Singleton, New South Wales
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2007) |
| Singleton New South Wales | |||||||||
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  Singleton | |||||||||
| Coordinates | 32°34′S 151°10′E / 32.567°S 151.167°E | ||||||||
| Population | 23,000 (2011)[1] | ||||||||
| Postcode(s) | 2330 | ||||||||
| Elevation | 40 m (131 ft) | ||||||||
| Location |
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| LGA(s) | Singleton Shire Council | ||||||||
| State electorate(s) | Upper Hunter | ||||||||
| Federal division(s) | Hunter | ||||||||
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Singleton is a town on the banks of the Hunter River in New South Wales, Australia. Singleton is 197 kilometres (122 mi) north-north-west of Sydney, and 80 kilometres (50 mi) northwest of Newcastle.[2] At the 2011 census, Singleton had a population of 13,961,[1] with a wider local government area population of 22,694.
Singleton's main urban area includes the town centre, Singleton Heights, Dunolly, Darlington, The Retreat, Wattle ponds and Hunterview. Surrounding rural villages include Broke, Camberwell, Jerrys Plains and Belford.
Singleton is located on the north-eastern part of the geological structure known as the Sydney basin, which borders the New England region.[3] The town is located at the junction of the New England Highway and Putty Road. The Golden Highway bypasses the town to the south. Singleton is also served by local and long-distance rail services. Singleton Railway Station is located at the southern end of the town centre. There are also bus services, both intercity and local.
History
Singleton was established in the 1820s by Benjamin Singleton. In its early years, it was also called Patricks' Plains.[4] The Main North Railway line reached Singleton in 1863 and was the end of the line until 1869. The town retains many historic buildings, including the original court house built in 1841, various large churches and many traditional Australian pubs. The countryside surrounding Singleton contains an unusual number of fine old mansions, reflecting the aristocratic nature of land grants when the area was settled. They include 'Neotsfield' (1828), the elaborate 'Baroona' (1829), 'Abbey Green' (1865) and stunning 'Minimbah' (1877).
Singleton was subject to the major flooding of the Hunter River in 1955, causing extensive damage to the town. When the area was being settled, the government originally attempted to create a town at Whittingham in a flood-free area, but the town grew by the river nonetheless. An embankment was constructed following the 1955 floods to help protect the town against any future flooding.
In 1999, the town's army barracks became a temporary home to a large number of Kosovar refugees.
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Singleton High School -
Singleton Railway Station -
All Saints' Anglican Church -
All Saints' Church Rectory
Climate
Singleton has a humid subtropical climate with hot humid summers and cool drier winters.
| Climate data for Singleton | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 43.6 (110.5) |
40.0 (104.0) |
41.0 (105.8) |
34.7 (94.5) |
28.2 (82.8) |
25.4 (77.7) |
26.0 (78.8) |
30.4 (86.7) |
33.0 (91.4) |
39.0 (102.2) |
43.0 (109.4) |
41.4 (106.5) |
43.6 (110.5) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 30.6 (87.1) |
29.6 (85.3) |
27.7 (81.9) |
25.4 (77.7) |
21.1 (70.0) |
18.3 (64.9) |
18.0 (64.4) |
20.1 (68.2) |
23.1 (73.6) |
26.0 (78.8) |
27.6 (81.7) |
29.7 (85.5) |
24.8 (76.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 17.3 (63.1) |
17.2 (63.0) |
15.2 (59.4) |
11.1 (52.0) |
8.6 (47.5) |
5.6 (42.1) |
4.8 (40.6) |
5.0 (41.0) |
8.0 (46.4) |
10.7 (51.3) |
13.5 (56.3) |
15.9 (60.6) |
11.1 (52.0) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 9.6 (49.3) |
9.6 (49.3) |
7.5 (45.5) |
2.5 (36.5) |
0.4 (32.7) |
−2.0 (28.4) |
−3.9 (25.0) |
−4.2 (24.4) |
0.4 (32.7) |
2.5 (36.5) |
5.0 (41.0) |
8.1 (46.6) |
−4.2 (24.4) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 70.2 (2.76) |
107.6 (4.24) |
75.1 (2.96) |
38.3 (1.51) |
37.8 (1.49) |
31.7 (1.25) |
41.7 (1.64) |
27.6 (1.09) |
44.1 (1.74) |
32.8 (1.29) |
59.2 (2.33) |
86.6 (3.41) |
649.4 (25.57) |
| Average precipitation days | 10.1 | 10.1 | 9.1 | 7.1 | 8.1 | 8.4 | 7.1 | 6.8 | 8.3 | 6.6 | 10.5 | 9.9 | 102.1 |
| Source: [5] | |||||||||||||
Industry & Commerce
Major industries near Singleton include coal mining, electricity generation, light industry, vineyards, horse breeding and cattle production. Dairying was once a mainstay in the area, but has declined.
The Lone Pine army barracks is located 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) south of Singleton.
Being the largest town in the Upper Hunter, Singleton is an important commercial centre. The town centre boasts three small shopping centres, a cinema complex, homemaker centre as well as a traditional 'main street'. Major stores include Woolworths, COLES, ALDI, Big W, Franklins, IGA and most conventional high street stores. People also will often travel to nearby Maitland and Newcastle for large regional shopping centres.
Singleton residents have a higher than average median income because of the nearby coal mines. At the 2006 census, the median individual income was $62,036.[1]
Media
The Singleton Argus is a bi-weekly newspaper which was established in 1874. It is currently owned and published by Fairfax. The weekly newspaper that serves Singleton and the Hunter Valley is The Hunter Valley News,[6] which, along with the Newcastle Herald newspaper (daily, except Sundays), is published by Fairfax Media. Newspapers from Sydney and other national newspaper titles are also available.
Radio
Radio Stations serving both Newcastle and the Hunter Valley can be received in Singleton. These stations include:
AM stations
- 2NM (commercial)
- 2HD (commercial)
- 1233 ABC Newcastle (ABC Local Radio)
- 2HRN (off band commercial)
FM stations
- KOFM (commercial)
- NXFM (commercial)
- New FM (commercial)
- 2NUR (community)
- Rhema FM Newcastle (Christian)
Government broadcasters
- Australian Broadcasting Corporation
- 1233 ABC Newcastle
- ABC Upper Hunter (2UH)
- ABC Radio National
- ABC News Radio
- Triple J (youth station)
- ABC Classic FM (classical music)
- SBS Radio (foreign language service) (AM from Newcastle, FM from Muswellbrook)
Other stations
- 2KY Racing Radio (as part of state-wide network) (AM from Newcastle, FM from Muswellbrook)
- Power FM
- 2NM
- Hot Country Radio
Television
Singleton is part of the Newcastle-Hunter Region television market, which is served by 5 television networks, three commercial and two national services (which include new sub-channels that started in 2009 for the commercial networks and in recent years from the national services). These new channels are available on digital TV only. These networks are listed as follows:
- NBN Television, GEM (digital only) and GO! (digital only) : (Nine Network affiliate, incumbent station, (NBN TV) established 1962).
- Southern Cross Ten, One (digital only) and Eleven (digital only) : (Network Ten affiliate, Southern Cross Ten (formerly known as TEN Northern N.S.W. and NRTV) was established as a result of aggregation on 31 December 1991).
- Prime7 (formerly known as Prime Television), 7Two (digital only) and 7mate (digital only) : (Seven Network / Prime affiliate was established as a result of aggregation on 31 December 1991 but swallowed).
- ABC Television including ABC1, ABC2/ABC 4 Kids (digital only), ABC3 (digital only) and ABC News 24 is owned by the government. The ABC TV service was established in the 1960s.
- SBS Television including SBS ONE and SBS Two (digital only) is owned by the government. This service was introduced in the 1980s.
NBN Television produces an evening news bulletin combining local, state, national and international news screening nightly, while subscription television service Foxtel is also available via satellite.
Tourism
- Sundial. Singleton is home to one of the world's largest sundials, presented by a local coal mine for the 1988 Bicentennial Celebrations.
- Wineries. The town is close to the famous Pokolbin wine region (southeast). There are also many wineries in the shire, especially around Broke.
- Boating. Lake St Clair is an artificial lake located to the north of the town, with facilities for boating and camping.
- National Parks. Wollemi and Yengo National Parks are located south of the town via the Putty Road. Barrington Tops National Park borders the north of the shire.
- Town Walk. In the older parts of Singleton, there is a posted walk that passes by many of the towns historic buildings.
- Museums. Singleton has three main museums, the Singleton Historic Society Museum in Burdekin Park, the Royal Australian Infantry Corps Museum at the nearby barracks and the Mercy Convent Museum 'Sacred Spaces' within the grounds of the Convent of the Sisters of Mercy (Singleton).
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St Patrick's Catholic Church, Queen Street -
Convent of Mercy -
St Catherine's College -
Aboriginal painting, Baiame Cave, Milbrodale
Heritage sites
Singleton Shire contains a number of buildings and other sites that are on the Register of the National Estate[7]
- Anglican Church of St James, Jerrys Plains
- Strowan, Denman Road, Jerrys Plains
- Singleton Railway Station
- All Saints Church, Singleton, including Rectory, Dangars Mausoleum and All Saints Sunday School
- Court House, Elizabeth Street, Singleton
- Ewbank and outbuildings, George Street, Singleton
- Club House Hotel, John Street, Singleton
- Minimbah House (formerly Dulcamah), Whittingham, near Singleton
- Appletree Aboriginal Area, 75 kilometres north-west of Newcastle
- Baiame Cave (popular name), Milbrodale
Education
Singleton is home to a number of educational facilities. These include Public and Denominational schools at both Primary and Secondary levels, as well as a TAFE Campus and a number of pre-schools.
Primary
Public
- Broke Public School
- Jerrys Plains Public School
- King Street Public School
- Milbrodale Public School
- Mount Pleasant Public School
- Singleton Heights Public School
- Singleton Public School
Denominational
- St Catherine's Catholic College
- Singleton Christian College
Secondary
- Public
- Singleton High School
Denominational
- St Catherine's Catholic College
- Singleton Christian College
Tertiary
Hunter Institute of TAFE maintains a Campus in Singleton. It provides training and further education as well as collaborating with secondary schools for students completing Senior years.
Notable locals
- While obviously not born in Singleton, the township's founder Benjamin Singleton is buried in a local graveyard.
- Australian country music matriarch Joy McKean was born in Singleton in 1930.
- Some famous sportspeople include rugby league players Steve Simpson, Sean Rudder, Luke Price (Brisbane Broncos), Leigh McWilliams, Riley Brown and Rugby Union players Steve Merrick and Josh Valentine.
- Former New South Wales Premier, Sir Charles Wade was born in Singleton, serving as premier from 1907-1910.
- Though not born in Singleton, Joe Governor (an infamous bushranger) is buried outside the local Anglican cemetery. The book and film 'The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith' is based on the activities of he and his brother.
- Two-times Australian off-road motorcycle racing champion Toby Price lives in Singleton.
Sister city
See also
References
- ^ a b c Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "Singleton (Urban Centre/Locality)". 2011 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 2014-07-08.
- ^ Robinson's Road Atlas of Australia, Lansdowne Press, 1983
- ^ http://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/image/0007/96847/20758.gif
- ^ Gee, Valma. Patrick's Plains "Patrick's Plains". Family History society of Singleton. Retrieved 24 January 2010.
{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ "Climate statistics for Singleton". Bureau of Meteorology. Retrieved July 2011.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help) - ^ "Hunter Valley News". huntervalleynews.net.au. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
- ^ The Heritage of Australia, Macmillan Company, 1981, pp.2/210-211
External links
- "Hunter River catchment" (map). Office of Environment and Heritage. Government of New South Wales.
- Official Singleton Shire Council Page
- Tourism information from Walkabout
- Google Maps satellite image of Singleton