Karuah is a locality in both the Port Stephens and Mid-Coast Councils in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. It is thought that the name means 'native plum tree' in the local Aboriginal dialect. In 1790 five convicts escaped from Sydney and relocated to the area. In 1795 the Karuah River was first surveyed as part of a wider survey of Port Stephens. In 1811 Governor Lachlan Macquarie decided to name the area the Clyde. By 1816 permits were issued to allow cedar cutting in the area. In 1824 the Australian Agricultural Company purchased a million acres to create the township. In 1907 the name was changed from Sawyers Point to Karuah.