Raymond Terrace is a town in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia, about 26km by road north of Newcastle on the Pacific Highway. Established in 1837 it is situated at the confluence of the Hunter and Williams rivers. The town was named after Lieutenant Raymond, who had explored the Hunter River in 1797 and described the terraced appearance of trees in the area. Governor Lachlan Macquarie camped in the area in 1818, using "Raymond Terrace" as the name for the place where his party had camped. At the Raymond Terrace had a population of 12,820. It is the administrative centre of the Port Stephens local government area as well as a service hub for surrounding rural areas.