Norah Head


Norah Head, is a headland and a coastal village in the Central Coast Council local government area on the Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia. Norah Head is known for its great surfing and clear beaches like Soldiers Beach near Wyrrabalong National Park and Pebbly Beach with Norah Head Rock Pool. The town is home to Norah Head Lighthouse with scenic views along the coast.

Lighthouse

The Norah Head Lighthouse was the last significant lighthouse built in New South Wales, a tower, completed in 1903 with monetary assistance from the Hargraves family of Noraville after considerable numbers of ships foundered on the coast near the headland. Originally it was powered by a kerosene concentric wick lamp and still today it features a second order bivalve Fresnel lens prism floating on a mercury bath. At first, the prism was rotated by descending weights, but the light was electrified in 1961 and fully automated in 1995. The light flashes once in 15 seconds, and is visible to, the focal plane is located at . For coastal shipping, two additional light signals are shown: a red light in the northeast sector, emitted from above the sea and a green one towards southwest, emitted from ; both are continuous. Norah Head Lighthouse is considered to be a popular venue for weddings.
The former lighthouse keepers cottage are maintained, and two of these are available for rent.

Heritage listings

Norah Head has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
Near the head, sea battles between the Japanese Navy and Merchant navy ships took place in World War II: Three ships were sunk, Nimbin, at, by a mine on 5 December 1940 and the fishing trawler Millimumul sank with the loss of seven men on 26 March 1941 when it trawled up a German mine laid by the mine ship Pinguin, as well as BHP Shipping's Iron Chieftain, at by a submarine on 3 June 1942. The Age, at, was also attacked on the same day.

Demographics

As of the 2021 census, Norah Head had a population of 1,149. The majority of residents were born in Australia, with the next most common countries of birth being England, Scotland, and New Zealand. The most common ancestries were Australian, English, and Irish. English was the primary language spoken at home by 93.0% of the population, while other languages included Greek, Spanish, and Italian.
The most common religious affiliations were No Religion, Catholic, and Anglican, with Christianity overall representing 59.7% of the population. Additionally, 5.1% of the population identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander.

Geology

There are several unique landforms around the head. Immediately in front of the head there is a rock platform which was formed in the Permian to Triassic periods around 180 - 280 million years ago. In the platform there is a volcanic intrusion, a channel of darker rock running from one side of the platform to the other. The intrusion was created by waves quarrying a softer basalt lava flow out of the surrounding granite. The lava came from an ancient volcano, probably Mount Warrawolong to the west.

Climate