| Type: | town |
| Singleton | |
| State: | nsw |
| Coordinates: | -32.5667°N 151.1697°W |
| Pop: | 16346 |
| Pop Year: | 2018 |
| Postcode: | 2330 |
| Elevation: | 40 |
| Dist1: | 202 |
| Dir1: | NNW |
| Location1: | Sydney |
| Dist2: | 80 |
| Dir2: | NW |
| Location2: | Newcastle |
| Dist3: | 47 |
| Dir3: | SE |
| Location3: | Muswellbrook |
| Dist4: | 44 |
| Dir4: | NW |
| Location4: | Cessnock |
| Dist5: | 49 |
| Dir5: | WNW |
| Location5: | Maitland |
| Lga: | Singleton Shire Council |
| County: | Northumberland |
| Stategov: | Upper Hunter |
| Fedgov: | Hunter |
| Maxtemp: | 24.7 |
| Mintemp: | 11.1 |
| Rainfall: | 645.4 |
Singleton is a town on the banks of the Hunter River in New South Wales, Australia. Singleton is 202km (126 mi) north-north-west of Sydney, and 70 km (43 mi) north-west of Newcastle.[1] [2] At June 2018, Singleton had an urban population of 16,346.[3]
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, Goorangoola/Greenlands, Belford and Lower Belford.
Singleton is located on the north-eastern part of the geological structure known as the Sydney basin, which borders the New England region.[4]
Singleton is now home to a $100 million dollar lottery winner, the highest in the towns history.[5]
The traditional landowners of the land around what is now Singleton are the Wonnarua / Wanaruah people. The Wonnarua / Wanaruah people have occupied the land in the Upper Hunter Valley for over 30,000 years.[6]
Singleton was established in the 1820s. In its early years, it was also called Patrick's Plains.[7] The Main Northern railway line reached Singleton in 1863 and was the end of the line until 1869. The town retains many historic buildings, including the original courthouse 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).
A Telegraph Office was opened in Singleton on 25 February 1861 during the construction of the first telegraph line to Queensland. That Office combined with the Post Office on 1 January 1870. In May 1942, the community celebrated the appointment of the town's first female Telegram Messenger – Miss Daphne Lambkins. She was one of the first female Messengers in the Commonwealth.[8]
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.
It was built in 1829 with property being on 33 hectares.[9] John Larnach built the 1600ha house on land owned by his father-in-law James Mudie. Larnach and Mudie worked together on property with the help of convict labour to create a prominent agricultural establishment producing wool, meat and wheat.[10] He was assigned 64 convicts which comprised 67% English, 25% Irish and a few from Scotland with a median age of 28 years old.[11] A servant set fire to the estate in 1832.[12] In 1893 Baroona was given an addition of a spiral staircase, a card room and a viewing terrace.[13]
In November 1833 six convicts decided to revolt because of their poor treatment, meagre provisions and floggings. Larnach and Mudie were away from the property at the time washing sheep. The rebels stole clothes, guns, food and horses. They held Emily Larnach hostage with several servants locking them in an outhouse. They also attempted to kill John Larnach but he managed to escape to Henry Dangar's house. Five of six men involved the riots were sentenced to death.During the months preceding the revolt nearly two thirds of the convicts had been flogged with one third of them being flogged multiple times. The subsequent trial in December 1833 led to the convicts being charged with stealing from two dwelling houses, shooting with intent to kill, aiding and abetting and an attempted murder. The inquiry produced little evidence of illegal work practice or servants and convicts being overworked.
Located on 30 Edinburgh Avenue on 3370 sqm,[14] Pelerin was built in the 1830s and is a stone-faced two storey building.[15] In 1899 it sustained major storm damage. The home was rebuilt for D H Dight who decided to retain its original name. It has 27 rooms including 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, study, and a timber kitchen. It has cedar joinery with 15-inch skirting board with 11-foot ceilings.
The house was built in 1871 by Singleton's first mayor Alexander Munro. He named his property Ardersier after his birthplace in Scotland. It is a 1.26 ha property located at 48 Maitland Road.[16] In 1981 it was listed in the National Trust. It has three bedrooms, two bathrooms, plus study and an attic of two large rooms.
Completed in 1865, the land was given on a free grant to brothers Edward, Henry and William Nowland in 1824. Located on 535 Hambledon Hill Road,[17] the land is 50 acres and is currently owned by artist Dale Frank.[18] It has 7 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms. It is a two-storey sandstock brick home on stone foundations with hipped slate roof, a deep stone paved verandah, with cast-iron balustrade and French Doors. Last sold in September 2007 for $720,000.
According to the 2021 census, there were 17,018 people in the Singleton urban area.
Singleton experiences a humid subtropical climate (Köppen: Cfa, Trewartha: Cfal); with hot summers and mild winters; and with a moderately low precipitation amount of 652.7 millimetres (25.71 in). Precipitation is more abundant during the summer, as the town is affected by foehn winds during winter and spring.[20] The highest temperature recorded at Singleton was 43.6 °C (110.5 °F) on 15 January 2001; the lowest recorded was - 4.2 °C (24.4 °F) on 16 August 1994.
The town is located at the junction of the New England Highway and Putty Road. The Golden Highway branches northwest from the New England Highway ten kilometres south of Singleton. Construction of a bypass of the New England Highway commenced in July 2024.[21] [22]
Singleton is served by local and long-distance NSW TrainLink rail services. Singleton railway station on the Main Northern railway line is located at the southern end of the town centre. There are also local CDC NSW bus services.
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 largest employment industry is coal mining, which employs 24 percent of the town's workforce. Defence is the second largest employer with almost 4 percent of the workforce.
Lone Pine Barracks is located south of Singleton.
The Singleton Argus is a bi-weekly newspaper which was established in 1874. It is currently owned and published by Australian Community Media. The weekly newspaper that serves Singleton and the Hunter Valley is The Hunter Valley News,[23] which, along with the Newcastle Herald newspaper (daily, except Sundays), is published by Australian Community Media.The Hunter River Times was established in 2020 and provides news for the surrounding Singleton area.
Radio stations serving both Newcastle and the Hunter Valley can be received in Singleton.
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).
Singleton has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
Singleton is home to a number of educational facilities. These include schools operated by NSW Department of Education and two non-government schools at both Primary and Secondary levels; as well as a TAFE campus, Singleton Community College and a number of pre-schools. St Catherine's Catholic College provides classes from kindergarten to year 12, while Australian Christian College has classes from pre-kindergarten to year 12.
Schools operated by NSW Department of Education include:
Hunter Institute of TAFE operates a campus in Singleton. It provides training and further education as well as collaborating with secondary schools for students completing Senior years.
- Takahata, Yamagata, Japan[29]
