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Muswellbrook Shire

Coordinates: 32°16′S 150°54′E / 32.267°S 150.900°E / -32.267; 150.900
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This article is about the local government area established in 1979. For the local government area called Muswellbrook Shire between 1907 and 1968, see Denman Shire.

Muswellbrook Shire
New South Wales
Location in New South Wales
Coordinates32°16′S 150°54′E / 32.267°S 150.900°E / -32.267; 150.900
Population
 • Density5.05/km2 (13.1/sq mi)
Established1 July 1979 (1979-07-01)
Area3,405 km2 (1,314.7 sq mi)[3]
Time zoneAEST (UTC+10)
 • Summer (DST)AEDT (UTC+11)
MayorSteven Reynolds
Council seatMuswellbrook[4]
RegionHunter[5]
State electorate(s)Upper Hunter[6]
Federal division(s)Hunter[7]
File:Muswellbrook Shire Council.gif
WebsiteMuswellbrook Shire
LGAs around Muswellbrook Shire:
Upper Hunter Upper Hunter Upper Hunter
Mid-Western Muswellbrook Shire Singleton
Mid-Western Singleton Singleton

Muswellbrook Shire is a local government area in the Upper Hunter region of New South Wales, Australia. The Shire is situated adjacent to the New England Highway and the Hunter railway line.

Muswellbrook Shire was established on 1 July 1979 from the amalgamation of the Municipality of Muswellbrook with the adjacent Denman Shire,[8] which had been called Muswellbrook Shire between 1907 and 1968.[9][10]

The mayor of the Muswellbrook Shire Council is Cr. Steven Reynolds.

Main towns and villages

The Shire includes Muswellbrook, Denman, Baerami, McCullys Gap, Martindale, Muscle Creek, Sandy Hollow, Widden and Wybong.[11]

Coal mining

Muswellbrook started as coal mining town in late 1800s and began open cut mining in 1944. The oldest coal was opened in 1906.[12]

Heritage listings

The Muswellbrook Shire has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

Demographics

At the 2011 census, there were 15,791 people in the Muswellbrook Shire local government area, of these 51.7 per cent were male and 48.3 per cent were female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 5.4 per cent of the population, which was significantly higher than the national and state averages of 2.5 per cent. The median age of people in the Muswellbrook Shire was 34 years, which was lower than the national median of 37 years. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 22.8 per cent of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 10.6 per cent of the population. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 47.0 per cent were married and 11.8 per cent were either divorced or separated.[3]

Population growth in the Muswellbrook Shire between the 2001 census and the 2006 census was 3.25 per cent; and in the subsequent five years to the 2011 census, population growth was 3.64 per cent. When compared with total population growth of Australia for the same periods, being 5.78 per cent and 8.32 per cent respectively, population growth in the Muswellbrook Shire local government area was approximately half the national average.[21][22] The median weekly income for residents within the Muswellbrook Shire was marginally higher than the national average.[3]

At the 2011 census, the proportion of residents in the Muswellbrook Shire local government area who stated their ancestry as Australian or Anglo-Saxon exceeded 81 per cent of all residents (national average was 65.2 per cent). In excess of 68% of all residents in the Muswellbrook Shire nominated a religious affiliation with Christianity at the 2011 census, which was considerably higher than the national average of 50.2 per cent. Meanwhile, as at the census date, compared to the national average, households in the Muswellbrook Shire local government area had a significantly lower than average proportion (4.3 per cent) where two or more languages are spoken (national average was 20.4 per cent); and a significantly higher proportion (89.7 per cent) where English only was spoken at home (national average was 76.8 per cent).[3]

Selected historical census data for the Muswellbrook Shire local government area
Census year 2001[21] 2006[22] 2011[3]
Population Estimated residents on Census night 14,756 15,236 15,791
LGA rank in terms of size within New South Wales
% of New South Wales population 0.23%
% of Australian population 0.08% Steady 0.08% Decrease 0.07%
Cultural and language diversity
Ancestry,
top responses		 Australian 36.2%
English 30.4%
Irish 8.1%
Scottish 6.6%
German 2.9%
Language,
top responses
(other than English)		 Shona n/c Steady n/c Increase 0.2%
Cantonese 0.1% Steady 0.1% Increase 0.2%
Italian 0.1% Steady 0.1% Steady 0.1%
Thai n/c Increase 0.1% Steady 0.1%
Mandarin n/c Increase 0.1% Steady 0.1%
Religious affiliation
Religious affiliation,
top responses		 Anglican 40.3% Decrease 37.5% Decrease 35.6%
Catholic 28.0% Decrease 27.7% Decrease 26.1%
No Religion 7.6% Increase 11.0% Increase 13.9%
Uniting Church 5.2% Decrease 4.4% Decrease 3.9%
Presbyterian and Reformed 3.8% Decrease 3.2% Decrease 3.1%
Median weekly incomes
Personal income Median weekly personal income A$453 A$619
% of Australian median income 97.2% Increase 107.3%
Family income Median weekly family income A$1,213 A$1,697
% of Australian median income 103.6% Increase 114.6%
Household income Median weekly household income A$1,060 A$1,399
% of Australian median income 103.2% Increase 113.4%

Council

Current composition and election method

Muswellbrook Shire Council is composed of twelve councillors elected proportionally as a single ward. All councillors are elected for a fixed four-year term of office. The mayor is elected by the councillors at the first meeting of the council. The most recent election was held on 11 January 2022 and the makeup of the council is as follows:[23]

Party Councillors
  Independents and Unaligned 12
Total 12

The current Council, elected in 2022, in order of election, is:[23]

Councillor Party Notes
  Steve Reynolds Independent Mayor[24]
  Jennifer Lecky Independent Deputy Mayor
  Amanda Barry
  Mark Bowditch Independent
  De-Anne Douglas
  Jeffrey Drayton
  Louise Dunn
  Rohit Mahajan
  Darryl Marshall
  Graeme McNeill Independent
  Rod Scholes Independent
  Brett Woodruff Independent

Mayors

The following is a list of mayors since the Shire of Denman amalgamated with the Municipality of Muswellbrook to form Muswellbrook Shire Council on 1 July 1979.[25]

Councillor Party Term of office
  J.H. Jobling Unaligned 1979–1986
  E.I. Wolfgang Unaligned 1986–1989
  I.E. Seymour Unaligned 1989–1999
  J.E. Colvin Unaligned 1999–2008
  Martin Rush Unaligned 2008–2021
  Rod Scholes Unaligned 2021–2022
Steven Reynolds 2022-present

References

  1. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Muswellbrook (A)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 27 November 2017. Edit this at Wikidata
  2. ^ "3218.0 – Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2017–18". Australian Bureau of Statistics. 27 March 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2019. Estimated resident population (ERP) at 30 June 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d e Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "Muswellbrook (Local Government Area)". 2011 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 7 October 2012. Edit this at Wikidata
  4. ^ "Muswellbrook Shire Council". New South Wales Division of Local Government. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  5. ^ "Suburb Search – Local Council Boundaries – Hunter (HT) – Muswellbrook Shire Council". New South Wales Division of Local Government. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  6. ^ "Upper Hunter". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  7. ^ "Hunter". Australian Electoral Commission. 26 July 2012. Archived from the original on 5 October 2013. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  8. ^ "Local Government Act 1919. Proclamation (79)". Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales. 15 June 1979. p. 2887. Retrieved 14 February 2020 – via National Library of Australia.
  9. ^ "Local Government Act 1906. Proclamation (31)". Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales. 6 March 1907. p. 1644. Retrieved 14 February 2020 – via Trove.
  10. ^ "Local Government Act 1919. Proclamation (53)". Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales. 19 April 1968. p. 1535. Retrieved 14 February 2020 – via Trove.
  11. ^ "About Muswellbrook Shire". Muswellbrook Shire Council. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  12. ^ "Coal Industry – Muswellbrook Shire Council". muswellbrook.nsw.gov.au. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  13. ^ "Merton". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H00159. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
  14. ^ "Rous Lench". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H00211. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
  15. ^ "Weidmann Cottage". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H00260. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
  16. ^ "Loxton House". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H00185. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
  17. ^ "Eatons Hotel & St Vincent De Paul Group". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H00331. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
  18. ^ "Edinglassie". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H00170. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
  19. ^ "St. Alban's Anglican Church". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H00458. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
  20. ^ "Muswellbrook Railway Station and yard group". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01208. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
  21. ^ a b Australian Bureau of Statistics (9 March 2006). "Muswellbrook (A)". 2001 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 23 December 2013. Edit this at Wikidata
  22. ^ a b Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Muswellbrook (A)". 2006 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 23 December 2013.
  23. ^ a b "Muswellbrook Shire Council Mayor Elected". Muswellbrook Shire Council. Muswellbrook Shire Council.
  24. ^ Hughes, Betina (22 September 2016). "The new Muswellbrook Shire councillors elected Cr Martin Rush as mayor". Muswellbrook Chronicle. Retrieved 19 October 2016.
  25. ^ Bill Spicer (18 June 2004). "Mayors, Alderman, Shire Presidents, Councillors and Staff" (PDF). Muswellbrook Shire Council. Retrieved 16 August 2009.
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