The origin of the town's name is not known. It may have derived from the boat the Lady Nelson used by Governor Macquarie in 1812 when he came to visit the Port with an eye to establishing a settlement which never eventuated. Another contender is Admiral Horatio Nelson.
A group of Chinese fishermen established a base here early in the 19th century. They cured their catch and sent it back to China and to Chinese merchants in Sydney and Melbourne. They later sent supplies to the goldfields.
The first survey of Nelson Bay was carried out in 1874. A post office and school were established in 1883. By 1886 there were about 30 residents. The villagers led a rather peaceful life based around fishing (still important to the local economy) until developers arrived in the late 1960s.
Today Nelson Bay has everything the visitor could want as far as facilities and aquatic recreation goes.
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