Charlestown's background
A colliery town
The Waratah Coal Company sank its first shaft here in 1873, and the first settlers were its miners. The pit closed in 1961.
Early streets
The area was surveyed on 29 April 1876, and the first subdivision became Ida, Pearson, Milson and Frederick streets. The town's first water main came in 1927 and sewerage in 1959.
A mixed housing stock
At the 2021 Census, 76.0% of homes were separate houses, 14.9% were townhouses or semis and 8.9% were units. 26.2% were rented.
On Ausgrid
Charlestown is on Ausgrid's network, in its Lake Macquarie, Newcastle City and Port Stephens region. Report outages on 13 13 88.
What that means for your job
A house from Charlestown's older streets has probably been rewired at some point, but not always all of it. Ceramic fuses, or a board with no safety switches, is the first thing to fix. For any home built before 2000, NSW Fair Trading strongly recommends getting an electrician to confirm safety switches are actually there.
In a townhouse or unit, the main switchboard and the cables to your meter are often shared property. Adding an EV charger or a bigger air conditioner can mean a conversation with the strata committee first: Energy NSW says you need strata approval for a Level 2 wallbox in an apartment.
Our take for Charlestown
If your house is older and the board hasn't been touched in decades, get it assessed before you add anything big. In a strata complex, ask the electrician to look at the shared board and your own supply in one visit, so the committee gets a single clear proposal instead of a guess.
Want a specialist to sort it?
Tell us the job and your postcode. We match the licence-checked local electrician who does this kind of work, and they call you. No ring-around, and your number goes to them alone.