[trothamel]

Totally off topic, but I was wondering if that Parkes somehow had the Parkes radiotelescope named after him. The timing seemed wrong, but it seemed worth checking.

Turns out he visited the town once, so they renamed it after him. Chuck Norris, eat your heart out.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parkes,_New_South_Wales

[fineline]

Yes that says quite a bit about how highly he was regarded, plus he did also assist in promoting the survey of the town, opening it up for development. Parkes was central in many aspects of development of the colony over his lifetime, including bringing to an end convict transports from England, providing universal education, commissioning landmarks such as Martin Place and Centennial Park which frame modern Sydney, and above all getting the various colonial states around the table to form the great nation of Australia.