The Catholic Parishes of Dungog & Gresford sit within the Shire of Dungog, part of the Hunter Region and the Lower Hunter Sub-Region and is bound by Mid Coast Council to the North-East, Singleton Council to the West, Scone Shire to the North-west and by Port Stephens Shire and the City of Maitland to the South. The Parishes are situated in the Barrington tops region and have a population of approximately 9,100.
Our mission is to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ to all people in word and action, and we have been doing this in both parishes for more than a century.
The town of Dungog is the principal urban settlement in the Dungog Planning District. Dungog is located 244km north of Sydney, 79km north of Newcastle and 55km north of Maitland. The Gringai tribe resided in the general Dungog area prior to the first white settlement in the early 1800's. The first white men in the area were thought to be searching for lost stock. They were followed by timber getters, attracted by the magnificent cedar trees in the area's hills.
The town of Dungog began as a settlement on the banks of the Williams River and during this period of early settlement was originally called Upper Williams. It was situated 14 miles upstream from Clarence Town, which was the head of navigation. The first Europeans in Dungog were cedar getters in the 1820's, followed by settlers. The site was a day's march from Clarence Town for convicts. In 1834, Captain Thomas Cook JP was made the first magistrate for the area which included Upper Williams. He urged the Colonial Secretary that the village be given a distinctive name, suggesting Dungog.
Gresford was named after the town on the Allyn River in North Wales, Great Britain and was first inhabited between 1812 and 1820 by itinerant cedar cutters.
In the early 1820's Charles Boydell was granted "Camyr Allyn" and George Townshend "Cawarra". Later William Boydell was granted "Caergwrle" at Allynbrook and built the beautiful Church of St Mary on Allyn, and Alexander Park purchased "Lewinsbrook". John Phillip Webber was granted land north of Gresford on the Paterson River, now the areas of Mt Rivers and Lostock. Dr Lindeman purchased "Cawarra" in 1842 and the vineyards were commenced in 1843.