Charlestown, New South Wales
Encyclopedia
Charlestown is a suburb of Newcastle
, New South Wales
, Australia
, and the largest town within the City of Lake Macquarie. It is located approximately 10 kilometres (6 mi) west-southwest of the central business district of Newcastle.
Charlestown has the largest business centre within the Lake Macquarie city, with a greater turnover than that of the neighbouring Newcastle CBD. The suburbs serves as the district's transport hub.
The company had the area surveyed on 29 April 1876; the first subdivision later became Ida Street, Pearson Street, Milson Street and Frederick Streets. Harry Wright bought the first lot when it was auctioned later in 1876.
The town had its first water main in 1927 and was connected to civic sewage in 1959.
, which is located just off the Pacific Highway
.
The suburb contains four primary schools; the State schools of Charlestown Primary, Charlestown South Primary and Charlestown East Primary, and the Catholic Diocese's
St Joseph's Convent Primary School. The state primary schools feed into nearby Whitebridge High School, while the catholic primary school feeds into nearby St Mary's High School at Gateshead and St Pius X High School at Adamstown.
The suburb has a police station and a fire station. The NSW Ambulance Service has its Northern Communications Centre in the suburb, off Dudley Road.
Newcastle, New South Wales
The Newcastle metropolitan area is the second most populated area in the Australian state of New South Wales and includes most of the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie Local Government Areas...
, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, and the largest town within the City of Lake Macquarie. It is located approximately 10 kilometres (6 mi) west-southwest of the central business district of Newcastle.
Charlestown has the largest business centre within the Lake Macquarie city, with a greater turnover than that of the neighbouring Newcastle CBD. The suburbs serves as the district's transport hub.
History
Originally granted to the Waratah Coal Company, the area was the site of the company's first shaft, sunk in 1873. Officially called South Waratah, the pit was variously known as Charles' Pit, Raspberry Gully or The Gully Pit. These names all applied to Charlestown in its early days and the surviving name seem to have been derived from that of Charles Smith, the company's manager. The first settlers were miners from the pit.The company had the area surveyed on 29 April 1876; the first subdivision later became Ida Street, Pearson Street, Milson Street and Frederick Streets. Harry Wright bought the first lot when it was auctioned later in 1876.
The town had its first water main in 1927 and was connected to civic sewage in 1959.
Today
The suburb is home to one of the largest shopping complexes in the region, Charlestown SquareCharlestown Square
Charlestown Square is a major regional shopping centre in Charlestown, New South Wales, a suburb of the city of Lake Macquarie. It is owned and operated by General Property Trust...
, which is located just off the Pacific Highway
Pacific Highway (Australia)
The Pacific Highway is a major transport route along part of the east coast of Australia and is part of Australia's national route 1.It is 960 km long and links Sydney, the capital of New South Wales, to Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, along the coast, via Gosford, Newcastle, Taree, Port...
.
The suburb contains four primary schools; the State schools of Charlestown Primary, Charlestown South Primary and Charlestown East Primary, and the Catholic Diocese's
Roman Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle is a suffragan Latin rite diocese of the Archdiocese of Sydney, established in 1847, initially as the Diocese of Maitland, and then changed to the current name in 1995...
St Joseph's Convent Primary School. The state primary schools feed into nearby Whitebridge High School, while the catholic primary school feeds into nearby St Mary's High School at Gateshead and St Pius X High School at Adamstown.
The suburb has a police station and a fire station. The NSW Ambulance Service has its Northern Communications Centre in the suburb, off Dudley Road.