IT’S time for people across the Hunter to nominate family, friends or work mates for the 2026 NSW Volunteer of the Year Awards, to help celebrate the enormous positive impact of volunteers across the state. The awards are in their 20th year and are run by The Centre for Volunteering to recognise the outstanding work […]

IT was 1865 when a lone seaman on board a Norwegian sailing ship jumped off the deck onto the wharf in Stockton and ran from the authorities. The illegal immigrant changed his name and became known as Captain Henry Thompson – so beginning the long line of Thompsons, a family who have made a major […]

MINISTER for Gaming and Racing David Harris officially opened new facilities at Scone Race Club on Tuesday, 7 April, as part of a $36 million investment into racing in the Hunter. He also visited upgrade works at Muswellbrook and Cessnock race clubs. At Scone, the NSW Government’s Racing for the Regions program allocated $20 million […]

THE M1 Pacific Motorway extension to Raymond Terrace is now expected to open to traffic in late 2026, more than a year earlier than originally planned. The accelerated timeline comes as the project reaches a major milestone, with the northern section, the Heatherbrae Bypass, now complete. The M1 Pacific Motorway extension and Hexham Straight widening […]

MORE than 60 Councils from across the state have issued a call for the NSW Government to guarantee fuel supplies for local government garbage and waste collections in the face of increasing shortages and costs. The meeting of councils convened by Local Government NSW (LGNSW) President Mayor Darcy Byrne also proposed that any fuel cost […]

The whimsical beach artwork titled ‘UFO abducting a cow’. Photo: supplied. A geometrical sand imprint made by artist Brian from Badeye Chalkart last weekend. Photo: supplied. BEACHGOERS strolling along the shoreline at One Mile Beach last week were treated to a fleeting spectacle of intricate sand artworks destined to disappear with the turning tide. The […]

THE Tomaree Museum Association (TMA) is asking members of the Port Stephens community to contribute their knowledge to establish a record of all working boats moored in the port. They are interested in the boats involved, throughout history, in the oyster industry, fish and prawn trawlers along with lobster boats, ferries and supply boats. Long […]

A DRIVER has been charged following a fatal crash in Salamander Bay earlier this year. About 7.25pm on Saturday 17 January 2026, emergency services were called to Nelson Bay Road, Salamander Bay, following reports of a two-vehicle crash. The driver of a Toyota Rav4 – a 77-year-old woman – died at the scene. The passengers […]

WRITER, poet, teacher, editor, Marine Rescue volunteer; Port Stephens resident Morgan Bell is all of these and more, and she’s just celebrated the launch of a new trio of haiku zines. In an event held on Thursday 26 March at Tomaree Library as part of the Newcastle Writers Festival 2026, she was joined by friend […]

ENERGYCO is inviting companies to register their interest for a tender to design and build an open-air storage area at the Newcastle Logistics Precinct. The precinct, located next to the Port of Newcastle, will expand portside storage for equipment needed to build renewable energy projects across the state. It will store oversize, overmass renewable energy […]