trading centre long before white intrusion.’ white before long centre trading notes: ‘The area today known as Newcastle was an industrial and and industrial an was Newcastle as known today area ‘The notes: to a large regional city. As Indigenous historian John Maynard Maynard John historian Indigenous As city. regional large a to stone tools. It is very rare for such material to be found so close close so found be to material such for rare very is It tools. stone sites including shell middens, grinding areas, clay digs and and digs clay areas, grinding middens, shell including sites Precinct. There is a strong theme of Aboriginal economy, with with economy, Aboriginal of theme strong a is There Precinct. of Aboriginal occupation can still be found in the Coal River River Coal the in found be still can occupation Aboriginal of and varied environment. Despite extensive changes, evidence evidence changes, extensive Despite environment. varied and region’s resources. They lived in this area enjoying its rich rich its enjoying area this in lived They resources. region’s DESIGNED BY BRUDERLIN MACLEAN PUBLISHINGSERVICESPAPER DESIGNED BYBRUDERLINMACLEAN /PRINTEDONRECYCLED The Awabakal and Worimi people were fully aware of the the of aware fully were people Worimi and Awabakal The the valley in the next five years. years. five next the in valley the 1823, and extensive numbers of settlers, sheep and cattle entered entered cattle and sheep settlers, of numbers extensive and 1823, appealing. The Hunter Valley was opened to free settlement in in settlement free to opened was Valley Hunter The appealing. of Newcastle Regional Art Gallery); Coal Newcastle loading at wharf (J&A Brown Collection, ofNewcastle). University Library Papers, Nobbys ofAustralia); Island ofNewcastle, from University Cottage,c1830s(John Mullumbimba courtesy Turner Cover images Aborigines (toptobottom): JosephHunter River (National Lycett, restingthe byof firenear acamp themouth especially was which rivers Paterson and Williams Hunter, the www.heritage.nsw.gov.au the availability of fertile land with rich alluvial soils adjacent to to adjacent soils alluvial rich with land fertile of availability the New South Wales Heritage Office Office Heritage Wales South New Experience living history living Experience free settlers of the early 1820s were attracted by land. It was was It land. by attracted were 1820s early the of settlers free occupation of the 1800s was largely about coal, subsequent subsequent coal, about largely was 1800s the of occupation In conjunction with conjunction In the Australian Agricultural Company. If the first European European first the If Company. Agricultural Australian the www.newcastle.edu.au/coalriver www.newcastle.edu.au/coalriver on the town gang, and—after 1831—as miners working for for working miners 1831—as and—after gang, town the on The University of Newcastle Newcastle of University The convicts remained in the town, as assigned servants, as labourers labourers as servants, assigned as town, the in remained convicts The Coal River Working Party Working River Coal The to a new penal station at Port Macquarie in 1823; however, however, 1823; in Macquarie Port at station penal new a to Castle Hill insurrection. A number of convicts were removed removed were convicts of number A insurrection. Hill Castle National Heritage listing produced by produced listing Heritage National to Coal River in 1804 were Irish rebels who participated in the the in participated who rebels Irish were 1804 in River Coal to This brochure is based on a nomination for for nomination a on based is brochure This Walk sent convicts The 1797. in coal of presence the confirmed and to Sydney. Lieutenant Shortland named and charted the river, river, the charted and named Shortland Lieutenant Sydney. to seams and made a number of unofficial visits taking coal back back coal taking visits unofficial of number a made and seams working harbour. working were fisherman and private traders who eyed the exposed coal coal exposed the eyed who traders private and fisherman were Europeans to this area in the late 1790s. The first Europeans here here Europeans first The 1790s. late the in area this to Europeans through the inescapable presence of a bustling bustling a of presence inescapable the through Precinct attracted initially fish and timber coal, as such Resources industry, through archeological remains, and and remains, archeological through industry, that dates from the convict period. convict the from dates that through changing landforms shaped by by shaped landforms changing through physical transformation of landscape by industry and commerce commerce and industry by landscape of transformation physical Aboriginal and European stories of Newcastle Newcastle of stories European and Aboriginal lies in a triangle between the river and the ocean represent the the represent ocean the and river the between triangle a in lies illuminate these transitions, telling the the telling transitions, these illuminate Coal River Coal that space open the and breakwater the lighthouse, the beach, On this walk you will encounter sites which which sites encounter will you walk this On water mark at the base of what is now Fort Scratchley. Nobbys Nobbys Scratchley. Fort now is what of base the at mark water the sea with the high high the with sea the human-fashioned landscape. landscape. human-fashioned William Keene: Stratigraphical sketch Stratigraphical Keene: William flowed unrestrained into into unrestrained flowed punishment to profit, and from a natural to a a to natural a from and profit, to punishment height it is today. The river river The today. is it height enterprise, from convict to free labour, from from labour, free to convict from enterprise, the river mouth twice the the twice mouth river the Nobbys was an island in in island an was Nobbys from government industry to private private to industry government from of the continent in 1770, 1770, in continent the of transitions in Australia’s journey to nationhood; nationhood; to journey Australia’s in transitions voyage along the east coast coast east the along voyage living history marking a series of important important of series a marking history living as Nobbys Head on his his on Head Nobbys as within a distinctive landscape. It is a place of of place a is It landscape. distinctive a within sighted what is now known known now is what sighted When Captain Cook Cook Captain When NSW, includes outstanding heritage sites sites heritage outstanding includes NSW, The Coal River Precinct, in Newcastle, Newcastle, in Precinct, River Coal The Changing landscape Changing Awabakal Dreaming Convicts Long ago, a Giant Kangaroo attacked a Wallaby. When the deed was known he was pursued by angry Wallabies who chased him Newcastle was the all the way to Mulubinda (Newcastle). When he neared the sea a first area of white mist sprang up concealing his presence and, under its cover, he occupation in swam out to Wybaygamba (Nobbys) to shut himself away. New South Wales outside of the The Wallabies, seeing no trace of him, assumed the Giant Kangaroo had drowned and returned home. He is still there, Sydney basin and though, and every now and then he shakes his giant tail causing was permanently the land to tremble and rocks to fall. established as a place of secondary The Dreaming reveals a long history of earthquakes in the Hunter, punishment and there are regular smaller rock falls from the cliffs of Nobbys. Aboriginal tools: detail from the Skottowe manuscript in 1804. Such settlements were designed to receive convicts who had re-offended. Being sent to Newcastle was a form European–Aboriginal contact of punishment with reduced rations, tighter control and harsher discipline. But, as sites in the precinct You are standing on Awabakal country. From the late 1790s show, convicts played an important economic role in contact between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people tended to the production of coal, timber, lime and salt for the be sporadic, but after 1804, the Awabakal people had to contend new colony, and as workers on major projects such as with the permanent occupation of their country by convicts and breakwater construction. their gaolers. Traditional patterns of their economy, society and kinship were maintained into the 1850s. Thereafter, traditional Coal mining had the dual value for colonial administrators societies were overwhelmed by more widespread and intensive of being punishing work, while also producing a land use, with many Aboriginal people choosing—or being potentially valuable resource for the new colony. Governor forced—to relocate to the mission on Lake Macquarie established King first established the outpost in 1801 to control by Reverend Threlkeld in 1824. The descendants of the Awabakal unchecked exploitation by private traders and provide are resident in the region today, and maintain connections to their hard labour for re-offending convicts. The settlement was culture and land. withdrawn in 1802, but re-established in 1804 following the Irish rebellion at Castle Hill. The pre-industrial environment Joseph By 1819 there were almost 700 convicts in the area, Lycett, and by 1820 the total resident white population was Chest, approximately 1,200. The closure of the penal settlement The lower Hunter, including the Coal River 1818 Precinct, was once abundant, teeming with at Newcastle in 1821 led to a decade or two of stasis. life. Honeysuckle Population growth, trade and wealth shifted towards the (Banksia Wildlife: possum, eastern quoll, kangaroo, lower Hunter, and the principal town of Maitland and its integrifolia) swamp wallaby, brown snake, diamond nearby port of Morpeth. python, black snake. Sea life: flathead, mullet, large jewfish, oyster, prawn, crab, lobster. Bird life: regent bower bird, figbird, wonga wonga pigeon, white’s thrush, lyre bird, emus, black swan, pheasant coucal. What creatures can you see around you today? The Skottowe manuscript trading centre long before white intrusion.’ white before long centre trading notes: ‘The area today known as Newcastle was an industrial and and industrial an was Newcastle as known today area ‘The notes: to a large regional city.