
The Junction The Junction is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, that is near the West Toronto Diamond, a junction of four railway lines in the area. The neighbourhood was previously an independent city called West Toronto, that was also its own fe ...
. The pilot, Flying Officer Warren William Goddard, experienced engine troubles and unsuccessfully tried to fly the plane out to the
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
. He ejected but his parachute failed to fully deploy and he was killed when he crashed through the roof of a house. Although The Junction is a highly populated suburb of Newcastle and most of the plane wreckage landed in the shopping area of the suburb, nobody was killed or injured by the aircraft wreckage. In 2007 a memorial plaque was unveiled for the killed pilot.


Modern era

The Port of Newcastle remains the economic and trade centre for the resource rich
Hunter Valley The Hunter Region, also commonly known as the Hunter Valley, Newcastle Region, or simply Hunter, spans the region in northern New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately to north of Sydney. It contains the Hunter River and its ...
and for much of the north and northwest of New South Wales. Newcastle is the world's largest coal export port and Australia's oldest and second largest tonnage throughput port, with over 3,000 shipping movements handling cargo of per annum, of which coal exports represented in 2007/08. The volume of coal exported, and attempts to increase coal exports, are opposed by environmental groups. Newcastle has a small shipbuilding industry, which has declined since the 1970s. In recent years the only major ship-construction contract awarded to the area was the construction of the s. The era of extensive heavy industry passed when the steel works closed in 1999. Many of the remaining manufacturing industries have located themselves well away from the city itself, focusing on cheap land and access to road transport routes and lack the concentrated social impact of BHP on the city's life. Newcastle has one of the oldest theatre districts in Australia. Victoria Theatre on Perkins Street is the oldest purpose-built theatre in the country. The old city centre has seen some new apartments and hotels built in recent years, but the rate of commercial and retail occupation remains low while alternate suburban centres have become more important. The CBD itself is shifting to the west, towards the major urban renewal area known as Honeysuckle. This renewal is a major part of arresting the shift of business and residents to the suburbs. The old
central business district A central business district (CBD) is the Commerce, commercial and business center of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides wit ...
, located at Newcastle's eastern end, still has a considerable number of historic buildings, dominated by Christ Church Cathedral, seat of the (
Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...
)
Bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...
of Newcastle.Elkin, A.P., ''The Diocese of Newcastle: a history of the Diocese of Newcastle'', Australian Medical Publishing Co: Glebe, NSW, 1955. (Privately published) Other noteworthy buildings include ''Fort Scratchley'', the ''Ocean Baths'', the old ''
Customs House A custom house or customs house was traditionally a building housing the offices for a jurisdictional government whose officials oversaw the functions associated with importing and exporting goods into and out of a country, such as collecting ...
'', the 1920s ''
City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...
'', the 1890s ''Longworth Institute'' (once regarded as the finest building in the colony) and the 1930s
art deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...
''University House'' (formerly '' NESCA House'', recently seen in the film Superman Returns). Residents of Newcastle refer to themselves as "Novocastrians".


References


Further reading

* Docherty, James Cairns, ''Newcastle – The Making of an Australian City'', Sydney, 1983, * Susan Marsden, ''Coals to Newcastle: a History of Coal Loading at the Port of Newcastle New South Wales 1977–1997 '' 2002 * Marsden, Susan, ''Newcastle: a Brief History'' Newcastle, 2004 * Marsden, Susan, 'Waterfront alive: life on the waterfront', in C Hunter, ed, ''River Change: six new histories of the Hunter'', Newcastle, 1998 * Greater Newcastle City Council, ''Newcastle 150 Years'', 1947. * Thorne, Ross, ''Picture Palace Architecture in Australia'', Melbourne, Victoria, 1976 (P/B), * Turner, Dr. John W., ''Manufacturing in Newcastle'', Newcastle, 1980, * Morrison James, Ron, ''Newcastle – Times Past'', Newcastle, 2005 (P/B),


External links


Newcastle City Council Local History Link
* https://web.archive.org/web/20090915195229/http://newcbd.gpt.com.au/Content/?ids=Place%2FHistory Newcastle City Centre History Section] {{Hunter Region places and items of interest History of Newcastle, New South Wales, Newcastle, New South Wales, History Of