town, south-central New South Wales, Australia, on the Murrumbidgee River. The settlement originated in 1840 as a coach station known as Lang's Crossing Place. Surveyed in 1858, it became a town the following year and was named after John Hay, a district parliamentary representative. Developed as a river port, it was proclaimed a municipality in 1872 and a shire in 1965. Situated at the junction of the Sturt, Cobb, and Mid Western highways and forming the terminus of a rail line from Sydney (368 miles 【592 km】 northeast), Hay now serves a wide area (of the far-western Riverina) of semiarid grazing and irrigated-fruit and dairy farming. Pop. (2006) local government area, 3,383.