Steelworks

The coming of their steel works saw both Newcastle and Wollongong lose their image as tourist destinations and become better known as industrial centres.

The chance of employment at the steelworks at Newcastle and at Port Kembla south of Wollongong led many people to settle nearby. The magnificent Port Kembla Olympic pool  was created in the 1930s in the belief that Port Kembla would soon grow into a city absorbing the neighbouring municipality of  Wollongong.

Newcastle and Port Kembla steelworkers joined surf clubs and swimming clubs and formed bands.

In both Newcastle and Wollongong, the steelworks and associated industries were associated with considerable air pollution, which only reduced in the late twentieth century.

The Newcastle steelworks are now closed and the number of jobs at the Port Kembla steelworks has been greatly reduced since the 1980s.

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