OLD MAITLAND RECORDS
published 16th December, 1910
1832
As historical data, so far as the early history of Maitland is concerned, is rather meagre, the following excerpts from old colonial publications should be of interest to the present generation of Maitlanders.

Newcastle is prettily situated at the mouth of the Hunter, and although there is a church and resident clergyman, a Government House, gaol, stores, and hospital and numerous allotments alienated, the place is almost deserted, the preference being given to Maitland, which is at the head of the navigation. One and a half mile from Newcastle, on the right, is a Government cottage, lately purchased by Mr. Weller; here you cross a small stream. Three miles, you cross another stream. Four and a half miles you enter Platt's farm, the road approaching the banks of the Hunter, opposite Ash or Greville Island, on which a grant has been recently selected by A. W. Scott. Eight miles, you cross Ironbark Creek, which is navigable for three or four miles, a low range dividing it from Cockle Creek, a stream running into Lake Macquarie. At the heads of these creeks are the grants of Weller, Brooks, Mazien?, and others. The road passes through a village reserve, and at nine miles enters Sparke's farm. To the left is a large swamp called Barrabinebin, where the locations commence, and the whole country to the west, in what may be called the delta of the Hunter, is one mass of grants, and improvements present themselves on every side. At eleven miles is Sparke's Inn, Hexham. Here the Hunter bends north-east for five or six miles and then receives the waters of the Williams and turns to the west. At twelve miles is a track to the Wollombi, via Tomaplin Hill (Tumbleby), which crosses to the right on the way to Port Stephens. At 17½ miles you enter the town of Maitland (East Maitland).

The ground here is very favourable for the formation of a large town, and much pains have have been bestowed on laying it out. Many allotments have been located, and a schoolhouse and chapel erected, but preference is still given to the low land on the other side of the creek (West Maitland). These are, however, subject to flood, and ere long, the houses may be washed away. The superior position of the new town will then be made evident, more especially when the population shall have become sufficiently numerous to admit of the development of the whole plan, such as cutting a canal from near the Storeship (Morpeth) to Wallis Creek.

At 1? miles from Newcastle, on the right is the Rose Inn, built by Alexander McLeod and kept by Benjamin Cox, also the road ??ow Melbourne Street. East Maitland to the St. Michael Stone Ship (Morpeth); distance about three miles, but the distance by water owing to windings of the river is about 12 miles. On the left is the track through Allman's and Maughan's farms, towards Mulberring (Mulbring) and Brisbane Water and joining the tracks by Tomalpin Hill, leading to the Wollombi. The Rose Inn, kept by Cox was erected by McLeod in accordance with an agreement in February 1827, as already recorded in the "Newcastle Morning Herald" of the 2nd inst., under the heading "Old Maitland Bridge". This inn was erected on a site at the rear of Mr. David Ley's store, East Maitland, on a five acre grant.

At nineteen and a half miles from Newcastle is the bridge over Wallis Creek, built by McLeod and McIntyre, and the subject of much dispute, owing to the refusal on the part of settlers to pay tolls to the Dumaresq Brothers, who had purchased the bridge from McLeod. On each side of the bridge on the banks are the small farms that were allowed to those who had settled here when the place was a penal settlement.

At twenty one miles from Newcastle the navigation of the Hunter ends. On this spot now West Maitland is Hewitt's Inn. Other inns, and a mass of houses built mostly upon the original grants belonging to the first cultivators. To the north and south veterans have lately been located. Messrs. Blaxland, McQueen and Sempill have wharfs here and there is a great disposition to built, a considerable population having already collected. Here Mr. Sempill has had a large and valuable allotment conferred upon him by Governor Darling, for his public spirit in proposing to procure a steam engine and machinery for the purpose of working flour and saw mills, which have now arrived, and are now in the course of erection (1832).

Such an acquisition will not fail to produce important effects on the advancement of the interior, and show the wisdom of the Government encouraging such enterprising individuals. At this spot is the ford across the Hunter River (nearly opposite Risby's Falls Hotel, Sempill Street) to Paterson's Plains, being the branch of the Great North Road, from Wollombi to Port Stephens. This ford is 124½ miles from Sydney by the new roads, via Wollombi, Cessnock, and Stony Creek.

The following is a list of some of the residents of Maitland in 1832:- Francis Adams, P.N. Anley Police Magistrate, James Armstrong, William Baker, Thomas Bassett, John Bell, J. Blackburn JP, T.V. Bloomfield, Thomas Boardman, John Bowman, Charles Boydell, John Brothers, C.L. Brown, W. Buckland, Joseph Bull, David Campbell, James Canes, R.M. Clark, Samuel Clift, E.C. Close, John Cobb, P.J. Cohen Storekeeper, Michael Connor, John Cooper, John Cory, James Cox Auctioneer, Benjamin Cox, Rose Inn; James Cracknell;, John Crowe; Thomas Dangar; R.M. Davis; F. Dayley; T. Dearling; James Deroche; R.C. Dillon; Peter Eagan; W. Eales; John and Henry Eckford; John Erskine, Registrar; Thomas Erskine; Owen Evans; John Field; James Finch; William Fitzpatrick; J.Frazer; Nathaniel Goldingham, Schoolmaster; G.T. Graham; Alexander and James Gray; W. Greenway; John Guilding; John Harris; R. Rartley and Co, Storekeepers; Henry Hewitt, Innkeeper; John Hosking, butcher; Emanual Hungerford; Mary Hunt (Molly Morgan); John Irvine; William Jones; J. Kelly; J.F. Lambe; Robert Letherbridge; C. Lloyd; J. Loder; R. Logan; Henry Lowe; Joseph Lumley; Charles McDougall; Stuart McDonagh; Alexander McDougall; Peter McIntyre; M. McCrae; W. Marsh; J.T. Manghan; J. Medhurst; Thomas Mitchell; H. Mitchell; J. Mortah; George Muir, Innkeeper and Postmaster; P. Murdoch; Timothy Nowlan; P. Ogilvie; J. Orten; William O'Donnell; John Paget; H.I. Pilcher, Solicitor; Rev. William Pinkerton; W. Pithers; Charles and J. Prentice; W. Prignall; W. Rae, Saddler; C. Ralph; J. Reed; P. Reilly; Arch. Robertson; H. Rochester; Peter Ryan, Walter Scott; H.C. Sempill, JP; Catherine Sheridan; C.W. and J.E. Simpson; Wakefield Simpson, Storekeeper; Edward Sparkes; J.B. Squire; G. Stone; Charles Strange; John Stronach, Bailiff; E. Stronger; J. Swain; W. Thompson; G. and J. Townsend; J. Walker; T. Weatley; W. West; Thomas Westley; W.B. Wilkinson; P. Williams; T.W.M. Winder; Lieutenant John Wood; J.W. Wright, Solicitor; ?. Wrotsley; George Yeomans; Richard Yeomans, Innkeeper; E. Bennett.

In the year 1832 a great flood occurred on the Hunter River, and as there were no embankments the river was free to flood the whole of the lowlands. There was no bridge gauge in those days but the height attained by the river was determined by a marked tree. The height at full flood that year was 23 feet. The river was in flood in 1831, but the three years preceding, 1827-1828-1829, were marked by severe droughts. There are no detailed records of floods prior to ???? when the river rose up to 23 feet and covered the lowlands, on which in later years West Maitland was established. Writing in August of 1801, Colonel Paterson referred to the country where the two Maitlands now lie, and describing the country on the opposite side of the river (now Bolwarra), wrote: "We saw high up in the tall trees much debris, which had been left by some great flood". This flood would synchronise with the March flood of 1801 in the Hawkesbury. In March of 1806, and August of 1809, great masses of flood wood and rubbish floated past Newcastle. In 1816 there appears to have been another rush of flood waters in the Hunter. Shortly after Eckford, Smith and O'Donnell, the Maitland pioneers, arrived in 1818, there was a flood, the first to worry the white settlers. There was another in the flowing year, and in 1820, after a great rainfall, the waters rose to 37 feet, and swept the countryside, which was a dense bush. The water extended from the foot of Campbell's Hill to Melbourne Street, East Maitland.

In that year there were only three houses in what is now West Maitland - O'Donnell's, on the site of Mrs Lambert's property near the Adelphi Picture House; a hut on the site of the West Maitland Congregational Church; and another hut on or at the rear of the site of the Angel Inn. Each of these huts were within the flood area. It will thus be seen that the flood of 1820 was the most disastrous prior to 1832 as the trees referred to by Paterson were probably on very low ground on the Bolwarra side.