the British Secretary of State for War and the Colonies, and by his journey to the Bathurst Plains immediately after its construction, where he proclaimed the site for the Bathurst township. William Cox's achievement using a small group of convict men in a short period of time and with no loss of life caused by road-making or other substantial difficulties, was reflective of his reputation as a more humane employer and magistrate than many of his contemporaries. The leadership qualities, vision and skill he showed constructing the road would also be evident in later government contracts won by Cox for other public works . Cox's Pass at Mount York was specifically named by Governor Macquarie to 'perpetuate the memory of Mr Cox's services' and as "a just tribute due to his indefatigable zeal and meritorious exertions". The place is important in demonstrating aesthetic characteristics and/or a high degree of creative or technical achievement in New South Wales. The surviving precincts of Cox's Road have state technical significance for their ability to demonstrate simple, pre 1820s road building techniques. Improvement of the 1814 route throughout the 1820s also provide important evidence of later road building techniques and demonstrates the ongoing use of this key route to the interior, before it was superseded by the new Great Western Road laid out by Sir Thomas Mitchell in the 1830s. Cox's Pass at Mount York is one of the most significant and intact precincts of Cox' s Road for its ability to demonstrate the methods and approaches adopted, and the results achieved, by William Cox and the convicts of the 1814 road party. Cox's Pass also has primary physical evidence which records and displays later attempts to improve some of the most difficult sections before the 1814 road was superseded by new road lines in the 1820s. The place has a strong or special association with a particular community or cultural group in New South Wales for social, cultural or spiritual reasons. Cox's Road and its remnants are demonstrated as having social significance at a state level by the substantial interest in identifying and promoting Cox's Road for cultural tourism and education, and celebrating the bicentenary of the road by the general public, state and local government bodies and a range of community organisations. The road is of particular importance to Cox descendants. The William Cox Fellowship first nominated sections of Cox's Road for