E32: Punching Through the Blue Mountains

In 1813 New South Wales was a fast-growing, optimistic society. The colony’s teenage growth spurt could no longer be contained by the rugged sandstone wall of the Blue Mountains just 50 kilometres west of Sydney.

There were multiple valiant efforts to cross the Blue Mountains but it took the determination of Gregory Blaxland, backed by William Lawson and William Wentworth, to finally crack the code by staying on the high ridges instead of following the valleys. Macquarie quickly capitalised on their breakthrough, commissioning a proper road and founding the inland settlement of Bathurst in 1815.

The 1813 expedition changed New South Wales from a confined coastal settlement into the gateway to a continent. In just a few years the colony’s horizons expanded dramatically, setting Australia on the path to rapid 19th-century growth.

Join us as we trace the drama and the personalities that finally punched through the Blue Mountains.

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The Hon. John Ruddick MLC is a member of the NSW Legislative Council. 

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Produced by Sean Masters

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