The Town of Raymond Terrace
First established 1838
Where the Williams and Hunter Rivers meet
Raymond Terrace is a town in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia, about 150kms north of Sydney and 26 km by road north of Newcastle. Established in 1837 it is situated at the confluence of the Hunter and Williams rivers and has about 12,600 residents. It is the administrative centre of the Port Stephens LGA as well as a service hub for surrounding rural areas. A fleet of prawn trawlers is based at Raymond Terrace. North and south of the town are semi-rural and rural areas, mostly running cattle. Only about 3% of the population live in these areas, with the remainder living in the town itself. The Council is about to release land for residential housing to the north of the town that will permit another 10,000 people to live in the areat.
Because of the propensity of the Hunter and Williams Rivers to flood across the surroundingalluvial plain, flooding has been a threat to the town over the years.
Following huge floods in the 1950's, levee banks along the riverbank protect the town from flooding. Recent floods in 2007 showed the effectiveness of these banks in protecting the town, though there was some flooding in the carpark below the Market Town shopping centre. The rectory and church are built above flood level.
There is a large shopping centre in the town which serves the surrounding rural centres, and the town provides the amenities and service of a large town, as well as being the administrative centre for Port Stephens Council.
Situated on the Pacific Highway, a by-pass opened in 1998, freed the town from the passage of a huge amount of traffic, especially in the Christmas holidays with the vast exodus north from Sydney.
Location:
- * 168 km (104 mi) NNE of Sydney
- * 25.8 km (16 mi) N of Newcastle
- * 22 km (14 mi) E of Maitland
More information :
The following link to the travel pages of the Sydney Morning Herald gives more information about the history of this interesting town:
