Lithgow, New South Wales

From Freepedia

Lithgow is a city of approximately 18750 persons situated in central-west New South Wales, Australia and is also a Local Government Area. It is located in a valley named Lithgow's Valley by John Oxley in honour of William Lithgow, the first Auditor-General of New South Wales.

The city sits just west of the Blue Mountains in the Great Dividing Range, on the Great Western Highway. The town is the centre of a coal mining district and there are a number of coal-powered power stations nearby.

Lithgow is the site of Australia's first steel mill. Also notable is the Zig Zag Railway attraction, built in the 1800s to overcome the mountainous terrain of the Great Dividing Range. It has since been superseded by more modern engineering methods, but remains a popular attraction.