Speers Point Lake Macquarie, New South Wales |
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Coordinates | 32°57′48″S 151°37′40″E / 32.96333°S 151.62778°ECoordinates: 32°57′48″S 151°37′40″E / 32.96333°S 151.62778°E | ||||||||||||
Population | 3,230 (2011 census) | ||||||||||||
• Density | 1,009/km2 (2,610/sq mi) | ||||||||||||
Established | 1870 | ||||||||||||
Postcode(s) | 2284 | ||||||||||||
Area | 3.2 km2 (1.2 sq mi) | ||||||||||||
Location |
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LGA(s) | City of Lake Macquarie | ||||||||||||
Region | Hunter | ||||||||||||
County | Northumberland | ||||||||||||
Parish | Kahibah | ||||||||||||
State electorate(s) | Lake Macquarie | ||||||||||||
Federal Division(s) | Charlton | ||||||||||||
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Speers Point is a suburb within, and the location of the council seat of the City of Lake Macquarie local government area in New South Wales, Australia. It is 17 kilometres (10.6 mi) west-southwest of the city of Newcastle on the northern shore of Lake Macquarie, in Cockle and Warners Bays, between the suburbs of Cardiff and Warners Bay.
Speers Point was settled in 1828 and local commerce began through a colliery in 1843. By 2006, the suburb had a population of 3,230.
There has been a proposal to rename part of the suburb to 'Lake Macquarie', to reflect the name of the city.
Before European settlement, the Awabakal people of Lake Macquarie had inhabited the area and called it Biddaba or Milloba.
The first claimant to the land was a settler named William Brooks, who selected the area now called Kahibah Parish in 1828, named his property Lochend and received deeds in 1839. The title deeds covered the area east of Cockle Creek, Boolaroo and the place now known as Speers Point. However, before Brooks' claim the land had been occupied by R. Sadleir, who did not make a claim to the land. Brooks developed his claim and opened the Lochend Colliery in 1843, which mined coal from the bottom of the hills around Speers Point.
In 1870, William Speer, a wealthy businessman from Sydney, settled there and obtained some of Brooks' land. Speer's residence was erected opposite the current Council Administration Centre. William Brooks' name of Lochend was forgotten and Speer's name remained as Speers Point, referring to the peninsula of land into Lake Macquarie that part of the area is located on.