Grenfell, New South Wales

Grenfell is a country town in the central west of New South Wales, in Australia. It is in the Weddin Shire. It is  west of Sydney. It is close to Forbes, Cowra and Young.  In 2006 there were 1,994 people living in Grenfell.

History
The Grenfell area was the home of the Wiradjuri Aborigines. Europeans first settled when gold was found at Emu Creek. The town was renamed after John Grenfell, the Gold Commissioner at Forbes. He had been killed in 1866 when bushrangers attacked a stagecoach on which he was travelling.

By 1870-71 more gold was found at Grenfell than in any other town in NSW. By the middle of the 1870s the gold was running out.  Wheat was first grown in the area in 1871.  The railway reached Grenfell in 1901.

The Grenfell area has been badly affected by drought since 2001. 

Events
The poet and story writer Henry Lawson was born on the gold fields at Grenfell. On the Queen's Birthday weekend in June every year, the town has The Henry Lawson Festival of Arts. Thousands of people come from all over Australia for the art, poetry and writing competitions. Over the years, famous visitors have included Chips Rafferty, Barry Humphries, Patrick White and Sigrid Thornton.

In June 2007, the Spirit of the Bush Concert was held. It was organized by Australian of the Year, Lee Kernaghan, local and international star Steve Forde and the Flange, Adam Brand, Leo Sayer, Diesel, and The McClymonts.

Famous people
Cricketer Stan McCabe, cyclist Reggie "IronMan" McNamara and tennis player Jan Lehane and Creative Writer Adam Burn were born in Grenfell.

References

Other websites
 Grenfell's web site
 About the town
 Sydney Morning Herald 5 January 2003: Grenfell's attempts to woo people to move to the town.

Category:Towns in New South Wales