Historic Wickham is home to heritage-listed buildings and sites, including the one-hectare Tree Of Knowledge Park. Legend has it the sprawling, spreading branches of the Tree of Knowledge have sheltered generations and listened to the whispered secrets of the many people who have enjoyed its shade. The tree was a favourite gathering place for locals who liked to offer their opinions to anyone who came within earshot. The park also includes a tribute to Henry Lawson and his time at nearby Wickham School of Arts. The redevelopment of the aging, semi-industrial area has provided a catalyst for revitalisation of the inner-city community

Back in Time

From School Corner to the Bridge

The location of the Wickham Precinct at the western end of the harbour and close to the Maitland Road ensured that it would be attractive to industry and commerce. Its frontages to the water allowed easy import and export and for land transport it had the Great Northern Railway and the main road to the interior of the Hunter Valley.

Manufacturing developed in the 1850s with the processing of meat and tallow but then expanded into engineering and saw milling. The Hudson Brothers’ Railway Rolling Stock Works was a major employer and its successor of the Foundry Street site, the firm established by the Goninan Brothers, went on to outstanding success through it moved away from Wickham in 1919. In the current century, light industry has maintained the traditions of the early saw-millers and cordial makers of Throsby Creek.

The commerce would also flourish in the precinct was assured by the popularity of Wickham as a residential area and by its position astride two main transport corridors, the Maitland Road and the road to Port Waratah, the site of a large copper smelter from 1868 until 1891 and of the BHP Steelworks after 1913. Thus stores and hotels concentrated at the southern end of Hannell Street where trams, roads and railways brought customers from the north, south and west.

The rich history of the Wickham Precinct also includes an educations vein, represented by the Wickham Superior School and the Wickham School of Arts. Here, too, was the Wickham Council Chambers, the headquarters of local government from 1871 until the formation of the Greater Newcastle local government area in 1938.

Source: summary from Honeysuckle Historical study by Dr J W Turner, 1994.