Named after Governor Philip Gidley King’s (1758-1808) family, who held grants of land in the northern part of this area. Kingswood was formerly known as “Cross Roads”, as it marked the intersection of the Great Western Highway with another great road from Richmond to the “Cowpastures” near Camden. The land, on which the greater part of Kingswood is built, forms a part of a grant of 470 acres, given to John Best in 1814. The area was once thickly timbered and remained almost untouched until the advent of the railway in 1862. A temporary platform was opened and then closed, when the line ran into Penrith in January, 1863. The inconvenience of this situation for local residents was remedied in March 1887 when a wooden platform and ticket office were constructed on the present site and given the name “Kingswood Siding”. The name was eventually shortened and came into general usage. The first extensive subdivision of land in the area took place in the 1880’s. Further development in the area was hastened by the Kingswood or ‘St. Stephen’s Estate’ being offered for sale in 1914.