It’s difficult to determine exactly when passenger ferry services commenced between Stockton and Newcastle. Some sources claim the first passenger service started in 1845[1], others claim that the first service was established by Captain Walter Hugh Boyce in 1853, first in a row boat, then in 1869 he established the first steam ferry service.[2] Even more difficult is determining where these services operated. For the purposes of this article, focus will be on the actual ferry wharves rather than individual ferry services.
It’s likely that the first formal Mitchell Street ferry wharf began life as a “ballast jetty”. This type of jetty was used to dump ballast before moving to one of the loading wharfs to take on various products. Below we can see the ballast jetty at the bottom of Mitchell St. The map shows a small point, created by previous ballast discharge.
As more ballast was dumped, and industry and population grew, the need for a more robust wharf was recognized. The wharf most likely would have been stone infill, with a wooden wharf that extended into the harbour. The only image of have of the wharf during this period is this drawing:
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| “Views of Newcastle, N.S.W.” – The Australasian Sketcher, 30 June 1883, http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/257529 [4] |
It shows a small steam boat at a rudimentary wharf, and a men in row boats in the boat harbour. The change from ballast jetty to public wharf as illustrated in this 1894 map:
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| Forster & Co., 1894 - Plan of the Port of Newcastle: reduced from recent surveys by officers of the Harbours & Rivers Department (1894), [Knaggs_1894]. Living Histories, accessed 13/08/2023, https://livinghistories.newcastle.edu.au/nodes/view/86034 [5] |
According to Ross Craig, there was no waiting shed at the ferry wharf until 1900.[6] Between this period and 1910, a waiting area and lighting had been put in place. At a later stage a pontoon was added to make it easier for passengers to move between the wharf and the ferry. These changes can be seen images below.
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| “Panorama. Newcastle Harbour from Stockton, 1906”, NSW Government Printer, Museums of History NSW, NRS-4481-3-[7/16328]-St2924, https://search.records.nsw.gov.au/permalink/f/1ebnd1l/ADLIB_RNSW116039364 [7] |
The above image shows the ferry wharf in the lower right hand corner. It shows a steam ferry approaching the pontoon and gangway. Just above that is the boat harbour (with what looks like a drop toilet made from corrugated iron).
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| Stockton Ferry Wharf, 1910 |
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| Map of the City of Newcastle and environs [cartographic material] / H. G. Trenchard., 1911, State Library of New South Wales, https://collection.sl.nsw.gov.au/record/74VvVKWkQReX/woXOzZgr5Gd8R [8] |
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| “Boat Harbour”, Ross and Pat Craig Collection, University of New Spec Collections, https://flic.kr/p/P4it8K [9] |
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| Lord Kitchener and party arriving at Stockton Ferry Wharf on their way to inspect the site of Fort Wallace in the very north of Stockton. |
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| “NEWCASTLE, NSW, 1910-01-05. LORD KITCHENER AND OFFICIAL PARTY ARRIVE AT STOCKTON WHARF – Australian War Memorial, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C3772 [10] |
The wharf was the responsibility of the Navigation Department until a proclamation of 22 December 1916 when responsibility/control was passed to the Stockton Council.[11]
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| Bootmaker and Fancy Goods, Stockton, NSW, [early 1900s] ([early 1900s]), [C918-0321]. Living Histories, accessed 26/08/2023, https://livinghistories.newcastle.edu.au/nodes/view/5153 |
While the ferry service served a practical purpose, it played a significant role in the culture of Stockton. While for most people this meant the trip home from work or school, for others, it was a visceral reminder that they had returned home after years of horror.
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| "MEN AND WOMEN," Newcastle Sun (NSW : 1918 - 1954) (NSW), 13 May 1919 1919, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article162568028. [12] |
Many service people returning home were met at Newcastle Train station by delegations from Stockton and escorted across the harbour by ferry and then to their homes or the homes of loved ones.
The ferry wharf also acted as a place of memorial for these service people. On 28 January 1921, the Stockton Goose Club unveiled its own Roll of Honour Board for those who served during the Great War[13]. Unfortunately, this honour board is lost and we don’t know anything about what it looked like or the list of names it recorded.
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| “STOCKTON - Roll of Honour," Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate, 28 January 1921, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article140029142. [14] |
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| Members of the Stockton Goose Club taking part in their daily meetings held at the Stockton Ferry Wharf in 1920. |
Another aspect of the life of the ferry wharf was as a place of danger and heroism. Regularly throughout its history, people, especially children who used the area to play were falling from the wharf into the water. Tragically, while most were saved, many were not.
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| "BOY DROWNED" The Newcastle Sun (NSW : 1918 - 1954) 20 June 1924: 7. Web. 20 Aug 2023 <http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article165263852>. [15] |
While the Council was responsible for the wharf, generally it was leased out to companies/individuals who actually supplied and ran the ferry service. Over the years, a number of different concerns operated ferry services from the Mitchell Street wharf.
As the suburb grew, and the ferry service expanded to meet demand, residents demanded better services, including better waiting rooms. The Stockton Council agreed and in November 1925 tenders were called to add a waiting room and shop to the ferry wharf. [16] The tender was awarded by the end of the month.
Thus the first phase of the Stockton Ferry Wharf ends.
- Mitchell St Ferry Wharf - Phase 2 - 1926 -
Footnotes
[1] Shaping the Hunter : a story of engineers, and the engineering contribution to the development of the present shape of the Hunter Region, its river, cities, industries and transport arteries / edited by John Armstrong, ed. Ian McC Stewart, J. W. Armstrong, and Australia Newcastle Division Institution of Engineers ([Newcastle, N.S.W.]: Newcastle Division, Institution of Engineers, Australia, 1983, 1983). https://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn2215158. p. 31
[2] Bailey, Cheryl-anne, “Maritime Giants Long Ago Relegated to Stockton’s History Pages”, Stockton Historical Society Inc Journal, Vol. 8, No. 10, p.8
[3] Forster & Co., 1880 - Plan of the Port of Newcastle: reduced from recent surveys by officers of the Harbours & Rivers Department (1880), [Knaggs_1880]. Living Histories, accessed 13/08/2023, https://livinghistories.newcastle.edu.au/nodes/view/86028
[4] Views of Newcastle, N.S.W.” – The Australasian Sketcher, 30 June 1883, http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/257529
[5] Forster & Co., 1894 - Plan of the Port of Newcastle: reduced from recent surveys by officers of the Harbours & Rivers Department (1894), [Knaggs_1894]. Living Histories, accessed 13/08/2023, https://livinghistories.newcastle.edu.au/nodes/view/86034
[6] Craig, Ross, “Stockton Ferry Wharves”, Stockton Historical Society Inc Journal, Vol. 2, No. 1, p. 2
[7] “Panorama. Newcastle Harbour from Stockton, 1906”, NSW Government Printer, Museums of History NSW, NRS-4481-3-[7/16328]-St2924, https://search.records.nsw.gov.au/permalink/f/1ebnd1l/ADLIB_RNSW116039364
[8] Map of the City of Newcastle and environs [cartographic material] / H. G. Trenchard., 1911, State Library of New South Wales, https://collection.sl.nsw.gov.au/record/74VvVKWkQReX/woXOzZgr5Gd8R
[9] “Boat Harbour”, Ross and Pat Craig Collection, University of New Spec Collections, https://flic.kr/p/P4it8K
[10] “NEWCASTLE, NSW, 1910-01-05. LORD KITCHENER AND OFFICIAL PARTY ARRIVE AT STOCKTON WHARF – Australian War Memorial, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C37723
[11] "STOCKTON FERRY WHARF," Newcastle Sun (NSW : 1918 - 1954) (NSW), 04 December 1918 1918, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article159373630.
[12] "MEN AND WOMEN," Newcastle Sun (NSW : 1918 - 1954) (NSW), 13 May 1919 1919, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article162568028.
[13] "STOCKTON - Roll of Honour," Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate (NSW : 1876 - 1954) (NSW), 28 January 1921 1921, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article140029142.
[14] “STOCKTON - Roll of Honour," Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate (NSW : 1876 - 1954) (NSW), 28 January 1921, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article140029142.
[15] "BOY DROWNED" The Newcastle Sun (NSW : 1918 - 1954) 20 June 1924: 7. Web. 20 Aug 2023 <http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article165263852>.
[16] "TENDERS OPEN" The Newcastle Sun (NSW : 1918 - 1954) 16 November 1925: 2. Web. 20 Aug 2023 <http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article163365038>.
