Guide to Castlereagh New South Wales Australia

Castlereagh is a rural district on the Nepean River about ten kilometres north of Penrith and 60 kilometres west of central Sydney. It was one of the five towns founded by Governor Macquarie in 1810, but unlike Windsor and Richmond it never grew, and today it is a quiet place of farms, pioneer graveyards and the man-made lakes that have replaced its river flats.

Known For

• One of the five Macquarie towns of 1810
• Pioneer churches and cemeteries
• Beside the Penrith Lakes

Castlereagh Road runs north from Penrith towards Richmond, with the Penrith Lakes on its western side and bush and small farms to the east. The site Macquarie chose for the town lies on a low ridge, marked now by little more than a cemetery and a few old buildings.

Things To Do in Castlereagh

Pioneer Heritage

Castlereagh General Cemetery, set aside by Macquarie, holds some of the oldest graves in the district. At Upper Castlereagh, a small Methodist church of 1847 and its neighbouring schoolhouse stand on the site of the first Wesleyan chapel built in Australia, put up by the settler John Lees in 1817. Old farmhouses and slab barns can still be seen along the back roads.

Penrith Lakes

For decades the river flats here were quarried for the sand and gravel that built modern Sydney. The pits have been reshaped into a chain of lakes. The southern lakes hold the Sydney International Regatta Centre and Penrith Whitewater Stadium, both built for the 2000 Olympics, and a swimming beach that has opened to the public in recent summers. They are reached through Cranebrook.

Castlereagh Nature Reserve

East of the district, this reserve protects a rare stand of ironbark and scribbly gum forest on old river gravels, with fire trails for walking and good birdwatching.

Where To Stay

There are a few farm stays in the area.

Penrith has a full range of hotels and motels.

Eat & Drink

There is little in Castlereagh itself. Cranebrook has shops and cafes, and Penrith and Richmond are each about 15 minutes away.

History

The river flats are Dharug country. Settlers were farming here by 1803, and after severe floods Macquarie laid out a town on higher ground and named it after Lord Castlereagh, the British Secretary of State for the Colonies. Few people moved up from their farms, and the town remained an idea rather than a place. Agnes Banks lies just to the north.

Getting to Castlereagh

Drive north from Penrith along Castlereagh Road, about an hour and five minutes from the city centre. Buses run between Penrith and Richmond.