81-416: Cooks Hill is an inner city suburb of Newcastle , New South Wales , Australia . It is typified by its tree lined streets, rows of Victorian terrace housing, turn of the century timber cottages and corner pubs. Cooks Hill had a population of 3,621 in 2016. Cooks Hill is the home of popular "eat street" Darby Street. The street has approximately 25 restaurants and cafés, some which enjoy alfresco dining. It
162-556: A 31-year monopoly on that town's coal traffic. Other collieries were within a 16 km (10 mi) radius of the town. Principal coal mines were located at Stockton , Tighes Hill , Carrington and the Newcastle Coal and Copper Company's collieries at Merewether (includes the Glebe), Wallsend and the Waratah collieries. All operations had closed by the early 1960s. On 10 December 1831,
243-410: 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 the company was sold to Messrs Lever & Kitchen (today Unilever ), and the factory closed in the mid-1930s. In 1911, BHP 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
324-526: A fleet of freighters as well as several fast passenger vessels, including the PS Newcastle and the PS Namoi . The Namoi had first-class cabins with the latest facilities. Because of the coal supply, small ships plied between Newcastle and Sydney, Brisbane , Melbourne and Adelaide , carrying coal to gas works and bunkers for shipping, and railways. These were commonly known as sixty-milers , referring to
405-657: A large and imposing town church built in the 1850s in the Newcastle area, worthy of architectural study. The place possesses uncommon, rare or endangered aspects of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales. The church and hall are sole survivors as buildings of their age, and as such are irreplaceable. The place is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a class of cultural or natural places/environments in New South Wales. The church group has been in continual use for ecclesiastical purposes, in
486-412: A large incentive for investment in the Newcastle and Hunter region due to its status as a major coal mining and export hub to Asian markets. Large projects related to the coal industry helped to propel the Newcastle unemployment rate to 20 year lows and allow the Newcastle region to weather the effects of the late 2000s recession better than NSW as a whole. As of 2009, the two largest single employers are
567-685: A sitting government anywhere in Australia since World War II . Labor won just 20 seats in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly ; of these, only two ( Cessnock and Wallsend ) were in the Hunter Region . Before the election, the Liberal Party only held one seat in the entire Hunter Region (the seat of Port Stephens , which the party narrowly gained from Labor in 2007 ). However, at the subsequent state election in 2015 , although
648-760: Is Starrett Park in New Lambton, known for its playground and lush grass. Newcastle has a humid subtropical climate ( Cfa ) that is typical of the Australian east coast. Precipitation is heaviest in late autumn and early winter, while the second half of the year is slightly drier on average. The climate is generally moderated by the Pacific Ocean to the east. Summers are mostly warm and humid with periods of very dry and hot weather occasionally due to hot west to north-westerly winds, which can bring temperatures in excess of 40 °C (104 °F). The highest recorded temperature
729-500: Is a link with the early history of Newcastle 's development as a coal producer and exporter under the management of the Australian Agricultural Company . The place is important in demonstrating aesthetic characteristics and/or a high degree of creative or technical achievement in New South Wales. A pleasant and complementary group of buildings set in a comparatively open space amongst later housing developments in
810-476: Is a vibrant arts scene in the city including a highly regarded art gallery, and an active Hunter Writers' Centre. Recent fictional representations (for example Antoinette Eklund's 'Steel River') present a new vision of the city, using the city's historic past as a backdrop for contemporary fiction. The old central business district, located at Newcastle's eastern end, still has a considerable number of historic buildings, dominated by Christ Church Cathedral, seat of
891-433: Is cruciform in plan, 105 ft long, 92 ft across transepts , the nave is 30 ft wide. The high pitched timber roof trusses have hammer beams and support purlins, rafters and boarding under the present aluminium sheeting which replaced at least two previous coverings. Most pews are of the original cedar, restored, All the windows are of stained or pressed glass, some are original. The Walker two manual pipe organ
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#1732852651795972-449: Is dominated by sand dunes, swamps and multiple river channels. A "green belt" protecting plant and wildlife flanks the city from the west (Watagan mountains) around to the north where it meets the coast just north of Stockton. Urban development is mainly restricted to the hilly southern bank. The small town of Stockton sits opposite central Newcastle at the river mouth and is linked by ferry. Road access between Stockton and central Newcastle
1053-511: Is generally labelled as the 'Greater Newcastle Area' includes the LGAs of Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Maitland, Cessnock and Port Stephens. In 2021 this region had a total population of 682,465. Of people in the Newcastle metropolitan area, 83.6 per cent were born in Australia. The next most common countries of birth were England 2.3%, New Zealand 1.0%, China 0.7%, India 0.5% and Philippines 0.4%. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 3.8% of
1134-682: Is held in the Newcastle Showground annually. There are a mixture of typical regional show elements such as woodchopping displays, showbags, rides and stalls and usually fireworks to complement the events in the main arena. St John%27s Anglican Church, Newcastle The St John's Anglican Church , formally the Church of St John the Evangelist , also called St John's Cooks Hill , is an Anglican church in Newcastle , New South Wales , Australia. It
1215-688: Is home to many of the city's well-known pubs, such as The Cricketers Arms Hotel, The Oriental Hotel, The Delaney and the Commonwealth Hotel. Parry street was named the polar explorer Sir William Edward Parry who worked as a commissioner of the A.A Company in 1829. The suburb is also home to the Newcastle Region Art Gallery in Laman Street. The Gallery houses many works by significant artists, including works by Sidney Nolan , William Dobell , Russell Drysdale and Peter Preston and it
1296-748: Is represented sporting-wise by Cooks Hill United Football Club (the flagship being the NewFM 1st Div. squad) and the Cooks Hill Rugby Union Football Club (the "Brown Snakes"). The Brown Snakes were established in 2007 as a youth-oriented senior Rugby club and have Empire Park, Bar Beach as their home ground. Cooks Hill United Football Club plays its NewFM & Zone League One games at the Newcastle Athletics Field. All Age and Junior games are played at National Park No4 & No.6. The ZPL 1st grade team became inaugural Major Premiers of
1377-470: Is the University of Newcastle . It was established in 1951 as a satellite campus of the University of New South Wales and obtained autonomy in 1965. The university now offers over 150 undergraduate and graduate courses to a student population of more than 38,000, including 7,000 international students from more than 113 countries. The main campus is in the suburb of Callaghan about 12 km (7 mi) from
1458-522: Is the custodian of a substantial public art collection. Cooks Hill has a number of smaller inner city art galleries, previously including the Von Bertouch Gallery founded by the late Anne Von Bertouch. It is believed it was the first commercial gallery outside a capital city in Australia. The area also hosts a visual arts scene and several artist-run projects such as the Back to Back gallery. The suburb
1539-513: Is the hub of the Lower Hunter region, which includes most parts of the cities of Newcastle , Lake Macquarie , Maitland , Cessnock , and Port Stephens Council . Newcastle is also known by its colloquial nickname, Newy . Located at the mouth of the Hunter River , it is the predominant city within the Hunter Region . Famous for its coal , Newcastle is the largest coal exporting harbour in
1620-646: Is the oldest remaining church building in Newcastle, completed in 1860. The building, the design of which is attributed to colonial architect Edmund Blacket , in the Old Colonial Grecian Revival style, is located close to the city centre at 1D Parry Street, Cooks Hill . It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999. The church was built for the largely mining population of Newcastle. The first bishop of Newcastle, Bishop Tyrrell had noted that only
1701-598: Is via the Stockton Bridge , a distance of 20 km (12 mi). Much of the city is undercut by the coal measures of the Sydney sedimentary basin, and what were once numerous coal-mining villages located in the hills and valleys around the port have merged into a single urban area extending southwards to Lake Macquarie . The Greater Newcastle area is situated right between the Central Coast and Mid North Coast regions, with
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#17328526517951782-491: The 2016 census of Population, there were 3,621 people in Cooks Hill. Newcastle, New South Wales Newcastle , also commonly referred to as Greater Newcastle ( locally / ˈ nj uː k ɑː s əl / NEW -kah-səl ; Awabakal : Mulubinba ) is a regional metropolitan area and the second-most-populous such area of New South Wales , Australia. It includes the cities of Newcastle and Lake Macquarie and it
1863-591: The Anglican Bishop of Newcastle . Other noteworthy buildings include Fort Scratchley , the Ocean Baths, the old Customs House , the 1920s City Hall , the 1890s Longworth Institute (once regarded as the finest building in the colony) and the 1930s art deco University House (formerly NESCA House, seen in the film Superman Returns ). Newcastle is on the southern bank of the Hunter River mouth. The northern side
1944-569: The CBD . There are three campuses of the Hunter Institute of TAFE , one located in the Newcastle CBD, one in the suburb of Hamilton East and the other located in the suburb of Tighes Hill . The Tighes Hill campus is the network's largest campus and offers courses in business, hospitality and various trades. Newcastle holds a variety of cultural events and festivals. The Newcastle Regional Show
2025-685: The Cockle Creek Smelter was built. The largest factory of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere was constructed in 1885, on an 8.9-hectare (22-acre) site between the suburbs of Tighes Hill and Port Waratah, by Charles Upfold , from London, 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
2106-457: The Diocese of Newcastle ). Although a William White is credited as the architect of St Paul's, West Maitland, it is possible that he worked from the design or made construction drawings. The money was made available through the fund which AA Coy and Walter Stevenson Davidson, a director and a banker, co-instigated in 1854 to provide money for the construction of churches and schools in this area where
2187-504: 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 . In 1801, a convict camp called King's Town (named after the governor) 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
2268-839: The Newcastle Steelworks , Parnell Place in the city's East End, the breakwall and Art Deco Ocean baths. There were no casualties in the attack and damage was minimal. The Port of Newcastle remains the economic and trade centre for the resource-rich Hunter Valley and for much of the north and north-west 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 95.8 Mt per annum, of which coal exports represented 90.8 Mt in 2008–09. The volume of coal exported, and attempts to increase coal exports, are opposed by environmental groups including Newcastle-based Rising Tide Australia . These have undertaken various protests targeting
2349-508: The centre-right Liberal Party has ever been consistently competitive is the Port Stephens region in the north of the Newcastle metropolitan area, as well as in some beachside, middle-class suburbs near the Newcastle CBD such as Bar Beach and Merewether . The Port Stephens area is traditionally marginal and while historically was dominated by Labor, has been won by the Liberals. One time
2430-545: The 1970s. These downturns were particularly hard hitting for heavy industry which was particularly prevalent in Newcastle. The early 1990s recession caused significant job losses across Australia and the Newcastle region experienced a peak unemployment rate of 17% in February 1993, compared to 12.1% in New South Wales and 11.9% across Australia. In 1999, the steelworks closed after 84 years' operation and had employed about 50,000 during its existence, many for decades. The closure of
2511-514: The AAC. Their eldest son, Thomas Cook (born in 1834) moved to Nemingha with his parents and brother John (born at Turanville) as a child. He is reported to ride the 5 miles into Tamworth to meet the mail coach once a week. In 1854 Thomas became manager at age 20 of the same property that brought his family to Australia, "Turanville", Scone in the Upper Hunter, for his uncles William and Henry Dangar, and
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2592-738: The Australian Agricultural Company officially opened Australia's first railway, at the intersection of Brown & Church Streets, Newcastle. Privately owned and operated to service the A Pit coal mine, it was a cast-iron fishbelly rail on an inclined plane as a gravitational railway . In the 1850s, a major copper smelting works was established at Burwood, near Merewether. An engraving of this appeared in The Illustrated London News on 11 February 1854. The English and Australian Copper Company built another substantial works at Broadmeadow circa 1890, and in that decade
2673-475: The BHP steelworks occurred at a time of strong economic expansion in Australia. At the time of the closure and since the closure Newcastle experienced a significant amount of economic diversification which has strengthened the local economy. Since 2003, Australia experienced the effects of the 2000s commodities boom as commodities prices for major export good such as coal and iron ore rose significantly. This provided
2754-790: The Barwon district. Samuel and Elizabeth sold Nemingha to John Gill, and after 32 years of success in NSW, and long association with the Dangars and the AAC, moved to Newcastle (Cooks Hill) in 1869 to retire to "Lucerna", in Lower Church Street, where Elizabeth died 9 years later on 18 November 1878, and Samuel followed her, dying after 14 years of retirement, on 2 March 1883. Thomas Cook later donated stained-glass windows in St John's Church, Newcastle in memory of his mother, Elizabeth Cary Cook. "Lucerna" had views to
2835-528: The Central Coast bordering in the south and the Mid North Coast bordering in the north as well as other Hunter local government areas (outside of Newcastle) bordering in the west and north-west. Newcastle has several public parks including King Edward Park, which was designated in 1863. Features of the park include coastal views, a sunken garden and a Victorian rotunda. Another noteworthy park of Newcastle
2916-583: The City of Newcastle and the Newcastle metropolitan area. The area, officially the Newcastle Statistical District, is referred to as Greater Newcastle or the Lower Hunter Region, which includes most parts of the Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Cessnock, Maitland and Port Stephens local government areas and, as of 30 June 2009, has an estimated population of 540,796. Despite their proximity, all of
2997-566: The Coalition retained majority government (and subsequently retained government again in 2019 before Labor formed a minority government in 2023 ), the party lost all of its Hunter-based seats. There are three federal electoral divisions that are mostly or entirely within Greater Newcastle: Newcastle (covering the inner-city suburbs; this seat has only ever elected Labor MPs since it was created in 1901 ), Paterson (covering
3078-585: The Hunter New England Area Health Service and the University of Newcastle . The National Stock Exchange of Australia (formerly Newcastle Stock Exchange) was formerly based in the city. With its history as a traditionally working-class area, Newcastle has been a stronghold for the centre-left Labor Party at all levels of politics since Federation . Labor currently holds every federal and state seat that overlaps at least partially with Newcastle. The only area of Greater Newcastle where
3159-420: The LGAs in the region maintain their own individual identities, separate from Newcastle. The population of the suburb of Newcastle is 3,852 as of the 2021 census. The demonym for the people of Newcastle is "Novocastrian", derived from Latin novus (new) and castra (castle or fort). Coal mining began in earnest on 3 May 1833 when the Australian Agricultural Company received land grants at Newcastle plus
3240-527: The Lake Macquarie Road (later to become Darby Street). This land was donated by the Australian Agricultural Company (AA Coy), and the new parish was founded on 1 March 1856 by Bishop Tyrrell. The Revd. L.H. Rumsey was appointed as the first Rector. He held a master's degree in Arts at Oxford and came to Newcastle in 1856 direct from England for what Bishop Tyrrell described as "real missionary work". In 1857
3321-463: The Liberals did win seats in Newcastle was at the 2011 state election . At this election, the incumbent Labor government, led by then- Premier Kristina Keneally , was defeated by the Liberal - National Coalition , led by then- Opposition Leader Barry O'Farrell , in a landslide , suffering the worst ever defeat of a sitting government in New South Wales history and (at the time) the worst defeat of
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3402-547: The NSW Geographic Names Board with their traditional Aboriginal names. They include Nobbys Head also known as Whibayganba; Flagstaff Hill also known as Tahlbihn; Pirate Point also known as Burrabihngarn; Port Hunter also known as Yohaaba; Hunter River (South Channel) also known as Coquun; Shepherds Hill also known as Khanterin; Ironbark Creek also known as Toohrnbing and Hexham Swamp also known as Burraghihnbihng. In September 1797, Lieutenant John Shortland became
3483-603: The Nemingha Gold Mining Company during the gold rush, and is recorded as having "over 400 horses, 180 breeding mares, 5 stallions and several stallion foals" described as "thoroughbred, crossbred and English roadsters commanding the best price" on the Nemingha property. Cook patronised local businesses and helped to develop the Tamworth area. His spendings were said to be twice that of the vast Goonoo Goonoo Station owned by
3564-451: The Newcastle area, and are a fine pair of buildings, earlier than their surrounds, set on spacious grounds opposite Centennial Park within the historic Cooks Hill area. St John's Anglican Church, Newcastle was listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999 having satisfied the following criteria. The place is important in demonstrating the course, or pattern, of cultural or natural history in New South Wales. It
3645-559: The Northeast over Newcastle Harbour, on land now occupied by the Newcastle Conservatorium, Laman St, opposite St Andrew's church [ see reference for photo ]. Two years after Samuel's death, Cooks Hill School opened in 1885 formalising the name of the suburb. Low-lying ground and swamp was found in abundance locally, the market gardens near Marketown on Parry St often flooded due to poor drainage into Cottage Creek, and so elevated land
3726-529: The Port Stephens area as well as the nearby city of Maitland and the town of Kurri Kurri ; this seat is currently a marginal Labor seat that the Liberals have won previously, though it historically included more rural areas and did not include Maitland or Kurri Kurri) and Shortland (a fairly safe Labor seat that includes the eastern suburbs of the Lake Macquarie region in southern Newcastle, and extends to
3807-458: The Tamworth Shows. Henry Dangar was Surveyor for the Australian Agricultural Company (AAC), and the original Tamworth settlement was wholly owned by the AAC. Samuel Cook remembered Tamworth as having "6 or 8 houses" when he arrived, and once the landlock controlled by the AAC was lifted by government legislation, he stayed long enough to help it develop into a thriving town. Cook owned shares in
3888-435: The building of the church was commenced and the foundation stone, which cannot now be located, was laid on 21 July of that year. The building was consecrated on 20 February 1860. It seems that Bishop Tyrrell purchased designs for a school and a large church and managed to get his money's worth by using the church design three times: St John's, Newcastle; St Paul's at West Maitland and St. Paul's at Ipswich (at that time part of
3969-542: The company had derived considerable wealth through mining and agriculture. The fund raised £8,357.17.9 and of this Davidson personally contributed £5,000. £2,956.9.0 was added by fifty-one other Anglican shareholders with interest of £401.8.9. A portion was allotted to the Peel River area and the remainder was for St. John's church and schoolroom. Several modifications have been made to the church throughout its history. The church exterior walls were rendered in 1863–64. A belfry
4050-468: The company in London: "To enable persons to worship in the church of their forefathers, and to attract a population to the property of the company." Also, to provide a building in which the children of the employees could be provided with an education. The place has potential to yield information that will contribute to an understanding of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales. A fine example of
4131-576: The deep-water port and the area's abundant coal. Over the next two years, coal mined from the area was the New South Wales 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 start of the 19th 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 ,
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#17328526517954212-559: The export of coal from the city, such as in 2023 when 3000 people took part in a water based blockade and 109 were arrested. Newcastle had a shipbuilding industry with the Walsh Island Dockyard & Engineering Works , State Dockyard and Forgacs Shipyard . In recent years the only major ship-construction contract awarded to the area was the construction of the Huon -class minehunters . The era of extensive heavy industry passed when
4293-557: The far northeastern suburbs of the Central Coast ). The traditionally Labor-held seat of Hunter (now a marginal Labor seat) is based around the western portion of the Hunter , but includes some western and Southern suburbs of Newcastle. On the state level, there are five electoral districts that are located entirely within Greater Newcastle; of these, four ( Charlestown , Newcastle , Port Stephens and Swansea ) are Labor seats while
4374-419: The first European to explore the area. His discovery of the area was largely accidental; as he had been sent in search of a number of convicts who had seized a locally built vessel called Cumberland as she was sailing from Sydney Cove . While returning, Lt. Shortland entered what he later described as "a very fine river", which he named after New South Wales' Governor John Hunter . He returned with reports of
4455-512: The galleries. The Aboriginal people, in this area, the Awabakal , were the first people of this land. Cooks Hill grew from coal mines in the area. Land sales developed from Brooks Street onto Darby Street to create the commercial centre there today. Darby Street was originally known as Lake Macquarie Road and was one of the few public access roads through AA Company Coal Mine land. It was named after Samuel Wellington Cook, father of Thomas Cook, who
4536-657: The grounds of Newcastle East Public School. There are three selective state schools in the area: The two main independent schools in Newcastle are Newcastle Grammar School and St Philip's Christian College , both coeducational K–12 schools. The local area is also home to two Steiner schools : the Newcastle Waldorf School at Glendale in Lake Macquarie , and the Linuwel Steiner School in East Maitland . The city's main provider of tertiary education
4617-464: The harbour. In 1915, the Newcastle Steelworks opened, beginning a period of some 80 years dominating the steel works and heavy industry. As Mayfield and the suburbs surrounding the steelworks declined in popularity because of pollution, the steelworks thrived, becoming the region's largest employer. Newcastle as a traditional area of heavy industry was not immune from the effects of economic downturns that plagued New South Wales and wider Australia since
4698-403: The historic Cooks Hill precinct. The place has strong or special association with a particular community or cultural group in New South Wales for social, cultural or spiritual reasons. The first Bishop of Newcastle, Bishop Tyrell, combined with the Australian Agricultural Company, donors of the land, and W. S. Davidson and other A.A. Co. shareholders to the purposes set out in an 1854 memo to
4779-444: 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 settlement, and a steady flow of free settlers poured into the hinterland. During the nineteenth century the formation of the Newcastle & Hunter River Steamship Company saw the establishment of regular steamship services from Morpeth and Newcastle with Sydney. The company had
4860-457: The nautical journey between Newcastle and Sydney. These ships continued in service until recent times. During World War II , Newcastle was an important industrial centre for the Australian war effort. In 1942, the Japanese planned to attack Sydney Harbour . On the early hours of 8 June, the Japanese submarine I-21 briefly shelled Newcastle. Among the areas hit within the city were dockyards,
4941-697: The new Zone Football League: Premier League Division, beating Morisset FC 1–2 in the Grand Final on Sunday, 18 September 2011 at Wanderers Oval, Broadmeadow. On Sunday 16 September 2012, Cooks Hill made it a '3peat' when they won their third Major Semi final in a row beating Warners Bay 0–1 at Jack McLaughlan Oval, Edgeworth. The first win in the run of three started with the club having won the ID1 1st grade Grand final against Cardiff City FC at Warners Bay Oval, winning 2–0 on Sunday 18 September 2010. Newcastle Visitor Information Centre provides Cultural Precinct Guides listing all
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#17328526517955022-522: The new settlement. The new settlement, comprising convicts and a military guard, arrived at the Hunter River on 27 March 1804 in three ships: HMS Lady Nelson , the Resource and the James . The convicts were rebels from the 1804 Castle Hill convict rebellion . The link with Newcastle upon Tyne , England (its namesake) and also whence many of the 19th-century coal miners came, is still obvious in some of
5103-412: The place-names—such as Jesmond , Hexham , Wickham , Wallsend and Gateshead . Morpeth, New South Wales is a similar distance north of Newcastle as Morpeth, Northumberland is north of Newcastle upon Tyne. Under Captain James Wallis , commandant from 1815 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
5184-434: The population. 88.2% of people spoke only English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Mandarin 0.7%, Macedonian 0.5%, Italian 0.4%, Greek 0.3% and Cantonese 0.3%. The most common responses for religion in Newcastle were No Religion 31.1%, Catholic 21.7% and Anglican 19.2%. Newcastle is often quoted as being the seventh-largest city in Australia . This is misleading as the area represented extends well beyond both
5265-413: 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, to run for another 10 years, is a major part of arresting the shift of business and residents to the suburbs. Commercial renewal has been accompanied by cultural renaissance. There
5346-419: The remaining seat ( Lake Macquarie ) is held by an independent . Greater Newcastle also includes five local government areas (LGAs): the City of Newcastle , the City of Lake Macquarie , the City of Cessnock , the City of Maitland and the Port Stephens Council . Newcastle High School , which was formed by the merger of three schools, traces its lineage to a secondary school section initially founded on
5427-553: The request of brother-in-law William Dangar to manage the property "Turanville", Scone in the Upper Hunter. After this Samuel became a squatter in his own right firstly at Barwon, then Thalaba. He then exchanged the Thalaba property for 18,000 acres at the southern end of Henry Dangar's 25,000 acre Moonbi run, and called this holding Nemingha. The Cooks moved there in 1844 and their new home was called Nemingha House. Samuel Cook became especially well known in Nemingha, 5 miles from Tamworth, for breeding of horses, and were very prominent at
5508-412: 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 to the mainland. The quality of these first buildings was poor, and only the (much reinforced) breakwater survives. During this period, in 1816, the first school was built in Newcastle. Newcastle remained a penal settlement until 1822, when the settlement
5589-492: The steel works closed in 1999. Many of the remaining manufacturing industries have located themselves well away from the city itself. 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 theatre district that occupied the area around what is now the Hunter Street Mall vanished during the 1940s. The old city centre has seen some new apartments and hotels built in recent years, but
5670-416: The wealthy of the district attended Christ Church , and in order that the people may be "reclaimed from practical atheism" the new parish included the suburban area at that time as far as Waratah , Lambton , Adamstown and Cardiff , in addition to its mining core in the Glebe and Merewether . In 1856 a school and parsonage were commenced on 1½ acres of land "at present in a state of bush" and abutting on
5751-511: The world, exporting 143 million tonnes of coal in 2022. Beyond the city, the Hunter Region possesses large coal deposits. Geologically, the area is located in the central-eastern part of the Sydney Basin . Newcastle and the lower Hunter Region were traditionally occupied by the Awabakal and Worimi Aboriginal people, who called the area Malubimba. Based on Aboriginal-language references documented in maps, sketches and geological descriptions, eight landmarks have been officially dual-named by
5832-496: Was 1.8 °C (35.2 °F) on 27 July 1986. East coast lows also impact Newcastle, sometimes delivering winds well above 100 km/h (62 mph) and torrential rainfall, usually lasting a couple of days. The east coast low in May 1974, the 2007 New South Wales storms and April 2015 are extreme examples of this type of weather. The metropolitan area of Newcastle is the second-most-populous area in New South Wales to Sydney . What
5913-528: Was 42.5 °C (108.5 °F) on 18 January 2013 at the Nobbys Head weather station. Winters are generally mild with drier conditions than summer on average. Cold fronts affect the area and sometimes bring strong westerly winds behind them, but due to the foehn effect they generally provide clear conditions as the region lies leeward of the Great Dividing Range . The lowest recorded temperature
5994-578: Was a wealthy landowner at Nemingha in the Tamworth area for some 25 years, on the Cockburn River , well known as "one of the most progressive farmers and stock breeders of his time". Samuel Cook was originally from Warleggan , Cornwall, England, a short distance from Lampen Farm, St Neot, home of the Dangar family. Samuel married the sister of Henry Dangar, Elizabeth Cary Dangar, moving first to Canada, then to Australia in 1837 with their son Thomas Cook aged 3, at
6075-438: Was added to the north gable in 1865. The north transept was converted to a chapel in 1920. In 1952–53, the sanctuary floor was replaced by a raised concrete slab, and a nave centre aisle was adopted. The 1989 Newcastle earthquake resulted in the demolition of the two-storey rectory. The Church walls are hand pressed sandstock bricks, rendered inside and out, on mudstone foundations with stone windows and door surrounds. It
6156-466: 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 the English city . The name first appeared by the commission issued by Governor King on 15 March 1804 to Lieutenant Charles Menzies of the marine detachment on HMS Calcutta , then at Port Jackson , appointing him superintendent of
6237-400: Was made and installed in 1866. The Hall walls are also sandstocks on stone foundations with a galvanised iron roof, the former two-storied master's house is now the hall kitchen, entrance hall and meeting room, with Sunday school quarters above. The Church dimensionally is as it was when built, the hall was extended in 1904, and some Georgian features lost at that time were restored when it
6318-496: Was of some value. Cooks Hill was badly damaged when at 10.27am on 28 December 1989, Newcastle experienced an earthquake measuring 5.5 on the Richter scale which killed 13 people, injured 162 and destroyed or severely damaged over 25,000 buildings, many of which had to be subsequently demolished. It was the first in Australian history known to claim human lives. Cooks Hill has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: According to
6399-432: 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 . After removal of
6480-589: Was soon placed in charge of all of William Dangar's grazing interests. Samuel and Elizabeth had two more children, William and Elizabeth, at Nemingha, but Willam died as a child in 1855 at Nemingha. Thomas Cook married Charlotte Bentley Sibley, whose father was also from the same area of Cornwall as the Dangar's, in 1867. The next year William Dangar died in England in 1868, and Thomas Cook inherited "Turanville" at age 34, as well as "Drildool" and "Cubbaroo"at Burren Junction, "Merrywinebone", "North Oreel" and "South Oreel" in
6561-492: Was worked over before its reopening in 1985. All work was heritage approved. Both the church and church hall were reported to be in good condition as at 4 May 2000. The church has seen a number of changes since its foundation. However, it holds a number of important and significantly important items closely related to the Parish and the City of Newcastle. The Church and Church Hall are the oldest surviving examples of such work in
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