Bathurst, city in southeastern Australia in the state of New South Wales. Bathurst lies on the Macquarie River west of the Blue Mountains, one of several ranges of the Great Dividing Range, which separates Australia's eastern coast from its interior. Bathurst is the service center for a large agricultural district that produces sheep, grain, timber, fruit, and vegetables. Bathurst also has a varied industrial base that includes engineering, plastics, food processing, ceramics, and furniture factories. The Great West Highway connects the city with Sydney, lying east of the Blue Mountains. Bathurst has Roman Catholic and Anglican cathedrals and Charles Sturt University, founded in 1989 when Mitchell College of Advanced Education and Riverina-Murray Institute of Higher Education were combined. The drive from Bathurst around Mount Panorama is famous for its scenery and forms one of Australia's most famous automobile racing circuits.
Australia's oldest inland settlement, Bathurst was founded in 1815 and named after the British secretary of state for the colonies, Henry Bathurst, the 3rd Earl Bathurst. Bathurst was near the site of Australia's first gold rush in 1851 and subsequently grew swiftly. It was declared a city in 1885. Population (1996) 26,029.Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2001
http://encarta.msn.com © 1997-2001 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Bathurst Information info
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