The Exchange Hotel in the main street of Grenfell

Grenfell
Historic goldmining town - Birthplace of Henry Lawson
Located 372 km west of Sydney, 213 km from Canberra and 384 metres above sea level, Grenfell is an interesting and historically significant town which is known to most Australians because the poet and short story writer, Henry Lawson, was born on the nearby goldfields at Emu Creek.

Prior to European settlement the Grenfell area was home to the Wiradjuri Aborigines whose lands stretched from Bathurst to the Victorian border. Small, efficient groups roamed this area hunting and gathering and occasionally coming together to celebrate particular events and to socialise.

The first European to settle in the district was John Wood whose huge 'run', which he called 'Brundah', included the present townsite. Wood arrived in 1833 but it took 33 years, and the sharp eye of Cornelius O'Brien (a shepherd working for Wood) to realise there were rich gold deposits on the property.

Miners flocked to the area in 1866 and although it was known as Emu Creek it was subsequently renamed Grenfell to honour the late John Grenfell, Gold Commissioner at Forbes. Grenfell had been on a stage coach which was held up and fired at by bushrangers. He was shot and died the following day in Narromine. The year was 1866.

The gold had attracted bushrangers to the district. They were particularly attracted to the rugged Weddin Mountains where famous bushrangers, including Ben Hall, Johnny Gilbert and Frank Gardiner, spent much of their time.

For the next decade gold dominated the town's economy. By 1870-71 it was producing more gold than any other town in NSW. However by the mid-1870s gold was in decline and agriculture was in the ascendancy.

Wheat was first grown in the district in 1871 and by 1875 the Grenfell Pastoral, Agricultural & Horticultural Association had been formed.

By the early 1880s wheat dominated the local economy. It also helped speed the construction of the railway which arrived in 1901.

Things to see:  

The memorial at Henry Lawson's birthplace near Grenfell

Henry Lawson Obelisk
The Emu Creek diggings are long gone and in their place are the local sports fields. Clearly signposted off the road to Young (to the south of the town) is a large obelisk which is located where Peter Larsen (Henry's father) had his bush tent. Henry Lawson was born here on 17 June 1867. Each June long weekend the Henry Lawson Festival of Arts is held. It attracts Lawson lovers as well as poets, writers and singers to the town.

Historic Grenfell
Unlike most Australian country towns Grenfell has a main street which bends and, in turn, George Street which runs behind the Main Street is also shaped like a gentle arc. Most of the town's interesting historic buildings are concentrated in these two streets and it is a journey into the past to wander up and down these two historic thoroughfares. Any serious look at historic Grenfell should include:

Courthouse
Located in Camp Street this attractive brick court house has 6-paned sash windows and a large verandah. This was built in 1873 to replace an earlier Courthouse built in 1867 out of corrugated iron and timber slabs and described as 'a small corrugated iron pot in which justice fries and freezes and culprits melt away.' It is a typical solid country Courthouse of its era.

The Railway Hotel

Grenfell Lockup
With gold came crime - and with crime came the lockup. The first lockup was nothing more than a wooden shed. The present building was built in 1877 in Church Street near the present Police Station.

Grenfell Historical Museum
Located on the corner of Camp and Weddin Streets in the old School of Arts building (1896) it is considered one of the best rural museums in New South Wales. It was opened as a museum in 1976 during the Henry Lawson Festival.

Oddfellows Hall - George Street
This building with its elaborate facade and high iron ceilings was built in 1888 after fire destroyed the previous building. The Manchester Unity Independent Order of Oddfellows was established in Grenfell in 1873 and the first hall was completed in 1874.

George Street
As you continue down the street you will notice the Tattersalls Turf Hotel (1888) with its old archway where horse-drawn coaches used to drive into the courtyard, the Bank of NSW (1890), now a private residence, the old Salvation Army Citadel (1883) now the local Band Hall and The Railway Hotel (1879) and stables.

The old School of Arts (1896) now the Museum

Searching for Ben Hall
Ben Hall is one of Australia's most infamous bushrangers. He grew up in the area and, in 1862, was charged with horse stealing and armed robbery. No one knows the reasonableness of the charge. Hall was held for five weeks before being released. When he returned home he found his wife had left and gone to live with an ex-policeman. He joined Frank Gardiner and Johnny Gilbert in what became known as the Ben Hall gang.

Like most bushrangers Ben Hall's reign was short-lived. Effectively it lasted from late 1863 until his death on 5 May, 1865. The Australian Dictionary of Biography's analysis of Hall's gang is: 'Hall was probably the most efficient of the bushranger leaders. His men were well armed and superbly mounted, often on stolen race-horses which easily outpaced the police nags.'

Ben Hall's Homestead
Now nothing more than a signpost in a paddock it still offers an insight into rural life (and isolation) in the 1860s. To get there head west on the Mid-Western Highway from Grenfell. After 23 km turn right at Pullabooka. After another 12 km turn right to Forbes. The site is about 250-300 metres along the road. It is said the house burned down in 1862.

Ben Hall's Cave
Head south from Grenfell on the Young Road. After about 10 km turn right on the Bimbi-Grenfell Road and 2 km after Bimbi turn north on Nowlands Road. There is an alternative route to the north of Grenfell via Back Piney Ridge Road. The cave is clearly signposted. It is a half hour walk from the car park. It is now widely accepted that Ben Hall used this cave for shelter. It is an ideal vantage point to see approaching parties of troopers.

Weddin Mountains National Park
Located south-west of Grenfell the Weddin Mountains National Park covers 8361 hectares and can be accessed from a number of roads. The shortest route is only 15 km via Holy Camp Road which lies only 1 km south of the town. At the end of this road is a camp site and a walking track to Euraldrie Trig station.

Weddin Mountains National Park was gazetted as a Wildlife Reserve in 1962 and a National Park in 1970. As Lyster Holland wrote, in an excellent publication for the Young Historical Society: 'The southern side consists of a series of large and small valleys with rugged spurs between them. All the water sheds travel south and some of these valleys wind their way through the mountain to the northern summit with their floors carpeted in mountain grass, beautiful ferns and wild flowers. Some thirty different varieties of orchids have been identified, tall iron and stringy barks and giant gums spread an evergreen umbrella overhead and in some valleys, sheer sandstone cliffs rise from the valleys up hundreds of feet.'

Holland recommended that visitors in the area could (a) walk to the trig station where, on a clear day, you can see Mount Canobolas nearly 120 km to the north (b) go camping on the southern side of the mountains (c) go birdwatching - the Weddin Mountains National Park has a sheet which lists 92 native species which can be seen in the park (d) go for a drive in the early morning and evening and keep an eye out for emus and kangaroos.

The publication also suggests a number of interesting walks.

Similarly the National Parks and Wildlife Service have printed a 'Weddin Mountains National Park - Historical Aspects' sheet which has a good map which directs the visitor to Ben Hall's Cave, Jack Tarr's Inn (now in ruins), Bow Cave (hideout of bushranger Johnnie Bow), Wentworth Homestead, Black Spring Gully (famous in the 1860s for its illicit rum still), the Weddin Gap trail and the Old Mill.

	Motels
	Grenfell Motel Main St Grenfell NSW 2810 Telephone: (02) 6343 1333 Rating: **1/2
	Hotels
	Albion Hotel Main St Grenfell NSW 2810 Telephone: (02) 6343 1423
	Criterion Hotel 105 Main St Grenfell NSW 2810 Telephone: (02) 6343 1301
	Exchange Hotel Main St Grenfell NSW 2810 Telephone: (02) 6343 1034 Rating: *
	Railway Hotel Main St Grenfell NSW 2810 Telephone: (02) 6343 1807
	Royal Hotel Main St Grenfell NSW 2810 Telephone: (02) 6343 1412
	Bed & Breakfast/Guesthouses
	Grenfell Guest Accommodation 12 Weddin St Grenfell NSW 2810 Telephone: (02) 6343 5122 Facsimile: (02) 6343 5128
	Caravan Parks
	Grenfell Caravan Park Mid Western Hwy Grenfell NSW 2810 Telephone: (02) 6343 1194 Rating: ***
	Restaurants
	Grenfell Motel Restaurant Main St Grenfell NSW 2810 Telephone: (02) 6343 1333
	Happy Inn Restaurant Main St Grenfell NSW 2810 Telephone: (02) 6343 1366
	The Kitchen Table 60 Main St Grenfell NSW 2810 Telephone: (02) 6343 1366