Penrith is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, located in

Greater Western Sydney Greater Western Sydney (GWS) is a large region of the metropolitan area of Greater Sydney, New South Wales (NSW), Australia that generally embraces the north-west, south-west, central-west, and far western sub-regions within Sydney's metropoli ...

, 55 kilometres (31 mi) west of the

Sydney central business district The Sydney central business district (CBD) is the historical and main Central business district, commercial centre of Sydney. The CBD is Sydney's city centre, or Sydney City, and the two terms are used interchangeably. Colloquially, the CBD or c ...

on the banks of the

Nepean River Nepean River (Darug: Yandhai), is a major perennial river, located in the south-west and west of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The Nepean River and its associated mouth, the Hawkesbury River, almost encircles the metropolitan region of ...

, on the outskirts of the

Cumberland Plain The Cumberland Plain, an IBRA biogeographic region, is a relatively flat region lying to the west of Sydney CBD in New South Wales, Australia. Cumberland Basin is the preferred physiographic and geological term for the low-lying plain of the ...

. Its elevation is 32 metres (105 ft). Penrith is the administrative centre of the

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a State (administrative division), state, province, divi ...

of the

City of Penrith The City of Penrith is a local government area in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The seat of the city is located in Penrith, located about west of Sydney's central business district. It occupies part of the traditional lands of the ...

. The

Geographical Names Board of New South Wales The Geographical Names Board of New South Wales, a statutory authority of the Department of Customer Service in the Government of New South Wales, is the official body for naming and recording details of places and geographical names in the sta ...

acknowledges Penrith as one of only four

cities A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

within the Greater Sydney metropolitan area.

History

Indigenous settlement

Prior to the arrival of the Europeans, the Penrith area was home to the Mulgoa tribe of the

Darug people The Dharug or Darug people, formerly known as the Broken Bay tribe, are an Aboriginal Australian people, who share strong ties of kinship and, in pre-colonial times, lived as skilled hunters in family groups or clans, scattered throughout much ...

. They lived in makeshift huts called ''gunyahs'', hunted native animals such as kangaroos, fished in the Nepean River, and gathered local fruits and vegetables such as yams. They lived under an elaborate system of law which had its origins in the

Dreamtime The Dreaming, also referred to as Dreamtime, is a term devised by early anthropologists to refer to a religio-cultural worldview attributed to Australian Aboriginal mythology, Australian Aboriginal beliefs. It was originally used by Francis Ja ...

. Most of the Mulgoa were killed by

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...

or ''galgala'' shortly after the arrival of the

First Fleet The First Fleet was a fleet of 11 ships that brought the first European and African settlers to Australia. It was made up of two Royal Navy vessels, three store ships and six convict transports. On 13 May 1787 the fleet under the command ...

in 1788. Early British explorers such as

Watkin Tench Lieutenant General Watkin Tench (6 October 1758 – 7 May 1833) was a British marine officer who is best known for publishing two books describing his experiences in the First Fleet, which established the first European settlement in Australia in ...

described them as friendly, saying, "they bade us adieu, in unabated friendship and good humour".

European exploration

The recorded history of Penrith began on 26 June 1789. Eighteen months after the landing of the

, an exploring party led by Captain Watkin Tench set out to further discoveries made by Governor

Arthur Phillip Admiral Arthur Phillip (11 October 1738 – 31 August 1814) was a British Royal Navy officer who served as the first governor of the Colony of New South Wales. Phillip was educated at Greenwich Hospital School from June 1751 unti ...

earlier in the month. In the daylight hours of 27 June, Tench and his party discovered the broad expanse of the

. Tench's party became the first Europeans to see the site of what is now the City of Penrith. Tench later wrote 'we found ourselves on the banks of a river, nearly as broad as the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

Putney Putney () is a district of southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. History Putney is an ancient paris ...

and apparently of great depth'. Phillip later named the river after

Evan Nepean Sir Evan Nepean, 1st Baronet, PC FRS (9 July 1752 – 2 October 1822)Sparrow (n.d.) was a British politician and colonial administrator. He was the first of the Nepean Baronets. Family Nepean was born at St. Stephens near Saltash, Cornwall, ...

, the under-secretary of state in the Home Office, who had been largely responsible for the organisation of the First Fleet. From this point, European settlement began in earnest, firstly on the Hawkesbury River, and later southward up the Nepean.

European settlement

Governor

Phillip Gidley King Captain Philip Gidley King (23 April 1758 – 3 September 1808) was a British politician who was the third Governor of New South Wales. When the First Fleet arrived in January 1788, King was detailed to colonise Norfolk Island for defence ...

began granting land in the area to settlers in 1804 with Captain

Daniel Woodriff Captain Daniel Woodriff (17 November 1756 – 25 February 1842) was a British Royal Navy officer and navigator in the late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth centuries. He made two voyages to Australia. He was Naval Agent on the convict transport ...

's on the banks of the river the first land grant in the area. The first government building in the district was the military depot built (at the present Penrith police station) by William Cox, in mid-1815 near the new Road ( Great Western Road) on unassigned Crown land, set well back from the river. It represented the formalisation of law and order in the district. Its placement seems to have been a practical decision by Cox, placing it on flood-free Crown land on the new road to Parramatta, just east of Woodriff's Rodley Farm. Governor

Lachlan Macquarie Major-general (United Kingdom), Major General Lachlan Macquarie, Companion of the Order of the Bath, CB (; gd, Lachann MacGuaire; 31 January 1762 – 1 July 1824) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator from Scotland. Macquarie se ...

paid Cox £200 for 'erecting a Depot for Provisions, Guard House, erecting necessary Enclosures for cattle and Garden Ground, Frame for a Well ... on the new near Emu Ford'. At this time, Emu Ford was one of the few locality names that would indicate the depot's position. In 1816 Cox mentioned the lockup at 'Penryhn', among a list of expenses. There appears little doubt that he was referring to the depot that was later referred to as Penrith. The name for the new depot, Penrhyn, may have simply been misinterpreted by others. Penrhyn was possibly named after the First Fleet ship that carried women convicts, the ''Lady Penrhyn''. There is no historical evidence to prove Macquarie's hand in naming the depot, especially considering he often endowed and recorded benefactors with that favour. Furthermore, Macquarie would have ensured that a plan of the town would have been drawn up. No documentary evidence has shed any light on Macquarie's reasoning for the placement of this depot and its connection with his vision for a township at Castlereagh. What is clear is that the origin of the name, Penrith is steeped in mystery. Penrith was possibly named after Penrith in Cumbria by someone who knew the old town and who noted geographical similarities. By 1819, the name Penrith was in use with its first reference in the ''Sydney Gazette'' on 8 December 1821 appointing John Proctor as keeper of the new gaol and court house. The lockup at Penrith placed government law and order in the centre of the Evan district. This group of buildings became the point of contact for local administration for anything ranging from issuing publican's licences, holding inquests and church services. Although a magistrate had been appointed to Castlereagh in 1811, the Penrith lockup increased in importance with its promotion to a court house in 1817. A bench of magistrates was appointed:

Sir John Jamison Sir John Jamison (1776 – 29 June 1844) was an Australian physician, pastoralist, banker, politician, constitutional reformer and public figure. Family background John Jamison was born in Carrickfergus, County Antrim, Ireland in 1776. Throug ...

, the Reverend Henry Fulton, John McHenry and a military officer from the regiment stationed there. In 1814, William Cox constructed a

road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

across the Blue Mountains which passed through Woodriff's land at Penrith. Initial settlement in the area was unplanned but substantial enough for a courthouse to be established in 1817. The post office was established in 1828, the Anglican church, St Stephens, was opened and consecrated 16 July 1839 followed by the Catholic Church, St Nicholas of Myra, in 1850. Two other prominent Penrith pioneers were Irish-born

Thomas Jamison Thomas Jamison ( – 25 January 1811) was a naval surgeon, who was surgeon mate on as part First Fleet which founded Colony of New South Wales in 1788. He was surgeon at the Norfolk Island settlement, before returning to Sydney and becoming pr ...

(1752/53-1811), a member of the

and surgeon-general of New South Wales (after whom

Jamisontown Jamisontown is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 56 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the Local government in Australia, local government area of the City of Penrith, and is part of th ...

is named), and his son, the landowner, physician and constitutional reformer Sir

John Jamison Sir John Jamison (1776 – 29 June 1844) was an Australian physician, pastoral farming, pastoralist, banker, politician, constitutional reformer and public figure. Family background John Jamison was born in Carrickfergus, County Antrim, Kingdo ...

(1776–1844). In 1824, Sir John erected the colony's finest

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

mansion,

Regentville Regentville is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 56 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Penrith, and is part of the Greater Western Sydney region ...

House, near Penrith, on a ridge overlooking the Nepean River. Sir John established an impressive agricultural estate at Regentville and became a Member of the

New South Wales Legislative Council The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in th ...

. His grave can be seen in St Stephen's graveyard. Regentville House burned down in 1868 but most of its stonework was salvaged and used for building projects in and around Penrith. The first bridge, financed by local businessman James Tobias (Toby) Ryan was opened over the Nepean in 1856 and was washed away the following year in a flood. The railway line was extended to Penrith in 1863, a school was established in 1865 and in 1871 the area became a municipality. It officially became a city in 1959.

Commercial area

Penrith is one of the major commercial centres in

. The suburb contains two shopping centres. * Westfield Penrith, (formerly Penrith Plaza) is the largest shopping centre in the suburb, it opened on the 30th of March 1971, it was acquired by Westfield in 2005, and it is located within a main commercial centre. * Nepean Village (formerly Nepean Square) is a single level shopping centre located in Penrith.

Transport

Penrith railway station Penrith may refer to: Australia *Penrith, New South Wales, a satellite city of Sydney, Australia **Penrith Stadium, home ground of the Penrith Panthers **Penrith Bears, ice-hockey team **City of Penrith, local government area **Electoral district o ...

is a major railway station on the

North Shore & Western Line The North Shore & Western Line (numbered T1, coloured orange) is a commuter rail line operated by Sydney Trains in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It serves the North Shore, parts of the Inner West and Western Suburbs. It was previously t ...

of the

Sydney Trains Sydney Trains is the operator of the suburban passenger rail network serving the city of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The network is a hybrid urban- suburban rail system with a central underground core that covers over of track and 170 ...

network. It has frequent services to and from the city and is also a stop on the intercity Blue Mountains Line. Penrith railway station is served by a bus interchange and by the Nightride Bus route 70. Penrith can be accessed from St. Marys and

Mount Druitt Mount Druitt is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Blacktown, and is part of the Greater Western Sydney reg ...

via the

Great Western Highway Great Western Highway (also known as Broadway from to , Parramatta Road from Chippendale to , and Church Street through Parramatta) is a state highway in New South Wales, Australia. From east to west, the highway links Sydney with Bathurst, ...

. Access from further east is best obtained by the

M4 Western Motorway The M4 Motorway is a dual carriageway partially tolled motorway in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia that is designated as the M4 route. The M4 designation is part of the wider A4 and M4 route designation, the M4 runs parallel/below grou ...

using either

The Northern Road The A9 is the outer western Sydney Bypass connecting Campbelltown to Windsor. It was formerly designated Metroad 9, which was one of Sydney's Metroads. “A9” is used as a route number designation for the entire length, however the road fa ...

or Mulgoa Road exits. If travelling east from the Blue Mountains, access is best obtained by the Great Western Highway. Access from the south can be obtained by The Northern Road and Mulgoa Road, north from Castlereagh road or Richmond road, or from north and south via

Westlink M7 The Westlink M7 or M7 Motorway, formerly Western Sydney Orbital, is a tolled urban motorway in Sydney and is a part of the Sydney Orbital Network. Owned by the NorthWestern Roads (NWR) Group, it connects three motorways: M5 South-West Motorwa ...

and the

. The

NSW Government The Government of New South Wales, also known as the NSW Government, is the Australian state democratic administrative authority of New South Wales. It is currently held by a coalition of the Liberal Party and the National Party. The Governmen ...

announced funding for the construction of the M9 in the 2014 state budget to connect Camden, Penrith and Windsor. The proposed motorway will start from the

M5 motorway The M5 is a motorway in England linking the Midlands with the South West England, South West. It runs from junction 8 of the M6 motorway, M6 at West Bromwich near Birmingham to Exeter in Devon. Heading south-west, the M5 runs east of West Brom ...

and run west of the current M7 motorway.

Education

Penrith Public School and

Penrith High School , motto_translation = Striving for the highest , location = Penrith, Western Sydney, New South Wales , country = Australia , coordinates = , pushpin_map = Australia Sydney , pushpin_image ...

are two public schools in High Street.

Jamison High School Jamison High School is a Public school (government funded), public Mixed-sex education, co-educational Secondary education#Australia, secondary day school, located in South Penrith in Western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The school is si ...

is in South Penrith. St Nicholas of Myra is a Catholic primary school, which is part of

Catholic Education, Diocese of Parramatta There has been Catholic education in the Diocese of Parramatta since before the Second World War. There are 76 Catholic systemic schools in the diocese (54 primary and 22 secondary) with a total student population of around 41,000. There are als ...

, is located in Higgins Street. The Penrith campus of Nepean College of TAFE is located in the centre of town on Henry Street. The Penrith campus of the

University of Western Sydney Western Sydney University, formerly the University of Western Sydney, is an Australian multi-campus university in the Greater Western region of Sydney, Australia. The university in its current form was founded in 1989 as a federated network u ...

is located in nearby Werrington. The

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

has a campus near

Nepean Hospital Nepean Hospital is a 520-bed teaching hospital and regional trauma centre, providing tertiary referral services for the Nepean Blue Mountains Local Health District. Nepean Hospital is located at the base of the Blue Mountains in Kingswood, New So ...

in Kingswood, for research into the basic biomedical sciences and educating medical students at the hospital.

Landmarks and tourist attractions

Heritage listings

Penrith has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: * 34-40 Borec Road:

Craithes House Craithes House is a heritage-listed former rural homestead located at 34-40 Borec Road, Penrith in the City of Penrith local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It was built in 1870. The property is privately owned. It was added to ...

* 26 Coombes Drive: Torin Building * Great Western railway:

Penrith railway station, Sydney Penrith railway station is a heritage-listed railway station located on the Main Western line in the western Sydney suburb of Penrith in the City of Penrith local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by New South Wale ...

* Nepean River, Great Western Highway:

Victoria Bridge (Penrith) The Victoria Bridge (Penrith), also known as the Victoria Bridge over Nepean River and officially known as The Nepean Bridge, is a heritage-listed former railway bridge and now wrought iron box plate girder road bridge across the Nepean River on ...

* Off Bruce Neale Dr, Steel Trusses 1.3 km past station:

Emu Plains Underbridge Emu Plains Underbridge is a heritage-listed steel truss railway bridge, railway underbridge located off Bruce Neale Dr approximately west of the Penrith railway station, Sydney, Penrith railway station in the Greater Western Sydney, western Syd ...

* 1 Museum Drive:

Penrith Museum of Fire The Penrith Museum of Fire is an Australian firefighting museum that contains heritage-listed former operating and stored for preservation fire service vehicles located in Penrith, Sydney, Australia. The provenance of the firefighting vehicle ...

, including the following: ** Fire and Rescue NSW Heritage Fleet ** NSW Fire Brigades No 10 Vehicle Number Plates ** 1869 Shand Mason 7 inch Manual Fire Engine ** 1891 Shand Mason Fire Engine ** 1898 Shand Mason Curricle Ladders ** 1909 Edward Smith Headquarters Switchboard ** 1929 Ahrens Fox PS2 Fire Engine ** 1939 Dennis Big 6 Fire Engine ** 1942 Ford 21W Fire Brigade Mobile Canteen Other items of interest include:

* Nepean Belle, an old-world style

paddlewheeler A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine that drives paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses wer ...

located on the Nepean River at Penrith. * St Stephen's Church (1839), in High Street, and its historic graveyard, is heritage-listed * Penrith has a campus of the

Sydney International Regatta Centre The Sydney International Regatta Centre (SIRC), located in Penrith, New South Wales, Penrith, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, is a Rowing at the 2000 Summer Olympics, rowing and Canoeing at the 2000 Summer Olympics, canoe sprint venue built fo ...

, which was the location for the rowing competitions for the

2000 Olympic Games The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

* Panthers World of Entertainment * Penrith Sake Brewery *

* Head of the River, which takes place at the regatta centre * Red Cow Hotel, Station Street, is Penrith's oldest standing hotel * Thornton Hall, Mountain View Crescent, is heritage-listed * Nepean Park, Castlereagh Road, is heritage-listed

Culture

Arts

The Joan Sutherland Performing Arts Complex is in High Street next to the Council Chambers. Named after

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

singer

Joan Sutherland Dame Joan Alston Sutherland, (7 November 1926 – 10 October 2010) was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano known for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s. She possessed ...

, the building was designed by architect

Philip Cox Philip Sutton Cox (born 1 October 1939) is an Australian architect. Cox is the founding partner of Cox Architecture, one of the largest architectural practices in Australia. He commenced his first practice with Ian McKay in 1962, and ...

and opened in 1990. It incorporates the Penrith Conservatorium of Music and the

Q Theatre (Penrith) The Q Theatre was a British theatre located near Kew Bridge in Brentford, west London, which operated between 1924 and 1958. It was built on the site of the former Kew Bridge Studios. The theatre, seating 490 in 25 rows with a central aisle, wa ...

, which had been operating in Station Street for 30 years before moving to the complex in 2006.

Sport and recreation

Penrith Stadium Penrith Stadium (known commercially as BlueBet Stadium) is a rugby league and association football stadium located in Penrith, New South Wales, Australia. The 22,500 capacity venue is the home ground for the Penrith Panthers who play in the N ...

is the home of the

Penrith Panthers The Penrith Panthers are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the western Sydney suburb of Penrith that competes in the NRL. The team is based west of the centre of Sydney, at the foot of the Blue Mountains. Penrith ...

NRL team. Penrith's Junior Rugby League competition is the largest in the world, which also incorporates teams from the Blue Mountains, Blacktown and Windsor/Richmond areas. Penrith Stadium was also home to the

Penrith Nepean United FC Penrith Nepean United Football Club, originally the Penrith Panthers, was an Australian association football club based in St Marys, New South Wales. History The club was originally known as Penrith Panthers. It rose to the New South Wales Fi ...

soccer club. The team had a 2–1 win against

Sydney FC Sydney Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Sydney, New South Wales. It competes in the country's premier men's competition, A-League Men, under licence from Australian Professional Leagues (APL). The club was fo ...

in a home game friendly match in front of 5000 fans on 17 August 2007. There are also many other sporting associations, including

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

clubs,

AFL AFL may refer to: Sports * American Football League (AFL), a name shared by several separate and unrelated professional American football leagues: ** American Football League (1926) (a.k.a. "AFL I"), first rival of the National Football Leagu ...

clubs, Penrith City Outlaws gridiron team, Panthers Triathlon club,

Penrith Emus Rugby Penrith Rugby Club, known as the ''Emus'', is an Australian rugby union club based in Penrith, a western suburb of Sydney, New South Wales. The club was formed in 1965 as Nepean and renamed Penrith in 1981 and began playing in the Shute Shield ...

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

, and soccer clubs. Just west of Cranebrook is

Penrith Lakes Penrith Lakes is an area located in the suburb of Penrith, New South Wales, Penrith in the Western Sydney Region, it features lakes and parklands as well as recreational facilities. Penrith lakes is managed by the Penrith Lakes Development Corporat ...

, a system of flooded quarries that are now recreational lakes. One of these lakes hosted the

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically atta ...

events of the

Sydney 2000 Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

. This facility is rated as a Level One course which can be used for international events. The course itself is fully buoyed and can be modified to accommodate swimming and kayaking events. North of the rowing lake is the

Penrith Whitewater Stadium The Penrith Whitewater Stadium is located near Sydney, Australia. It is an artificial whitewater sporting facility which hosted the canoe/kayak slalom events at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. The facility is part of the Penrith Lakes Schem ...

, the only pump-powered and

artificial whitewater An artificial whitewater course (AWWC) is a site for whitewater canoeing, whitewater kayaking, whitewater racing, whitewater rafting, playboating and slalom canoeing with artificially generated rapids. Course types Main types of course: ...

slalom course in the Southern Hemisphere. It was built for the

, and it continues to host international competitions on a regular basis. Penrith is home to the Elite Fight Gym. A

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...

training facility established by

UFC The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

fighter

James Te-Huna James Te Huna (born 29 September 1981) is best known for competing in the Ultimate Fighting Championship who has been called a pioneer of New Zealand mixed martial artists. He was the first Australian-based fighter to win a UFC fight on Australi ...

. In 2013, James te Huna left EFG to establish a rival MMA centre in St Marys named Bee Stingz (located at Valley Fitness).

Media

Penrith is home to three local newspapers: ''

The Western Weekender ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'', ''Nepean News'', and ''Penrith Press'', the latter of which no longer produces a print edition. It is also home to local radio station Vintage FM 87.6 (40's, 50's & 60's Music). The current FM radio station "the edge" 96.1 FM evolved from the former (original) 2KA station founded by Frank Kelly. In 2001 the

Penrith Museum of Printing The Penrith Museum of Printing is a museum in Penrith, New South Wales, Australia with a focus on Australian letterpress printing equipment and techniques. Establishment In 1987 Alan Connell (1922–2020), a retired employee of the now defunc ...

opened. Its collection represents the history of Australian

letterpress printing Letterpress printing is a technique of relief printing. Using a printing press, the process allows many copies to be produced by repeated direct impression of an inked, raised surface against sheets or a continuous roll of paper. A worker comp ...

Geography

Penrith sits on the western edge of the

, a fairly flat area of Western Sydney, extending to

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

in the north,

Parramatta Parramatta () is a suburb and major Central business district, commercial centre in Greater Western Sydney, located in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located approximately west of the Sydney central business district on the ban ...

in the east and

Thirlmere Thirlmere is a reservoir in the Allerdale, Borough of Allerdale in Cumbria and the English Lake District National Park, Lake District. The Helvellyn ridge lies to the east of Thirlmere. To the west of Thirlmere are a number of fells; for inst ...

in the south. The

forms the western boundary of the suburb and beyond that, dominating the western skyline, are the Blue Mountains. There is a difference of opinion between

Penrith City Council The City of Penrith is a local government area in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The seat of the city is located in Penrith, New South Wales, Penrith, located about west of Sydney's Sydney central business district, central business ...

and the

as to the boundaries of Penrith the suburb. The Board includes in its official description the area of Kingswood Park, Lemongrove and North Penrith, which the Council considers separate suburbs.

Climate

Penrith has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

: ''Cfa/Cwa'') with long, hot summers, mild to cool short winters with cold nights, and pleasant spring and autumn. The daytime temperatures are generally a few degrees warmer than Sydney (Observatory Hill), especially during spring and summer, when the difference in temperature between Penrith and the Sydney area can be quite pronounced. Night-time temperatures are a few degrees cooler than Sydney on most nights of the year. In extreme cases, there could be a temperature differential of 10 degrees Celsius in summer, owing to

sea breeze A sea breeze or onshore breeze is any wind that blows from a large body of water toward or onto a landmass; it develops due to differences in air pressure created by the differing heat capacities of water and dry land. As such, sea breezes ar ...

s, which affect coastal areas much more than areas further from the ocean and do not usually penetrate as far inland as Penrith.

Frost Frost is a thin layer of ice on a solid surface, which forms from water vapor in an above-freezing atmosphere coming in contact with a solid surface whose temperature is below freezing, and resulting in a phase change from water vapor (a gas) ...

occasionally occurs on some winter mornings, mainly due to a mountain breeze and a

temperature inversion In meteorology, an inversion is a deviation from the normal change of an atmospheric property with altitude. It almost always refers to an inversion of the air temperature lapse rate, in which case it is called a temperature inversion. No ...

caused by the proximate mountains. The average summer temperature range is 17.9 °C (64.2 °F) to 29.8 °C (85.6 °F) and in the winter 6.2 °C (43.2 °F) to 18.6 °C (65.5 °F).

Mean There are several kinds of mean in mathematics, especially in statistics. Each mean serves to summarize a given group of data, often to better understand the overall value (magnitude and sign) of a given data set. For a data set, the ''arithme ...

yearly rainfall in Penrith is 719.2mm, which is significantly less than recorded closer to the coast, (Sydney Observatory Hill's mean yearly rainfall is 1212.2mm), as coastal showers do not penetrate inland. The highest recorded temperature was 48.9 °C (120.02 °F) on 4 January 2020 (Penrith was also the hottest place on earth that day). The lowest recorded temperature was -1.4 °C (29.5 °F) on 12 July 2002. Penrith's hot temperatures are exacerbated by a combination of its inland location,

urban heat island effect An urban heat island (UHI) is an urban area, urban or metropolitan area that is significantly warmer than its surrounding rural areas due to human impact on the environment, human activities. The temperature difference is usually larger at nigh ...

(i.e. density of housing and lack of trees) and its position on the footsteps of the Blue Mountains, which trap hot air. Penrith's dry, sunny winters are owed to the

Great Dividing Range The Great Dividing Range, also known as the East Australian Cordillera or the Eastern Highlands, is a cordillera system in eastern Australia consisting of an expansive collection of mountain ranges, plateaus and rolling hills, that runs rough ...

blocking westerly cold fronts, which turn to

foehn winds A Foehn or Föhn (, , ), is a type of dry, relatively warm, downslope wind that occurs in the lee (downwind side) of a mountain range. It is a rain shadow wind that results from the subsequent adiabatic warming of air that has dropped most of ...

on the range's

leeward Windward () and leeward () are terms used to describe the direction of the wind. Windward is ''upwind'' from the point of reference, i.e. towards the direction from which the wind is coming; leeward is ''downwind'' from the point of reference ...

side (that includes all of the Sydney metropolitan area).

Population

Demographics

In the 2016 census, Penrith recorded a population of 13,295 people. Of these: * Age distribution: The median age was 37 years (compared to the national median of 38). Children aged under 15 years made up 16.4% of the population (national average is 18.7%) and people aged 65 years and over made up 17.5% of the population (national average is 15.8%). * Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 5.0% of the population of Penrith. * Ethnic diversity : 68.2% of people were born in Australia, compared to the national average of 66.7%; the next most common countries of birth were England 3.8%, India 2.5%, New Zealand 1.9%, Philippines 1.7% and China 1.4%. 75.6% of people only spoke English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Mandarin 1.4%, Tagalog 1.0% and Arabic 0.9%. * Religion : The most common responses for religion were No Religion 26.1%, Catholic 24.9% and Anglican 18.1%. * Finances: The median household weekly income was $1,142, compared to the national median of $1,438. This difference is also reflected in real estate, with the median mortgage payment being $1,733 per month, compared to the national median of $1,755. * Housing: Nearly half (47.2%) of occupied private dwellings were separate houses, 28.5% were semi-detached (row or terrace houses, townhouses etc.) and 23.8% were flats, units or apartments.

Notable residents

Slalom canoeing 2012 Olympics W K1 AUS Jessica Fox

Richie Benaud Richard Benaud (; 6 October 1930 – 10 April 2015) was an Australian cricketer who, after his retirement from international cricket in 1964, became a highly regarded commentator on the game. Benaud was a Test cricket all-rounder, blending l ...

(1930−2015), cricketer and commentator *

Jason Arnberger Jason Lee Arnberger (born 18 November 1972 in Penrith, New South Wales) is an Australian first-class cricketer who played for the Victorian Bushrangers and New South Wales Blues in Australian domestic cricket. He was a right-handed opening ba ...

(b. 1972), cricketer *

Thomas Bent Sir Thomas Bent (7 December 1838 – 17 September 1909) was an Australian politician and the 22nd Premier of Victoria. Early life Bent was born in Penrith, New South Wales the eldest of four sons and two daughters of James Bent, a hotel-keeper ...

(1838−1909), 22nd

Premier of Victoria The premier of Victoria is the head of government in the Australian state of Victoria. The premier is appointed by the governor of Victoria, and is the leader of the political party able to secure a majority in the Victorian Legislative Assembly ...

1904 to 1909, born in Penrith *

Nathan Bracken Nathan Wade Bracken (born 12 September 1977) is a former Australian cricketer. A tall left-arm fast-medium bowler, Bracken is capable of swinging the ball both ways. He has represented Australia in all forms of the game. Bracken represented Ne ...

(b. 1977), Australian cricketer * David Bradbury (b. 1976), former Federal Member of Lindsay, and former Mayor of Penrith *

James Courtney James Anthony Courtney (born 29 June 1980) is an Australian racing driver competing in the Supercars Championship, Repco Supercars Championship. He currently drives the No. 5 Ford Mustang (sixth generation), Ford Mustang GT for Tickford Racing. ...

(b. 1980), V8 Race car driver *

Firass Dirani Firass Dirani (born 1984) is an Australian film and television actor. Early life Dirani was born in Sydney in 1984, and is of Lebanese descent. Career Dirani pursued his acting career in Hollywood before receiving a call to play the role o ...

(b. 1984), TV actor *

Jason Dundas Jason Dundas (born 25 July 1982) is an Australian-born television presenter, actor, producer and director, known for his roles as special correspondent for CBS's '' Entertainment Tonight'', the host of ''The X Factor Australia'' in 2016, host ...

(b. 1981), television presenter * George Ellis (b. 1964), composer *

Mick Fanning Michael Eugene Fanning (born 13 June 1981) is an Australian professional surfer who was crowned champion of the Association of Surfing Professionals/World Surf League (ASP/WSL)'s World Tour in 2007, 2009 and 2013. In 2015, he survived a shark ...

(b. 1981), surfing world champion 2007 * Jessica Fox (b. 1994), French-born Australian slalom canoer, Olympic gold medallist, world championships bronze (gold medal at Pau France) (C-1) *

Mark Geyer Mark Bradley Geyer (born 7 December 1967) is an Australian radio host and former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000. An Australian international and New South Wales State of Origin representative sec ...

(b. 1967), Australian rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s, and a media identity. *

Paige Hadley Paige Amber Hadley (born 26 August 1992) is an Australian international netball player. Primarily a wing attack and centre player, Hadley is a member of the Australian national team and plays in the ANZ Championship for the New South Wales Swif ...

(b. 1992), netball player * Michael Hartley (b. 1993), Australian rules footballer * John Hastings (b. 1985), former Australian Test and ODI cricketer * Bill Howell (1869−1940), cricketer * Tony Jones (b. 1961), sports journalist based in Melbourne. *

Ken Kearney Kenneth Howard "Killer" Kearney (3 May 192418 August 2006) was an Australian rugby footballer – a List of dual-code rugby internationals, dual-code international player – and a rugby league coach. He represented the Australia national rugby ...

(1924−2006) Dual international rugby player, Australian Test and St George premiership-winning captain-coach. *

Simon Keen Simon John Cobrin Keen (born 4 October 1987 in Penrith, New South Wales) is an Australian cricketer. He is currently a member of the New South Wales Blues state squad. Keen plays club cricket for Campbelltown in Sydney Grade cricket and has play ...

(b. 1987), Australian U19s cricketer *

Keiynan Lonsdale Keiynan Lonsdale (; born 19 December 1991) is an Australian actor, dancer, and singer-songwriter. He is known for roles such as Oliver Lloyd in the ABC series ''Dance Academy'' (2012–2013), Wally West/Kid Flash in the CW series ''The Flash'' ...

(b. 1991), Australian-Nigerian, Actor, dancer, singer-writer, model *

Jennifer Maiden Jennifer Maiden (born 1949) is an Australian poet. She was born in Penrith, New South Wales, and has had 36 books published: 28 poetry collections, 6 novels and 2 nonfiction works. Her current publishers are Quemar Press in Australia and Blooda ...

(b. 1949), poet * Darren McErlain (b. 1974), Journalist, poet, teacher, voiceover artist Former host of AirFM Drive Penrith, now journalist with Australian Independent Radio News (AIR News) & host of Drive on Newy 87.8FM in Newcastle *

Nic Naitanui Nicholas Mark Naitanui (; born 4 May 1990) is an Australian rules footballer who plays for the West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League (AFL). He was born in Sydney to Fijian parents, and his family moved to Perth, Western Austra ...

(b. 1990), Australian rules footballer, born in Penrith *

Dominic Purcell Dominic Haakon Myrtved PurcellO'Connor, B,Break Out". ''Men's Fitness''. December/January 2007 Issue; retrieved 18 December 2006. (born 17 February 1970) is a British-Australian actor. He is best known for his portrayals of Lincoln Burrows in ...

(b. 1970), English-born Australian actor, raised in Penrith. Best known for his role as Lincoln Burrows in 2000's

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...

award-winning TV series ''

Prison Break ''Prison Break'' is an American serial (radio and television), serial drama television show, television series created by Paul Scheuring for Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox. The series revolves around two brothers, Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purce ...

''. * James Tobias (Toby) Ryan businessman, politician ( Nepean Electorate) * Ben St Lawrence (b. 1981), Olympic long-distance runner *

Kent "Smallzy" Small Kent Andrew "Smallzy" Small (born 16 April 1984) is an Australian radio presenter on Nova FM. Career Small started his career at age 19 at Star 104.5 on the New South Wales Central Coast. After spending two and half years working with NOVA ...

(b. 1984), radio presenter for Nova FM *

Brad Smith Brad or Bradley Smith may refer to: Sportspeople * Bradley Smith (cricketer) (born 1969), English former cricketer * Brad Smith (footballer, born 1948), Australian rules footballer and premiership coach of East Fremantle * Brad Smith (ice hockey) ...

(b. 1994), football player for

AFC Bournemouth AFC Bournemouth () is a professional association football club based in Kings Park, Boscombe, a suburb of Bournemouth, Dorset, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest division of English club football. Formed in 1899 as B ...

Grigor Taylor Grigor Weston Taylor also known as Greg Taylor, is an Australian former actor, best known for his parts in several television series including ''Matlock Police'' and ''Glenview High''. Early life, education and teacher Taylor was born in Pen ...

(b. 1943), 1970s TV actor *

UFC Fighter * Ray Watson, (1922−2010), judge who reformed family law to create no-fault divorce. *

Alan Whiticker Alan James Whiticker (born 1958) is an Australian non-fiction author and publisher, with over 50 published books on history, sport, biography, true crime and lifestyle. Whiticker writes primarily on matters pertaining to the history of the spo ...

(b. 1958), non-fiction author *

Melissa Wu Melissa Paige Li Kun Wu (born 3 May 1992) is an Australian diver who has represented Australia at four Olympic Games, winning a silver medal at the 2008 Olympic Games and a bronze medal at the 2020 Olympic Games. She has also represented Austra ...

(b. 1992), Olympian – diver * Liam Zammit (b. 1981), cricketer * Yuri Tománek London based composer and electronic artist. Best known for the original score on the Netflix documentary series ''

Cheer (TV series) ''Cheer'' is an American sport television docuseries airing on Netflix starting in January 2020. The six-part series follows the nationally ranked forty-member Navarro College Bulldogs Cheer Team from Corsicana, Texas, under the direction of c ...

''. * Numerous

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

players including Ben Alexander (1971–1992),

Greg Alexander Gregory Peter Stephen Alexander (born 4 March 1965), also known by the nickname of "Brandy" is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s, who has since become a radio, television commentator an ...

, Mark Carroll, John Cartwright,

Nathan Cleary Nathan Cleary (born 14 November 1997) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a the Penrith Panthers in the NRL and Australia at international level. He won both the 2021 and the 2022 NRL Grand Finals with the Panth ...

Kurt Falls Kurt Falls (born 13 August 1996) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a or for the Penrith Panthers in the NRL. Background Falls graduated from St Dominic's College, Penrith in 2014 and played alongside Nathan Cle ...

Craig Gower Craig Gower (born 29 April 1978) is an Italian-Australian former professional rugby league and rugby union footballer who played in the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s. He is a dual-code rugby international, having played rugby league for Australia and ...

Des Hasler Desmond John Hasler (born 16 February 1961) is an Australian professional rugby league coach, and a former professional rugby league footballer who played as and . He initially played for the Penrith Panthers, and then spent most of his playi ...

, Michael Jennings,

Luke Lewis Luke Lewis (born 11 August 1983) is an Australian rugby league commentator and former professional rugby league footballer who played for the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks and the Penrith Panthers in the National Rugby League (NRL) and Australia ...

, Soni Luke,

Luke Rooney Luke Rooney (born 16 January 1983) is an Australian former professional rugby league and rugby union footballer who played in the 2000s and 2010s. He played rugby league, becoming an Australian international and New South Wales State of Origi ...

, and

Tim Sheens Tim Sheens (born 30 October 1950) is an Australian professional rugby league football coach and former player. Head Coach of the Australia national team between 2009 and 2015, he has also been the head coach of National Rugby League (NRL) clubs ...

Twin towns – sister cities

Penrith is twinned with: *

Fujieda, Shizuoka is a city located in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 145,032 in 59,480 households, and a population density of 750 persons per km². The total area of the city was . Fujieda is a member of the World Health O ...

, Japan, a Sister City since 1984. *

Penrith, Cumbria Penrith (, , ) is a market town and civil parish in the county of Cumbria, England, about south of Carlisle. It is less than outside the Lake District, Lake District National Park, in between the Rivers River Petteril, Petteril and River Ea ...

, England, a Sister City since 1989. *

Gangseo District, Seoul Gangseo District (Gangseo-gu) (Hangul: 강서구, Hanja: 江西區, ) is one of the 25 wards (''gu'') of Seoul, South Korea. It is located on the south side of the Han River. Gimpo Airport is in Gonghang-dong, where many flights fly to ci ...

, Republic of Korea, a Friendship City since 1994. *

Xicheng District Xicheng District () is a district of Beijing. Xicheng District spans , covering the western half of the old city (largely inside the 2nd Ring Road - the eastern half is Dongcheng District, Beijing, Dongcheng District), and has 706,691 inhabitant ...

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, China, under a Mutual Co-operation Agreement since 1998. *

Kunshan Kunshan is a county-level city in southeastern Jiangsu province with Shanghai bordering its eastern border and Suzhou on its western boundary. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Suzhou. Name There is a strong pos ...

, China, under a Mutual Co-operation Agreement since 2003. *

Hakusan, Ishikawa is a city located in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 113,375 in 43246 households, and a population density of 290 persons per km2. The total area of the city was . It is the second-most populous city in Ishik ...

, Japan, a Friendship City since 2005.

References

CC-By-SA A Creative Commons (CC) license is one of several public copyright license A public license or public copyright licenses is a license by which a copyright holder as licensor can grant additional copyright permissions to any and all pers ...

] {{Authority control Penrith, New South Wales, Suburbs of Sydney Cities in New South Wales