Seaham, New South Wales facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Seaham New South Wales
St. Andrews Anglican Church, dedicated 1860
Seaham Location in New South Wales
Population	1,025 (2011 census)
• Density	23.9/km2 (62/sq mi)
Established	1822
Postcode(s)	2324
Area	42.8 km2 (16.5 sq mi)
Time zone	AEST (UTC+10)
• Summer (DST)	AEDT (UTC+11)
Location	179 km (111 mi) N of Sydney 40 km (25 mi) NNW of Newcastle 14.6 km (9 mi) NNW of Raymond Terrace 22 km (14 mi) NE of Maitland
LGA(s)	Port Stephens Council
Region	Hunter
Parish	Seaham
State electorate(s)	Port Stephens
Federal Division(s)	Lyne
Mean max temp Mean min temp Annual rainfall 29.6 °C 85 °F 6.1 °C 43 °F 925.2 mm 36.4 in
Suburbs around Seaham: Duns Creek Glen Oak East Seaham Butterwick, Woodville, Wallalong Seaham East Seaham, Eagleton Wallalong, Hinton Brandy Hill, Hinton, Osterley, Nelsons Plains Raymond Terrace

Seaham Hotel, at the intersection of Vine and Dixon Streets, circa 1910

Seaham is a suburb of the Port Stephens local government area in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. It is located on the Williams River which flows into the Hunter River 14.6 km (9.1 mi) downstream from Seaham village at Raymond Terrace.

It is a rural community supporting a small but expanding population. While the actual village of Seaham, which is located in the north-eastern corner of the suburb, is relatively compact and composed of only a handful of streets, the suburb itself covers an area of approximately 42.8 km² (16.5 sq mi). At the 2011 census, Seaham had a population of 1,025. Greater Seaham covers an even larger area and incorporates East Seaham, Brandy Hill, Eagleton and Eskdale Estate.

History

Aboriginal settlement

Prior to the arrival of Europeans, the area now known as Seaham was home to the Garewagal clan of the Worimi people.

Beginnings through the 19th century

In 1822, Henry Dangar began surveying the Hunter Valley for settlement. Dangar divided the land into counties and parishes, reserving land for a township where the village of Seaham is now situated. About this time, a military station existed at Seaham in the vicinity of what is now Wighton Street. The village at Seaham was proclaimed in the Government Gazette on 26 July 1838. In the ensuing years, the village became a crossroads between neighbouring centres such as Raymond Terrace and Maitland.

In 1838 Dr Henry Carmichael established a vineyard at "Porphyry Point", north of the village. In the ensuing decades the vineyard proved prosperous, winning numerous awards in Australia and Europe. The last vintage at Porphyry was in 1915, after which the name and trade mark was sold to Lindemans.

In 1893 homes near the Williams River at Seaham were inundated during a disastrous flood that caused considerable damage and loss of livestock. Another flood in 1913 caused similar damage, destroying crops and drowning livestock. Although the impact of the 1955 Hunter Valley floods on Seaham was not documented, photographs indicate that a flood of that magnitude during the nineteenth-century (when many residents lived and worked near the river), would have been catastrophic.

20th century

Prior to the establishment of the railway line between Maitland and Paterson in 1911, a line through Seaham was one of three alternative routes for the North Coast Railway. The proposed line would have connected Morpeth and Clarence Town, via Seaham. The surveyed line is visible on an 1887 map of Seaham, indicating a railway crossing over the Williams River between the township and Brandon House. At a public meeting in Clarence Town during October 1882 it was argued that the line through Seaham would present "more facilities and less engineering difficulties [than the proposed Maitland to Paterson route]". In 1903, the Seaham Hotel opened at the intersection of Dixon and Vine Streets. Thomas McDonald was publican until 1920, at which point Alfred Moore acquired the licence. A decrease in traffic and population forced a later licensee, Jack Laurie, to close the hotel in December 1932 and leave the district. In September 1935, the two-storey brick building was completely destroyed by fire.

21st century

In 2002 celebrations were held in Seaham to commemorate the sesquicentenary of Seaham Public School, the centenary of the Seaham School of Arts and the centenary of the consecration of St. Andrew's Anglican Church. These celebrations were unified as "Seaham Celebrates" and included events that were similar to those held at the 1938 Seaham centenary celebrations.