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Duns Creek, New South Wales

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Duns Creek (also known as Dunns Creek) is a rural residential suburb in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia, located near the historic village of Paterson in the north-western corner of the Port Stephens Council local government area.[3][1][7][8]

Duns Creek
New South Wales
Duns Creek is located in New South Wales
Duns Creek
Duns Creek
Map
Coordinates32°36′15.9″S 151°39′19″E / 32.604417°S 151.65528°E / -32.604417; 151.65528
Population491 (2011 census)[2]
 • Density18.1/km2 (47/sq mi)
Established1833
Postcode(s)2321
Area27.1 km2 (10.5 sq mi)[Note 1]
Time zoneAEST (UTC+10)
 • Summer (DST)AEDT (UTC+11)
Location
LGA(s)Port Stephens Council[1]
RegionHunter[1]
CountyDurham[3]
ParishButterwick[3]
State electorate(s)Port Stephens[4]
Federal division(s)Paterson[5]
Mean max temp[6] Mean min temp[6] Annual rainfall[6]
29.6 °C
85 °F		 6.1 °C
43 °F		 925.2 mm
36.4 in
Suburbs around Duns Creek:
Martins Creek, Paterson Martins Creek, Glen Oak Glen Oak
Tocal Duns Creek Glen Oak
Tocal Woodville, Butterwick Seaham, Butterwick

Geography

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The suburb is bordered in the west by the Paterson River where the land is only approximately 3 m (10 ft) above mean sea level (AMSL) and undulating with a few small hills. This continues to the eastern extent of the suburb where the a range of hills begins, just before the border with Glen Oak. Heading north the land becomes progressively more hilly, with elevations ranging from 80 to 220 m (262 to 722 ft) common and with heights peaking at 280 m (919 ft) AMSL.[Note 1]

The area is typically subdivided into residential lot sizes of 2–20 ha (4.9–49.4 acres) with a number of larger properties fronting the Paterson River up to 202 ha (499 acres). Other properties at the top of Duns Creek Road have sweeping views of the Paterson and Hunter valleys and out to the Tasman Sea approximately 30 km (19 mi) away. The area consistently receives good, reliable rainfall and the countryside is largely green and lush throughout the year.

Duns Creek has a population of 546 people with the Median age being 41.[9] 3.8% of population identify has Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander.[9] 92.5% were born in Australia with 2.4 in England, 1.1% New Zealand, 0.6% in Scotland and 0.6% in Greece.[9] 28.2% No Religion, 25.6% Catholic, 23.4% Anglican, 8.5% Not Stated and 4.6% United Church.[9] 0.7% speak Greek and 0.3% speak Spanish.[9]

History

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Duns Creek's history is closely intertwined with the nearby village of Paterson, which was first surveyed in 1801. In December 1821 a grant of land 2.75 km (1.71 mi) to the south-west of the town was made to Captain Willian Dun, after whom Duns Creek is named. Captain Dun started a successful dairy farm which he called Duninald. It remained in family hands until 2005 when it was sold.[10] The homestead on the farm is listed as a heritage item of both state and national significance.[11][12]

The suburb has seen subdivision of larger rural blocks since the 1980s and increasingly attracted a growing "treechange" population since the late 1990s. Most smaller rural holdings operate as hobby farms used for horse riding, olive and wine growing as well as other outdoor pursuits.

Mahogany Ridge Resort development proposal

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On 30 June 2000 a development proposal for a A$45 million tourist resort at Mahogany Ridge in Duns Creek was lodged with Port Stephens Council. The proposal would have, at various times, increased the population of the area by up to 1,500 people, approximately five times the permanent population, and was strongly opposed by the local community and Port Stephens Council. After continued opposition for almost seven years the matter resulted in court action by both Port Stephens Council and the Commonwealth Government in the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales and the proposal was finally defeated on 19 April 2007.[13][14] The development has been replaced by a much smaller scale, upmarket rural residential subdivision.[15]

 
 
Images of what was to have been Mahogany Estate, both taken in October 2012. On the left is a sign at the intersection of Dunns Creek and Uffington roads advertising land for sale. On the right is the view to the east from one block at approximately 297 m (974 ft) above sea level.

Transport

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Hunter Valley Buses operates one bus route through Duns Creek:

  • 185: Maitland to Gresford via Bolwarra, Largs and Paterson[16]

Location and amenities

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Duns Creek has good links to major Hunter urban centres. Maitland is less than 15 minutes drive and Newcastle can be reached within 50 minutes via Raymond Terrace. Other lifestyle attractions include Nelson Bay / Port Stephens (55-minute drive) and the Hunter Valley Wine Country centred on Pokolbin (55 minutes drive). It is in close proximity to the Tocal Agricultural College (5 minutes drive) which hosts its annual small farm fields days in May each year. Regular train services at Paterson railway station on the North Coast railway line provide direct access to Maitland, Newcastle and Sydney. Newcastle Airport which has direct flights to Melbourne, Brisbane, the Gold Coast and Canberra, is located 40 minutes drive to the east at Williamtown.

Paterson, which is less than 5 minutes away by car, has all the facilities of a normal country town as well as a number of hotels, cafes and a golf course.[17][18][19] The Woodville store, which is slightly further away, operates as a general store and post office. Both Paterson and Woodville each have long standing primary schools and other facilities including historic community halls.[20] The privately owned sandstone 'All Saints' Church at Woodville is regularly used for wedding ceremonies and receptions.[21] In 2006 the area was provided with ADSL internet connections and residents can now access the NBN. A daily mail service is provided to residents with parcels able to be picked up from the Woodville Store. Duns Creek also has a weekly garbage and recycling service provided by Port Stephens Council.

Notes

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  1. ^ a b c Area and elevation calculations in this article are based on 1:100000 map 9232 NEWCASTLE[3] and 1:25000 maps 92324N PATERSON and 92324S MAITLAND.

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Suburb Search – Local Council Boundaries – Hunter (HT) – Port Stephens". New South Wales Division of Local Government. Archived from the original on 21 June 2014. Retrieved 8 June 2008.
  2. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "Duns Creek (State Suburb)". 2011 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 13 October 2012.  
  3. ^ a b c d "Duns Creek". Geographical Names Register (GNR) of NSW. Geographical Names Board of New South Wales. Retrieved 24 May 2008.  
  4. ^ "Maitland". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  5. ^ "Paterson". Australian Electoral Commission. 19 October 2007. Archived from the original on 29 October 2009. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  6. ^ a b c "Paterson (Tocal AWS)". Climate statistics for Australian locations. Bureau of Meteorology. Retrieved 2 June 2008.
  7. ^ "Place Names Search: DUNS CREEK". Geoscience Australia. 16 January 2004. Archived from the original on 1 October 2007. Retrieved 9 November 2007.
  8. ^ "Duns Creek". Land and Property Management Authority - Spatial Information eXchange. New South Wales Land and Property Information. Retrieved 24 May 2008.
  9. ^ a b c d e "2016 Census QuickStats: Duns Creek". quickstats.censusdata.abs.gov.au. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  10. ^ "Duninald". Archived from the original on 18 July 2008. Retrieved 25 May 2008.
  11. ^ "Port Stephens Local Environmental Plan 2000 – Schedule 2". Australasia Legal Information Institute. 7 December 2007. Archived from the original on 10 July 2012. Retrieved 25 May 2008.
  12. ^ "Duninald, Paterson Woodville Rd, Paterson, NSW, Australia (Place ID 1349)". Australian Heritage Database. Australian Government. Retrieved 25 May 2008.
  13. ^ "Council says no to Duns Creek tourism plan". ABC News. 25 February 2004. Archived from the original on 11 March 2004. Retrieved 25 May 2008.
  14. ^ "Mahogany Ridge Developments Pty Limited v Port Stephens Council & Anor [2007] NSWLEC 212 (28 March 2007)". Australasia Legal Information Institute. 19 April 2007. Retrieved 25 May 2008.
  15. ^ "Mahogany Ridge Prestige Acreage Estate". M K Mahogany Pty Ltd. Archived from the original on 29 May 2008. Retrieved 25 May 2008.
  16. ^ "| transportnsw.info". transportnsw.info. Retrieved 1 March 2024.
  17. ^ "Paterson". Maitland City Council. Retrieved 26 May 2008.
  18. ^ "CBC Bed & Breakfast & Cafe". CBC Bed & Breakfast & Cafe. Retrieved 26 May 2008.
  19. ^ "Paterson Golf Club". iseekgolf.com. Archived from the original on 7 September 2006. Retrieved 26 May 2008.
  20. ^ "Woodville School of Arts Honour Roll 2 – Framed Printed Record". Register of War Memorials in New South Wales. NSW Government. Archived from the original on 28 November 2007. Retrieved 26 May 2008.
  21. ^ "Woodville". Maitland City Council. Retrieved 26 May 2008.
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