Lawrence is a small town 13 km from Maclean, New South Wales, Australia.

It is accessed by the Lawrence car ferry from Woodford Island or by travelling 30 kilometres north from Grafton.

Travelling South Craig had discovered the two big rivers in northern NSW, the Richmond and the Clarence.

When he returned to the Port Macquarie penal settlement he revealed the existence of these rivers and was recruited to act as a guide for prospective settlers to the area.

In 1842 William Robertson took a claim of 15,000 acres centred on the future township of Lawrence and named it "Lanark Lodge" after his childhood home in Scotland.