Browse / Australia / New South Wales / Lawson
Lawson
New South Walesvillage
Lawson
Total population
2,614
Demographic figures from Australian Bureau of Statistics. Overview below cites Wikipedia and may reference a different year.
City facts
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 WikipediaHistory & 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…
Excerpted from the corresponding Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA).
Geography
Coordinates & boundaries from the US Census TIGER/Line shapefiles.
Climate
10-year averages from ERA5 reanalysis (Open-Meteo).
Air quality
Walkability
Amenities nearby
Wildlife & biodiversity
Most-observed species
- Sulphur-crested CockatooCacatua galerita (Latham, 1790) · Aves12,783
- Crimson RosellaPlatycercus elegans (Gmelin, 1788) · Aves11,032
- Eastern SpinebillAcanthorhynchus tenuirostris (Latham, 1801) · Aves9,384
- Red WattlebirdAnthochaera carunculata (Shaw, 1790) · Aves9,151
- Brown ThornbillAcanthiza pusilla (Shaw, 1790) · Aves7,507
- Pied CurrawongStrepera graculina (Shaw, 1790) · Aves7,351
- Australian MagpieGymnorhina tibicen (Latham, 1802) · Aves7,053
- Australian King-ParrotAlisterus scapularis (Lichtenstein, 1816) · Aves6,347
Citizen-science & research observations from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF).
Earthquake history
Most recent
- M 3.6 — 2025-05-283 km WNW of Cobbitty, Australia
- M 3.5 — 2024-03-0814 km SSW of Woodford, Australia
- M 3 — 2020-11-2027 km S of Oberon, Australia
- M 3 — 2007-08-2224 km W of Oakdale, Australia
- M 3.2 — 2007-08-1810 km NW of Mittagong, Australia
- M 2.6 — 2007-08-1811 km NW of Mittagong, Australia
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
Geography & sun
Elevation, sunrise/sunset and daylight from Open-Meteo. Solar climatology from NASA POWER.
Nearby airports
Public attention
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
Gallery
Geotagged photos within ~6 miles of Lawson, from Wikimedia Commons contributors.
0.1 miPhotos 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