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Lawson

New South Walesvillage

Photograph of Lawson
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Lawson

Total population

2,614

Elevation726 m
WeatherAvg high 66.1°F
Coordinates-33.72°, 150.43°

Demographic figures from Australian Bureau of Statistics. Overview below cites Wikipedia and may reference a different year.

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City facts

Elevation
726 m

Facts from Wikidata (CC0).

Overview

Lawson is a town in the Blue Mountains area of New South Wales, Australia. It is located on the Great Western Highway between Hazelbrook in the east and Bullaburra in the west. Lawson has a station on the Main Western line. The town is also served by a public swimming pool and over the years has developed into the commercial hub of the mid-mountains area, which spans from Linden to Bullaburra, boasting a significant industrialized area as well as a shopping centre located on the south-eastern side of the highway.

Read more on Wikipedia

History & geography

History

One of the first settlements on the eastern slopes of the Blue Mountains, Lawson was identified on early maps as 24 Mile Hollow–a name which was changed to Christmas Swamp for a few years. When the Blue Mountain Inn was opened in 1848, the locals adopted the name Blue Mountain for the village. This name was also given to the original railway station after the Main Western railway line was pushed through in 1867. The presence of a Blue Mountain on the Blue Mountains, however, became so confusing to visitors that the authorities stepped in and renamed the village Lawson in honour of William Lawson who, along with William Wentworth and Gregory Blaxland, were the first Europeans to cross the Blue Mountains in 1813. All three had namesake railway stations. In 1931, the Railway Department agreed to supply electricity to the Blue Mountains Shire Council. Power lines were constructed between Blackheath and Lawson, accompanied by a maintenance track. The authorities then decided to promote the maintenance track as a walking trail; it became known as Bruce's Walk, after the surveyor who planned it. The track later became neglected and forgotten, until it was rediscovered and improved by bushwalkers in the 1980s. It can now be followed from Medlow Bath to the north side of Lawson, although it is not shown on the relevant topographic map. In more recent years, Lawson was at the centre of controversy due to an ongoing government proposal to widen the Great Western Highway. The highway was a single lane in each direction through the town; the proposed plan by the Roads & Traffic Authority for widening necessitated the removal and relocation of the existing shops and the demolition of the Lawson Community Centre, formerly known as the Mechanics' Institute Hall, which dated…

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Excerpted from the corresponding Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA).

Geography

Latitude
-33.7197
Longitude
150.4296
Water area
View on OpenStreetMap

Coordinates & boundaries from the US Census TIGER/Line shapefiles.

Climate

Avg high
66.1°F
Avg low
48°F
Annual precipitation
47.9 in

10-year averages from ERA5 reanalysis (Open-Meteo).

Air quality

Walkability

Amenities nearby

Wildlife & biodiversity

Observations (last 5 yrs, 10 mi)
343,418
Distinct species (top 10)
10

Most-observed species

  • Sulphur-crested Cockatoo
    Cacatua galerita (Latham, 1790) · Aves
    12,783
  • Crimson Rosella
    Platycercus elegans (Gmelin, 1788) · Aves
    11,032
  • Eastern Spinebill
    Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris (Latham, 1801) · Aves
    9,384
  • Red Wattlebird
    Anthochaera carunculata (Shaw, 1790) · Aves
    9,151
  • Brown Thornbill
    Acanthiza pusilla (Shaw, 1790) · Aves
    7,507
  • Pied Currawong
    Strepera graculina (Shaw, 1790) · Aves
    7,351
  • Australian Magpie
    Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham, 1802) · Aves
    7,053
  • Australian King-Parrot
    Alisterus scapularis (Lichtenstein, 1816) · Aves
    6,347

Citizen-science & research observations from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF).

Earthquake history

Quakes ≥ 2.5 (25 yrs, 62 mi)
12
Largest magnitude
4.6
Largest event
2003-12-11

Most recent

Events from the USGS Earthquake Catalog (global) (FDSN Event Web Service).

Photos

Sights & places nearby

Notable people from here

Nearby places in New South Wales

Browse all places in New South Wales

Geography & sun

Avg solar (kWh/m²/day)
4.64
Annual solar (kWh/m²)
1,695

Elevation, sunrise/sunset and daylight from Open-Meteo. Solar climatology from NASA POWER.

Nearby airports

Public attention

Wikipedia views (last 30 days)
374
Avg daily Wikipedia views
12
Attention level
Obscure

Pageview totals from the Wikimedia Pageviews API.

Books about Lawson

Search results from Open Library.

Recent natural events nearby

Ground air-quality sensors

Recently spotted species

Events

Geotagged photos within ~6 miles of Lawson, from Wikimedia Commons contributors.

Photos via Wikimedia Commons — see each image page for license & attribution.

Sources

  • Wikipedia
  • Open-Meteo (ERA5 reanalysis)
  • Wikimedia Commons
  • Wikidata
  • USGS Earthquake Catalog (global feed)
  • GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility)
  • Open-Meteo / sunrise-sunset.org
  • Wikipedia Pageviews API
  • Open Library