HOW well do you know Newcastle?
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Anyone remember Georgeville at Islington? Or how about Dangarville, near Ingall Street, Mayfield East, dating from 1911?
And where was 'Little Moscow' during the 1930s Great Depression? Or could anyone today pinpoint where the Beverley Hills Estate was? Or how about Moss Vale Heights? Would you believe it was at Wickham?
An auction of "168 valuable building lots" in the Moss Vale Heights subdivision occurred in November 1885.
Blocks ran off either side of William Street, Wickham, running down to Throsby Creek. The subdivision was one of many sold around there during this era to keen buyers. It was described by its surveyor as the "prettiest" he had ever laid out in the district as it had views of Newcastle, the harbour, its graceful sail ships and surrounding countryside.
Alas, the economic depression of the 1890s prevented many families from building on their blocks. Speculators soon stepped in, however, to erect houses there instead, which they later sold onto other willing buyers. The same real estate scenario also applied to nearby suburbs such as Carrington, Tighes Hill, Islington and Maryville.
One of the attractions of these particular land blocks was the promise of "exciting new industries" as revealed recently by local history staff researchers at Newcastle Library.
New manufacturing industries nearby enticing people with the promise of almost 200 future jobs included the Sydney Soap and Candle Works, the largest then of its kind in Australia. As well, a large vinegar works was proposed along with a big glass-making company factory.
These land subdivisions popping up from the 1880s (which became Newcastle suburbs) are the focus of a special exhibition in the Lovett Gallery on the second floor of Newcastle City Library in Laman Street.
Called Streets of Our Town, the display features about 70 large, now rare, colourful local subdivision plans prepared between the 1880s and the 1950s.
The hand-drawn plans from the archives of auctioneers Creer and Berkeley, surveyor Alfred Hall and from the Merewether Estate advertising land sales give a clear insight into how many of our suburbs evolved.
Not surprisingly, in 1900 about three-quarters of the land in the city area was owned either by coal mining companies, large private estates or the Crown.
According to library staff, the public response to the display since its opening in May has been 'amazing' as intrigued householders come in to pore over the old plans, exploring the origin of their suburbs.
"It's been one of our most popular displays ever. People are lingering longer over these old plans and examining them far more closely than we thought they would," a library staffer said.
And more visitors are expected as people now have only a week left to view the extended exhibition before it ends.
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The Newcastle Local History Library is also digitising 2500 subdivision plans of Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Port Stephens and the Hunter Valley. These are hoped to be all online this year.
The beautifully drawn auction plans tracing the evolution of our residential suburbs between the late 19th century and early 20th century entirely cover the walls of the Lovett Gallery.
One prominent example shown is how the huge, flat area between Parry Street and Glebe Road, Newcastle, developed gradually over 18 years.
It included the now Hamilton South 'Garden Suburb' heritage conservation area as featured in Weekender recently.
The subdivisions, which were created on vast swathes of land owned by the Crown, coal companies, private firms or individuals, seemed like unique opportunities. Free trams, coach or train travel offered to auction sites were further inducements to buy.
But the unusual, eye-catching exhibition also explores further afield than central Newcastle. Plans depicted range from Cooks Hill to Sandgate, Jesmond to Booragul, Paxton-Cessnock to Fern Bay and Dora Creek, plus also out to tranquil Toronto, once advertised as "the sanatorium of Australia".
On display as well is a remarkable rare map of one of two lost Port Stephens cities. It's the plan for Pindimar City proposed by the flamboyant 19th century real estate developer Henry Ferdinand Halloran, who did much to forever change the landscape in both Newcastle and Sydney.
His grand, unrealised dream for Pindimar even included space for a cathedral on the most elevated part of his remote bush site.
Then there's Ash Island's first major subdivision sale with blocks offered in May 1889. The Ash Island estate had earlier belonged to the famous Alexander Walker Scott (from 1829), but in 1866 he went bankrupt.
His land grant was then subdivided, cleared and drained in the late 1860s for more agriculture and dairy farms. Jump forward to 1889 and there was greater development on the rich, if flood-prone land. That same year, a separate Hexham Island subdivision took place. Of note is that the now long-gone North Stockton Coal Company had already set up mining operations in the vicinity.
Back now to central Newcastle, it's interesting to note that in 1900 Crown land alone accounted for at least 13 per cent of the land in the then Newcastle municipalities.
The largest holding was the Newcastle Pasturage Reserve (also known as the Commonage) comprising 1600 acres across the suburbs of Hamilton, Lambton, Broawdmeadow, Adamstown, New Lambton and Waratah.
From the 1860s, the government had leased areas to coal companies. By 1887, squatting mining families there numbered 4500 people who finally had the chance to buy their land there in 1889.
Names of a few early planned subdivisions, however, disappeared over time. Georgeville at Islington was a triangular plot of land sandwiched behind Maitland Road, opposite Beaumont Street at the Islington end.
Meanwhile, the 'mystery' Beverley Hills Estate was at New Lambton Heights at the intersection of Charlestown and Cardiff roads.
The Sunnyside subdivision of January 1917 was on land called 'Newtown' (today's Broadmeadow). It was named after the hotel of that name adjacent to the land for sale.
The target of land sales there were employees of a gas company and tramway/railway workers.
One of the more interesting suburban histories (to me anyway), as unearthed by library researchers, was Kotara. Some 191 lots in the new bush subdivision there were offered for sale in January 1925. Of these, 178 lots were sold. But there were no services, other than roads.
The 1930s Great Depression then struck. By 1932, only 14 homes had been built. The area became yet another Newcastle camp for the unemployed but known as 'Little Moscow', presumably because of the vocal socialist views of its inhabitants.
By 1940 only 52 homes had been erected. Suburban Kotara did not really grow until after 1947.
* The 'Streets of Our Town' exhibition closes next Saturday, July 20.