(Updated 07/02/2022)
Forbes is located in Central New South Wales. It was created during the gold rush of the 1860’s and was originally called Black Ridge with an estimated population of 30,000. With ever deepening mines, difficulty with water ingress, miners drifted away leaving pastoralists to develop the area.
Today mixed farming is the main industry. Central West Livestock Exchange, a state of the art livestock facility for cattle sheep lambs and pigs is ideally located just off the Newell Highway, making the facility desirable for stock carriers across the state and into Queensland and the Northern Territory. Other commodities including wheat, barley, oats, canola, wool and lucerne are grown and exported.
Moxey Farms, one of the largest Dairies in Australia, milking 10,000 cows located within the shire and employing 220 people.
Red Bend Catholic College, located in a magnificent curve of the Lachlan River, is the largest catholic co-ed boarding school in the state, is the second largest employer.
Tourism is another developing industry with water sports on the Aquatic area also the excellent McFeeters Motor Museum.
Forbes was renamed after Sir Francis Forbes, in 1880 and currently has a population of 8,500 people.