Parkes

Parkes, New South Wales, Australia

Parkes, town, east-central New South Wales, Australia. It is situated in the Lachlan River valley.

The town was founded in 1862 as a reef- and alluvial-gold centre, originally called Bushman’s for a prominent local mine owner. It was renamed for Sir Henry Parkes, a state premier, in 1873, and was proclaimed a municipality in 1883. Parkes is a commercial centre for a sheep-, grain-, fruit-, pig-, and poultry-farming area of the Western Slopes region. It is also a rail junction on the Newell Highway, with air connections to Sydney (185 miles [298 km] southeast). Gold mining in the area ceased in 1947.

Industries in the region include steel fabrication works, sawmills, joineries, and agricultural machinery plants. One of the world’s largest (210 feet [64 metres]) bowl-shaped radio telescopes, operated by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, is at Alectown (15 miles [25 km] north). The annual Parkes Elvis Festival, celebrating the life and music of Elvis Presley, is held in January. Goobang National Park is located about 18 miles (30 km) northeast of Parkes. Pop. (2006) local government area, 14,281; (2011) local government area, 14,592.