1813 crossing of the Blue Mountains
The 1813 crossing of the Blue Mountains was the expedition led by Gregory Blaxland, William Lawson and William Charles Wentworth, which became the first successful crossing of the Blue Mountains in New South Wales by European settlers. The crossing enabled the settlers to access and use the land west of the mountains for farming, and made possible the establishment of Australia's first inland colonial settlement at Bathurst.
Earliest pictorial representation of the crossing from The Sydney Mail, 25 December 1880
A sketch of their route, prepared by Frank Walker in 1913. The Great Western Road has been inserted to show how closely it has followed the track of the explorers in its general direction.
Gregory Blaxland
William Lawson
Gregory Blaxland was an English pioneer farmer and explorer in Australia, noted especially for initiating and co-leading the first successful crossing of the Blue Mountains by European settlers.
Portrait, 1813
Eastwood Brush Farm House built by Blaxland
Blaxland, Wentworth and Lawson memorial, Luddenham Road