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Stockton, New South Wales

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Coordinates: 32°54′54″S 151°47′4″E / 32.91500°S 151.78444°E / -32.91500; 151.78444
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Stockton
Newcastle, New South Wales
The northern breakwater in Stockton at the entrance to Newcastle Harbour
Stockton is located in the Hunter-Central Coast Region
Stockton
Stockton
Map
Coordinates32°54′54″S 151°47′4″E / 32.91500°S 151.78444°E / -32.91500; 151.78444
Population4,046 (SAL 2021)[1]
 • Density1,133.8/km2 (2,937/sq mi)
Postcode(s)2295
Elevation6 m (20 ft)[Note 1]
Area3.7 km2 (1.4 sq mi)[Note 2]
Time zoneAEST (UTC+10)
 • Summer (DST)AEDT (UTC+11)
Location
LGA(s)City of Newcastle[2]
RegionHunter[2]
CountyGloucester[3]
ParishStockton[4]
State electorate(s)Newcastle[5]
Federal division(s)Newcastle[6]
Mean max temp[7] Mean min temp[7] Annual rainfall[7]
21.8 °C
71 °F		 14.2 °C
58 °F		 1,131.3 mm
44.5 in
Suburbs around Stockton:
Kooragang Fern Bay Pacific Ocean
Carrington Stockton Pacific Ocean
Newcastle Newcastle Newcastle East

Stockton is a suburb of Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia, located 600 m (0.4 mi) from Newcastle's central business district. It is the only residential suburb of the City of Newcastle that lies north of the Hunter River.[8]

Geography

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Stockton is a peninsula, with the Hunter River at the south and south-west and the Pacific Ocean at the east. On the eastern side are sand dunes and surfing beaches, with numerous shipwrecks at its north, while on the western side there are marshes, where many migratory birds can be spotted. There are numerous spots at Stockton suitable for recreational fishing.

For many years, Stockton was linked to Newcastle's central business district at the south by passenger and vehicular ferry services. While there is still a passenger ferry service, vehicular traffic is now connected by the Stockton Bridge that opened in 1971.

History

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Aboriginal history

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The Aboriginal people, in this area, the Worimi, are the first people of this land.[9] The Worimi people call the area Burrabihngarn.[10] This name is acknowledged by the NSW Geographic Names Board in the official dual-naming of Pirate Point / Burrabihngarn.[11] During the year clan groups moved around their traditional land and in the summer months the mullet run drew them to the coast. This time was used to maintain kinship connections. The traditional location for these activities was Burrabihngarn.[12]

European settlement

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On 9 September 1797 Lieutenant John Shortland became the first European to set foot on the land that would later become Stockton.[13] It was originally called "Pirate Point" as the result of escaped convicts who stole the Norfolk which shipwrecked on the peninsula in 1800.[14][15] The southern tip of the peninsula, near the northern breakwater is still known as "Pirate Point".

The first formal land grant was made to Thomas McQueen in 1830 when he was granted 10 acres at Stockton. In 1835, Alexander Walker Scott was granted 50 acres on the eastern side of the peninsula. In the same year, James Mitchell was granted70 acres on the western side.[16] The entire northern section of the peninsula was held under leasehold by S. Samuel.[16]

Industrial development

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For much of the 19th century it served as an industrial and mining base. Early industries included timber, lime (which was initially produced by convicts), and salt.[17]

In 1896 tragedy struck when a gas leak killed 11 people in the Stockton Colliery Disaster.[18][19] It has become a working-class dormitory suburb during the 20th century, and remains so today for its 4,200 residents.

Stocktonians are particularly proud of Dave Sands, a local resident and champion boxer during the years immediately after World War II. Like the Colliery Disaster, the short life of Sands was commemorated by some of the numerous memorials across this seaside village.

Stockton Beach is also known as the location of the 1989 rape and murder of Newcastle High School student and Fern Bay resident Leigh Leigh. A play, Blackrock (written by Australian playwright Nick Enright), and also a film of the same name, were inspired by this event.

Education

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There are two primary level schools, Stockton Public School and the Catholic St Peter's Primary School. Stockton falls under the catchment area for Newcastle High School.

Culture

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A family pictured in Stockton in 1902

Despite being technically an inner-city suburb of Newcastle, Stockton has a country town atmosphere because of its isolation. It has its own shops, churches, two clubhouses, three pubs, a swimming pool, and a caravan park. Before it was closed it also had a large residential unit for people with developmental disability known as the Stockton Centre.[15]

Stockton was traditionally a working-class suburb. The Leigh Leigh murder caused "irreparable psychological damage" to the community of Stockton. The crime has been described as a barely healed wound for Stockton, one that is easily punctured.[20] In recent years, however, the town has begun to re-invent itself with a push for young professionals to move in from other centres such as Sydney. This practice has led to an increase in real estate prices.

Notable people

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Sport

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Stockton includes a district cricket team.[21] It also has an active soccer club, the Stockton Sharks Soccer Club.[22] The Stockton Rugby League club participates in the Newcastle & Hunter Rugby League C Grade competition.[23] Surfing is a big part of Stockton life and is based from the Stockton Surf Life Saving Club (SLSC).[24] Activities around the SLSC include paddle boarding, surf swimming, surf ski, as well as surf life saving beach patrols. Port Hunter 16 Foot Sailing Skiff Club sails on Newcastle harbour.[25]

Stockton Beach

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Southern end of Stockton Beach from Shipwreck walk

Stockton Beach is 32 km (20 mi) long, stretching from Stockton in the south to Anna Bay at its north-eastern end. In some areas it is as much as 1 km wide and has sand dunes over 30 metres high although at the Stockton end it is at its narrowest.

Four-wheel drives are permitted to drive on most areas of Stockton Beach but are excluded from the extreme ends of the beach.

Stockton Colliery disaster 1896 rescuers

Entry to the beach is via Lavis Lane or Anna Bay and a permit needs to be purchased before entering the beach. Drivers must also ensure that they respect the natural habitat of the beach and refrain from driving on the plants and grasses on the dune structures.

Maritime disasters

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Over the years Stockton Beach has been the site of a large number of shipwrecks, ship collisions and groundings. These include but not limited to:

Transport

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Ferry

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Ferry Shortland travelling between Stockton and Newcastle

Prior to the opening of the Stockton Bridge in 1971, the main transport access to Stockton was a system of vehicular and passenger ferries.[26]

Today there is the frequent Stockton ferry service to Stockton from Queens Wharf, close to the former Newcastle railway station. The ferry journey takes about three minutes. Driving to Stockton from Newcastle requires following the many signs to Port Stephens that can be found on the main roads. These will eventually lead to the Stockton Bridge and a turn-off to the suburb itself.

Road

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Stockton Bridge

There is one road into Stockton. This road offers two options for travel, to the east over the Stockton Bridge via Koorgang Island connects travelers to Newcastle, while the northern option connects travelers to Hexham, Williamtown, Raymond Terrace, Nelson Bay and the Pacific Highway.

Buses

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Stockton is served by Hunter Valley Buses route 136 to Raymond Terrace.[27]

Notes

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  1. ^ Average elevation of the suburb as shown on 1:100000 map 9232 NEWCASTLE.
  2. ^ Area calculation is based on 1:100000 map 9232 NEWCASTLE.

References

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  1. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Stockton (NSW) (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022. Edit this at Wikidata
  2. ^ a b "Suburb Search – Local Council Boundaries – Hunter (HT) – Newcastle City Council". New South Wales Division of Local Government. Archived from the original on 26 March 2011. Retrieved 10 September 2012.
  3. ^ "Stockton". Geographical Names Board of New South Wales. Archived from the original on 11 August 2023.
  4. ^ "Stockton". Geographical Names Register (GNR) of NSW. Geographical Names Board of New South Wales. Retrieved 10 September 2012. Edit this at Wikidata
  5. ^ "Newcastle". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  6. ^ "Newcastle". Australian Electoral Commission. 26 July 2012. Archived from the original on 21 May 2011. Retrieved 10 September 2012.
  7. ^ a b c "Newcastle Nobbys Signal Station AWS". Climate statistics for Australian locations. Bureau of Meteorology. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  8. ^ "Stockton". Land and Property Management Authority - Spatial Information eXchange. New South Wales Land and Property Information. Retrieved 14 May 2008.
  9. ^ "Aboriginal Culture". City of Newcastle. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  10. ^ "Map of the River Hunter, and its branches [cartographic material] : shewing the Lands reserved thereon for Church purposes, the Locations made to Settlers, and the Settlement and part of the Lands of the Australian Agricultural Company at Port Stephens together with the Station of the Mission to the Aborigines belonging to the London Missionary Society on Lake Macquarie, New South Wales". Trove. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  11. ^ "Dual naming - Geographical Names Board of NSW". www.gnb.nsw.gov.au. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  12. ^ City of Newcastle (October 2020). Newcastle Heritage Strategy, 2020-2030. City of Newcastle. p. 7.
  13. ^ "Welcome to Newcastle City Council - Discovery and founding of Newcastle". 24 July 2008. Archived from the original on 24 July 2008. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  14. ^ "Stockton". City of Newcastle. 4 June 2013. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  15. ^ a b Ellmoos, Laila. (2010). Beneath the pines : a history of the Stockton Centre. Ageing, Disability & Home Care (N.S.W.). Sydney, N.S.W.: Ageing, Disability and Home Care, Dept. of Human Services NSW. ISBN 978-0-9752356-4-5. OCLC 667137915.
  16. ^ a b Callen, Terry (1987). St. Peter-in-Chains Stockton Centenary 1887-1987. Newcastle: Parish of St. Peter-in-Chains.
  17. ^ Callen, Terry; Hunter, Cynthia (1994). Bar Safe: a history of Newcastle Harbour and its entrance. Newcastle, N.S.W: Newcastle Maritime Museum. ISBN 978-0-9588939-1-6.
  18. ^ "1896 - Stockton Colliery". resourcesandgeoscience.nsw.gov.au. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  19. ^ SCANLON, MIKE (2 May 2014). "MIKE SCANLON: Heroes hewn in the pit". Newcastle Herald. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  20. ^ Carrington, Kerry (24 July 1998). "The Community as Victim". Who Killed Leigh Leigh?. Sydney, New South Wales: Random House Australia. pp. 147–150. ISBN 978-0-0918-3708-2.
  21. ^ "Stockton & Northern Districts Cricket Club". Retrieved 10 September 2012.
  22. ^ Football, Stockton Sharks. "Stockton Sharks Football". Stockton Sharks Football. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
  23. ^ Callinan, Josh (14 March 2017). "Newcastle and Hunter Rugby League: North Newcastle and South Newcastle rivals once again". Newcastle Herald. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  24. ^ "Stockton Surf Life Saving Club". Retrieved 24 November 2016.
  25. ^ "Port Hunter 16ft Sailing Skiff Club". Port Hunter 16ft Sailing Skiff Club. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  26. ^ Stockton Bridge Construction Completed Main Roads March 1972 pages 66-69
  27. ^ Route 136 timetable Transport for NSW
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Stockton, New South Wales.
  • "Stockton". Australian Explorer. Retrieved 10 September 2012.
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