 At the 2006 census, Newham and the surrounding area had a population of 570.The township of Newham was occupied as a station in 1847 by settlers named Peters and Dryden and called Dryden's Rock; The district of Newham and Woodend was created in December 1861; it became the Shire of Newham and Woodend in January 1905.Newham Post Office opened on 16 September 1861 and closed in 1971.