The people of the Hunter coast and hinterlands have been seafarers and river people since forever and beyond.

Our unique story is that of “Can Do – Did Do – Will Do” communities that flourished because of toughness, smart thinking and perseverance. From the harsh lives and close – knit groups of indigenous tribes and the English sailors of the eighteenth century we have succeeded in the world of globally competitive industries.

It has not been a trouble free advance.

Our politics and our social and industrial histories have at times been stormy and there have been losers as well as winners, villains alongside heroes, and a fool for every saint. But through it all, we have somehow forged a community that acknowledges the differences whilst sharing a heart and spirit that gives this seafaring region its strength and common purpose.

The Port of Newcastle and the coal resources of the Hunter Valley have underwritten and shaped the city and the region since settlement.

Newcastle today is the world’s busiest coal port. The daily parade of some of the world’s largest floating objects and the lines of vessels waiting off-shore to buy our products are a constant reminder of our success in the international trading place.

But our link with the sea is closer than just our coal trade.

The sea has defined our people and our character since earliest times. Indigenous inhabitants fished our river and beaches and traveled and lived beside the waterways.

The sea and the river marked the boundaries of their territory and the maritime features of the region are part of the local myths and legends.

As the European population of Sydney Cove began to expand, the sea determined new settlement – its explorers, supply lines and character of the first settlers.

Coal and the lash together shaped this city’s people – resilient, feisty and hard-working, this city is known for pulling together.

(When things get tough, the people of this city work as one till the problem is solved. When things are easy, we take to the water.)

Even though navigation was difficult, the potential of this natural harbour meant that port facilities grew quickly and the wealth of coal exportation underwrote the city’s prosperity by the mid 1800’s.

At the same time, the love affair with salt water that has become central to Newcastle’s character was emerging as people reveled in sand, sun and sea – rowing, surfing, fishing and bathing.

Later, because of the easy access to coal, BHP brought its smelters and steelworks here and the busy trading port grew even busier.

Today at the Maritime Centre we celebrate who we are and why we are who we are.

From the beginning of spoken time storytellers have celebrated the past and shared it with others so they know what came before and what they can be.

When storytellers become collectors and make keeping places, museums are born.

Our museum was established by the Newcastle Maritime Museum Society in the 1970’s. This group of enthusiastic people who loved the sea and saw how our community had been shaped by its relationship with the port and coast wanted to see that the stories of their lives were not lost.

After decades at Fort Scratchley, the Newcastle Regional Maritime Museum has now become a Maritime Centre as the current Committee works to broaden our scope to creating a research centre and permanent place to share our community’s stories of the sea.

Our vision is to see here the ongoing interchange of knowledge and ideas about the past and the future of the maritime industries, the sea and weather that play such a role in what can be done, and our ongoing passion for enjoying the sea and river as a place to relax.