Explore Thornton, New South Wales, Australia, with this interactive street and satellite map. You can “grab” the Thornton, NSW map and move it around to re-centre it. You can change between standard map view and satellite map view by clicking the small square in the bottom left-hand corner of the map. You can use the zoom buttons on the lower right side of the map to zoom in or out to street-level detail.
This page also offers TOPO MAPS — Geoscience Australia topographic mapping and the classic NATMAP 1:250 000 sheets — plus a labelled MGA grid overlay, a distance and bearing tool, and a GPS grid-reference readout. See How to Use This Map below. You will find live weather, local and world news further down the page.
This interactive map shows the street layout and satellite imagery for Thornton, New South Wales, Australia. Use the Map and Satellite buttons above to switch between street map and aerial imagery views. Use the + and − buttons to zoom in or out, or scroll your mouse wheel while holding the Control key to zoom. On a touchscreen, use a two-finger pinch gesture to zoom in and out.
Click ⛶ Fullscreen to expand the map to fill your screen for a larger view. To return to the normal page view, press the Escape key on your keyboard, click the ✕ Exit Fullscreen button that appears above the map, or on a mobile device tap the back button (Android) or the close icon (iOS).
Drag the map to pan to any area of New South Wales or beyond. Switch to Satellite view to see high-resolution aerial photography of Thornton and surrounding areas, including streets, buildings, parks and waterways.
TOPO MAPS — NEW. Click the green 🔍 Search Maps button below the map to open a second map with a Base map row offering three choices. OSM is the standard OpenStreetMap street map. Topo shows the Geoscience Australia National Base Map — seamless topographic mapping covering the mainland, Tasmania and the external territories. NATMAP 250K shows the classic NATMAP 1:250 000 map sheets, mosaicked nationwide — the printed sheets generations of Australians navigated the outback with. The search box finds any Australian town, suburb or landmark by name, so you are not limited to Thornton.
Reading the map like a paper sheet. Click Grid to overlay the Map Grid of Australia (MGA), labelled along the edges exactly as a printed topographic sheet is — at normal zoom the squares are one kilometre across, so you can read a six-figure grid reference by eye and judge distance directly off the map. Click Measure, then tap two points, to get the distance between them together with the grid bearing in degrees and mils, the true bearing, and the magnetic bearing to set on a compass.
Click 📍 My position to take a single GPS reading from your device. It marks where you are and reports your position as an MGA grid reference as well as plain latitude and longitude — the grid reference being what emergency services and search and rescue work from — with a Copy position button so you can paste it straight into a text message. It takes one reading and stops, rather than tracking continuously, to conserve your battery. Note that map tiles need mobile coverage, but a GPS reading does not — your coordinates stay correct even where the map itself cannot load, which across much of inland Australia is most of the time.
Map search is available for a limited number of queries per session to manage costs. Be specific — search precisely for best results.
| Locality | Thornton |
| State | New South Wales (NSW) |
| Local Government Area | Maitland City Council |
| Country | Australia |
| Timezone | Australian Eastern Time (AEST/AEDT) |
| Remoteness | Major Cities of Australia |
| Latitude | -32.78529 |
| Longitude | 151.63952 |
| Population | 7,879 |
| Density | 473.8 /km² |
| Area | 16.6 km² |
| Elevation | 22 m |
| Postcode | 2322 |
| Area Code | 02 |
| Distance to Sydney | 127 km north-northeast |
Thornton is a locality in the Maitland City Council local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It has a population of approximately 7,879. The locality covers an area of 16.6 km², giving a population density of about 473.8 people per km². It sits at an elevation of around 22 m above sea level. It lies approximately 127 km north-northeast of Sydney. Thornton is located at 32.7853°S, 151.6395°E. It observes Australian Eastern Time (AEST/AEDT). Postcode: 2322.
Thornton unfolds across a landscape of gentle slopes and rich alluvial plains, where the Hunter River, a vital artery of this region, carves its patient path. It lies 9.6 km south-east of Maitland, NSW (from Maitland, NSW: bearing 124°T), and is situated 12.0 km west-south-west of Raymond Terrace. The air here carries the subtle scent of damp earth after rain, mingling with the distant hum of traffic and the rustle of gum leaves in the breeze. Here, the sky often seems to stretch an impossible distance, its colours shifting from the pale blue of morning to the fiery oranges and purples of a setting sun, painting the fields and scattered homesteads in hues of ephemeral beauty. The land itself feels both ancient and fertile, a testament to the slow, enduring work of water and time, supporting a quiet, determined way of life.
The history of Thornton is deeply entwined with the agricultural bounty of the Hunter Valley, its early development shaped by the fertile soil that drew settlers seeking to cultivate its potential. For generations, farming and grazing have been the bedrock of the local economy, the paddocks and pastures a familiar sight, punctuated by the sturdy forms of farm buildings. More recently, Thornton has become a nexus for burgeoning residential growth, its character evolving as new families discover the appeal of its convenient location and the enduring charm of its rural roots. The nearby waterways, though not always grand, whisper of earlier times, their presence a constant reminder of the enduring relationship between people and the land they call home, a relationship that continues to define Thornton.
Sources: curated tourist landmarks, CAPAD 2024 (Australian protected areas), OpenStreetMap.
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This page provides a street and satellite map of Thornton, New South Wales. Live weather conditions with current observations and a 7-day forecast are powered by Open-Meteo. Real-time local news and world news feeds keep the page current, while an editorially written description provides background on Thornton, in the Maitland City Council local government area.
Detailed location data for Thornton includes the postcode (2322), telephone area code (02), and local government area (Maitland City Council), with an ABS remoteness classification of Major Cities of Australia. These are among the most commonly searched location details for any Australian city, town or locality.
Search Maps opens a second, independent map. It searches OpenStreetMap for any Australian town, suburb or landmark by name; offers Geoscience Australia topographic mapping and the classic NATMAP 1:250 000 sheets as base layers; overlays a labelled Map Grid of Australia (MGA) so the map can be read like a printed topographic sheet; measures distance and grid, true and magnetic bearings between any two points; and takes a single GPS fix reporting your position as an MGA grid reference and as latitude and longitude. Map tiles require mobile coverage, but a GPS position does not, so the coordinates remain correct even where the map cannot load.
Location data is drawn from Geoscape Administrative Boundaries (GDA2020) and enriched with GeoNames and Australian Bureau of Statistics data, matched by coordinate proximity — ensuring the correct Thornton is identified even where the name is shared across multiple localities.
| Page generated | October 2026 |
| Location data | Geoscape Administrative Boundaries (GDA2020); enriched with GeoNames and ABS 2021 Census data, matched by coordinate proximity |
| Map layers | Google Maps; © OpenStreetMap contributors; © Geoscience Australia National Base Map and NATMAP 1:250 000 (CC BY 4.0); magnetic declination from NOAA NCEI (World Magnetic Model) |
| Description | Editorial description generated with AI assistance from verified Geoscape, ABS and GeoNames location data. |