84-885: Merredin / ˈ m ɛr ə d ɪ n / is a town in Western Australia , located in the central Wheatbelt roughly midway between Perth and Kalgoorlie , on Route 94 , Great Eastern Highway . It is located on the route of the Goldfields Water Supply Scheme , and as a result is also on the Golden Pipeline Heritage Trail . It is connected by public transport to Perth via the Prospector and MerredinLink rail services. Merredin's history varies from that of other wheat-belt towns in Western Australia in
168-473: A Mediterranean climate on the south-west and southern coastal areas. As of 2021, the state has 2.91 million inhabitants—11 percent of the national total. Over 90 percent of the state's population live in the south-west corner and around 80 percent live in the state capital Perth , leaving the remainder of the state sparsely populated. The Trans-Australian Railway and the Eyre Highway traverse
252-683: A capacity of 23,200 cubic metres per day (146,000 barrels per day) until its closure in 2021, producing most of the state's petrol and diesel. Kwinana also hosts alumina and nickel processing plants, port facilities for grain and other bulk exports, and support industries for mining and petroleum such as heavy and light engineering, and metal fabrication. Shipbuilding (e.g. Austal ) and associated support industries are found at nearby Henderson , just north of Kwinana. Significant secondary industries include cement and building product manufacturing, flour milling, food processing, animal feed production, automotive body building and printing. Western Australia has
336-527: A comparative advantage in resource extraction and processing. As a consequence: In 2019 Western Australia's overseas exports accounted for 46% of the nation's total. The state's major export commodities included iron-ore, petroleum, gold, alumina , nickel, wheat, copper, lithium, chemicals and mineral sands. Western Australia is the world's largest iron-ore producer (34% of the world's total), and extracts 66% (6.9% of world production) of Australia's 306 tonnes (9.8 million troy ounces) of gold in 2022. It
420-674: A factory near Midland Junction (now known simply as Midland ) to produce the other half. When built, the pipeline was the longest fresh-water pipeline in the world. The pipeline ran alongside the earlier route of the Eastern Railway and the Eastern Goldfields Railways for parts of its route, so that the railway service and the pipeline had an interdependence through the sparsely populated region between Southern Cross and Kalgoorlie. The scheme required significant infrastructure in power generation to support
504-457: A focal point for the region, Merredin's local bulk handling co-operative receives and processes in excess of a million tonnes of grain every year. The silos at the train facilities to the west of the main town are the biggest of their type in the southern hemisphere. One of the biggest problems to face the agricultural industry in Merredin is salinity . Extensive damage to buildings and roads
588-459: A further 1,196 species currently recognised but unpublished. They occur within 1,543 genera from 211 families ; there are also 1,276 naturalised alien or invasive plant species, more commonly known as weeds. In the southwest region are some of the largest numbers of plant species for its area in the world. Western Australia's ecoregions include the sandstone gorges of the Kimberley on
672-653: A house built on top. Usually consisting of 4 tanks, 31 fuel depots were built across Australia for the storage and supply of aircraft fuel for the RAAF and the US Army Air Corps at a total cost of £900,000 ($ 1,800,000). Merredin was the location of number 4 pumping station of the Goldfields Water Supply Scheme , which was rebuilt a number of times. Merredin experiences a steppe climate ( Köppen climate classification BSh ). The agricultural land around Merredin produces 40% of Western Australia's wheat output. As
756-403: A lack of storage and refrigeration facilities favour live animals over imports of processed meat. About half of Australia's live cattle exports come from Western Australia. Resource sector growth in recent years has resulted in significant labour and skills shortages, leading to recent efforts by the state government to encourage interstate and overseas immigration. According to the 2006 census,
840-452: A quarter of the total volume of water being pumped from Mundaring Weir – was leaking from the pipeline. With most of the original stations being steam-driven, a ready supply of timber was needed to fire the boilers. Hence the pipeline route was closely aligned with the Eastern Railway . To enhance the reliability of the system, each pumping station was designed and constructed with a spare pumping unit. Due to pressure requirements related to
924-517: A result, the South West region of the state has a higher concentration of rare, threatened or endangered flora and fauna than many areas of Australia, making it one of the world's biodiversity "hot spots". Large areas of the state's wheatbelt region have problems with dryland salinity and the loss of fresh water. The southwest coastal area has a Mediterranean climate . It was originally heavily forested, including large stands of karri , one of
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#17327724578621008-553: A scientific paper, General view of the botany of the vicinity of Swan River . It discusses the vegetation of the Swan River Colony . Europeans began to settle permanently in 1826 when Albany was claimed by Britain to forestall French claims to the western third of the continent. Perth was founded as the Swan River Colony in 1829 by British and Irish settlers, though the outpost languished. Its officials eventually requested convict labour to augment its population. By
1092-628: A significant fishing industry. Products for local consumption and export include western rock lobsters , prawns, crabs, shark and tuna, as well as pearl fishing in the Kimberley region of the state. Processing is conducted along the west coast. Whaling was a key marine industry but ceased at Albany in 1978. Western Australia has the world's biggest plantations of both Indian sandalwood (northern WA) and Australian sandalwood (semi-arid regions), which are used to produce sandalwood oil and incense . The WA sandalwood industry provides about 40% of
1176-490: Is 1,862 km (1,157 mi). There are 20,781 km (12,913 mi) of coastline, including 7,892 km (4,904 mi) of island coastline. The total land area occupied by the state is 2.5 million km (970 thousand sq mi). The bulk of Western Australia consists of the extremely old Yilgarn craton and Pilbara craton which merged with the Deccan Plateau of India, Madagascar and
1260-450: Is a major world producer of bauxite, which is processed into alumina at four refineries providing 11% of total world production. Until 2020 diamonds were extracted from the world's largest diamond mine in the far north Kimberley region. Coal mined at Collie is the main fuel for baseload electricity generation in the state's south-west. Agricultural production in WA is a major contributor to
1344-473: Is a pipeline and dam project that delivers potable water from Mundaring Weir in Perth to communities in Western Australia 's Eastern Goldfields , particularly Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie . The project was commissioned in 1896 and completed in 1903. The pipeline continues to operate today, supplying water to over 100,000 people in over 33,000 households as well as mines, farms and other enterprises. During
1428-401: Is attributed by historians as an important factor driving the state's population and economic growth. Following a campaign led by Forrest, electors of the colony of Western Australia voted in favour of federation with the five other Australian colonies, resulting in Western Australia officially becoming a state on 1 January 1901. Western Australia is bounded to the east by longitude 129°E,
1512-435: Is caused by rising saline groundwater. A recent study showed that the main source of this water is Merredin townsite itself. Roads, footpaths, buildings and open space have replaced native vegetation adapted to use up every drop of rain. Since the problem arose in the early 1970s, farmers and townspeople have been participating in a number of programs to improve the soil conditions, with some limited success. Merredin aerodrome
1596-573: Is currently tilted 10 degrees away from the South Pole towards Western Australia, allowing for aurora australis displays as far north as Geraldton . Western Australia is home to around 630 species of birds (depending on the taxonomy used). Of these around 15 are endemic to the state. The best areas for birds are the southwestern corner of the state and the area around Broome and the Kimberley. The Flora of Western Australia comprises 10,162 published native vascular plant species, along with
1680-504: Is now known as Cape Inscription, Dirk Hartog Island . For the rest of the 17th century, other Dutch and British navigators encountered the coast of what Abel Tasman named New Holland in 1644, usually unintentionally as demonstrated by the many shipwrecks along the coast of ships that deviated from the Brouwer Route (because of poor navigation and storms). By the late 18th century, British and French sailors had begun to explore
1764-400: Is the northern tropical regions. The Kimberley has an extremely hot monsoonal climate with average annual rainfall ranging from 500 to 1,500 millimetres (20–60 in), but there is a very long almost rainless season from April to November. Eighty-five percent of the state's runoff occurs in the Kimberley, but because it occurs in violent floods and because of the insurmountable poverty of
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#17327724578621848-621: Is the westernmost state of Australia . It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Australia is Australia’s largest state, with a land area of 2,527,013 square kilometres (975,685 sq mi), and is also the second-largest subdivision of any country on Earth, surpassed only by
1932-641: The Group Settlement Scheme of the 1920s, which encouraged farmers to settle the southwest—increased awareness of Australia's western third as a destination for colonists. Led by immigrants from the British Isles, Western Australia's population developed at a faster rate during the twentieth century than it had previously. After World War II , both the eastern states and Western Australia received large numbers of Italians , Croatians and Macedonians . Despite this, Britain has contributed
2016-588: The Kaapvaal and Zimbabwe cratons of Southern Africa, in the Archean Eon to form Ur , one of the oldest supercontinents on Earth (3 – 3.2 billion years ago). In May 2017, evidence of the earliest known life on land may have been found in 3.48-billion-year-old geyserite and other related mineral deposits (often found around hot springs and geysers ) uncovered in the Pilbara craton. Because
2100-520: The Nullarbor Plain in the state's south-east, providing the principal connection between Western Australia and the population centres in the eastern states . Western Australia's Indigenous peoples have been present for tens of thousands of years. Dutch explorers visited Western Australia from the 17th century, with Dirk Hartog 's 1616 expedition the first Europeans to make landfall. The British claimed Western Australia in 1827 and established
2184-618: The RFDS and private users still have access. As of September 2016, the training school suspended operations in Merredin due to its inability to attract sufficient numbers of experienced staff with the appropriate regulatory approvals. Since then, issues have been raised over the leasehold arrangements. The Aerodrome was put up for sale in June 2021. Merredin is located on the Eastern Goldfields Railway . Merredin serves as
2268-651: The Sakha Republic in eastern Russia, and formerly Northwest Territories in Canada, before the creation of Nunavut. It is also the largest proper subnational entity, being a state rather than a territory or an autonomous region. Western Australia has a diverse range of climates, including tropical conditions in the Kimberley , deserts in the interior (including the Great Sandy Desert , Little Sandy Desert , Gibson Desert , and Great Victoria Desert ) and
2352-496: The Swan River Colony with Perth as its capital in 1829. The Western Australian gold rushes of the late 19th century resulted in a significant population influx. The colony was granted responsible government in 1890, the last of the Australian colonies to become self-governing, and federated with the other colonies in 1901. Western Australia's mining sector is a key driver of the state economy . The late 20th century saw
2436-555: The Wheatbelt and temperate southern coastal regions, pastoralism in marginal grassland areas, forestry in the south-west and fishing (including pearling and, historically, whaling ). Western Australia has a geological history dating back to 4.4 billion years ago when Hadean zircons were formed. The earliest direct known life on land, known as stromatolites , started to be created by microbes at around 3.48 billion years ago. The first human inhabitants of Australia arrived from
2520-489: The tallest trees in the world. This agricultural region is one of the nine most bio-diverse terrestrial habitats, with a higher proportion of endemic species than most other equivalent regions. Thanks to the offshore Leeuwin Current , the area is one of the top six regions for marine biodiversity and contains the most southerly coral reefs in the world. Average annual rainfall varies from 300 millimetres (12 in) at
2604-517: The "huge bare granite rock" which the locals call Merredin Rock but which is officially named Merredin Peak . In the late 1860s a number of large pastoral leases were taken up in the area but no township evolved. As late as 1889, when Assistant Surveyor Henry King set up camp on the north side of Merredin Rock, there was still no township. The first settlement was established to the north of Merredin Peak on
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2688-576: The 1890s around Kalgoorlie . In 1887, a new constitution was drafted, providing for the right of self-governance of European Australians, and in 1890, the act granting self-government to the colony was passed by the British Parliament . John Forrest became the first Premier of Western Australia . In 1896, after discoveries of gold at Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie , the Western Australian Parliament authorised
2772-663: The 2007 documentary Pipe Dreams , which was part of the ABC series Constructing Australia . The book River of Steel , by Dr Richard G. Hartley , won the Margaret Medcalf award of the State Records Office of Western Australia in 2008. Lower Helena Pipehead Dam is now also used to supply water to the Goldfields region. Water from the dam is currently pumped back into Mundaring Weir. The scheme
2856-433: The 2016 census, 75.2% of inhabitants spoke only English at home, with the next most common languages being Mandarin (1.9%), Italian (1.2%), Vietnamese (0.8%), Cantonese (0.8%) and Tagalog (0.6%). According to the 2021 census, Christianity is the major religious affiliation in WA, followed by 41.1% of its population. In 1971, Christianity was followed by 85.5% of the population and it has been declining since, while
2940-772: The Goldfields from a dam on the Helena River near Mundaring in Perth. The scheme consisted of three key elements – the Mundaring Weir, which dammed the Helena River in the Darling Scarp creating the Helena River Reservoir; a 760 millimetres (30 in) diameter steel pipe which ran from the dam to Kalgoorlie 530 kilometres (330 mi) away; and a series of eight pumping stations and two small holding dams to control pressures and to lift
3024-587: The Western Australian coast. The Baudin expedition of 1800–03 included the coast of Western Australia and resulted in the Freycinet Map of 1811 , the first published map featuring the full outline of Australia. The name New Holland remained in popular and semi-official use until at least the mid-1850s; that is, it was in use for about 206 years in comparison to the name Australia which to date has been in use for about 195 years. The origins of
3108-465: The York to the Goldfields road but it was hastily moved when the railway, which could not follow the gradients of Hunts Road, was built a few kilometres to the south. In 1888 the area to the east of Merredin was officially proclaimed a goldfield and over the next decade prospectors and fossickers poured through the area. Gold was discovered at Coolgardie in 1892 and at Kalgoorlie a year later. At first
3192-412: The area in the period 1864–66 that it began to open up. Hunt saw the pastoral potential but realised the importance of water. He called the area Hampton Plains after John Stephen Hampton , Governor of Western Australia 1862–68. Hunt made five journeys through the area. Of the five journeys the first was exploratory (1864), the second established a track which moved from waterhole to waterhole (1865) and
3276-805: The coast around the Margaret River wine-growing area. Going east along the Southern Ocean coast is the Goldfields-Esperance region, including the Esperance mallee and the Coolgardie woodlands inland around town of Coolgardie . Deserts occupy the interior, including the Great Sandy-Tanami desert , Gibson Desert , Great Victoria Desert , and Nullarbor Plain . In 1831 Scottish botanist Robert Brown produced
3360-685: The coast of Western Australia. On 7 March 1831 it was transferred to the control of the Swan River Colony, and named Albany in 1832. In 1829 the Swan River Colony was established on the Swan River by Captain James Stirling . By 1832, the British settler population of the colony had reached around 1,500, and the official name of the colony was changed to Western Australia on 6 February that year. The two separate townsites of
3444-730: The coastal plains, in some cases forming a sharp escarpment (as with the Darling Range/ Darling Scarp near Perth). The extreme age of the landscape has meant that the soils are remarkably infertile and frequently laterised . Even soils derived from granitic bedrock contain an order of magnitude less available phosphorus and only half as much nitrogen as soils in comparable climates in other continents. Soils derived from extensive sandplains or ironstone are even less fertile, nearly devoid of soluble phosphate and deficient in zinc , copper, molybdenum and sometimes potassium and calcium . The infertility of most of
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3528-425: The colony developed slowly into the port city of Fremantle and the state's capital, Perth . York was the first inland settlement in Western Australia, situated 97 kilometres (60 mi) east of Perth and settled on 16 September 1831. York was the staging point for early explorers who discovered the rich gold reserves of Kalgoorlie. Population growth was very slow until significant discoveries of gold were made in
3612-472: The dam which provided water for both the town and the railway. The entire structure is still intact and can be easily reached at the northern end of town. Constructed between 1893 and 1896, the Railway Dam ensured that Merredin would become much more than just another wheat-belt siding. The need for the water from Merredin Peak disappeared in 1903 when C. Y. O'Connor 's 565 km (351 mi) pipeline
3696-432: The development of the state's significant iron ore mining industry – the world's largest – as well as primarily offshore petroleum and natural gas resources . Gold mining retains a significant presence and many other mineral commodities are mined, with Perth being a major centre for associated services. Outside of mining, primary industry is the other significant contributor to the state's economy, including agriculture in
3780-413: The early 1890s, thousands of settlers had travelled into the barren and dry desert centre of Western Australia seeking gold, but the existing infrastructure for the supply of water was non-existent, and an urgent need arose. Prior to the scheme, water condensers, irregular rain, and water trains were part of the range of sources. Railway dams were essential for water to supply locomotives to travel to
3864-569: The edge of the Wheatbelt region to 1,400 millimetres (55 in) in the wettest areas near Northcliffe , but from November to March, evaporation exceeds rainfall, and it is generally very dry. Plants are adapted to this as well as the extreme poverty of all soils. The central two-thirds of the state is arid and sparsely inhabited. The only significant economic activity is mining. Annual rainfall averages less than 300 millimetres (8–10 in), most of which occurs in sporadic torrential falls related to cyclone events in summer. An exception to this
3948-611: The generally shallow soils, the only development has taken place along the Ord River . Snow is rare in the state and typically occurs only in the Stirling Range near Albany , as it is the only mountain range far enough south and sufficiently elevated. More rarely, snow can fall on the nearby Porongurup Range . Snow outside these areas is a major event; it usually occurs in hilly areas of southwestern Australia. The most widespread low-level snow occurred on 26 June 1956 when snow
4032-618: The goldfields. Throughout the 1890s, water availability issues in Coolgardie and in the Kalgoorlie-Boulder region were causing concern. On 16 July 1896, the Premier of Western Australia , Sir John Forrest introduced to Western Australian Parliament a bill to authorise the raising of a loan of £2.5 million to construct the scheme: the pipeline would convey 23,000 kilolitres (5,100,000 imp gal) of water per day to
4116-415: The greatest number of immigrants to this day. Western Australia—particularly Perth—has the highest proportion of British-born of any state: 10.3% in 2011, compared to a national average of 5.1%. This group is heavily concentrated in certain parts, where they account for a quarter of the population. Perth's metropolitan area (including Mandurah ) had an estimated population of 2,043,138 in June 2017 (79% of
4200-518: The international sandalwood oil market. In recent years, tourism has grown in importance, with significant numbers of visitors to the state coming from the UK and Ireland (28%), other European countries (14%) Singapore (16%), Japan (10%) and Malaysia (8%). Revenue from tourism is a strong economic driver in many of the smaller population centres outside of Perth, especially in coastal locations. Goldfields Pipeline The Goldfields Water Supply Scheme
4284-488: The median individual income was A$ 500 per week in Western Australia (compared to A$ 466 in Australia as a whole). The median family income was A$ 1246 per week (compared to A$ 1171 for Australia). Recent growth has also contributed to significant rises in average property values in 2006, although values plateaued in 2007. Located south of Perth, the heavy industrial area of Kwinana had the nation's largest oil refinery with
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#17327724578624368-426: The meridian 129 degrees east of Greenwich, which defines the border with South Australia and the Northern Territory , and bounded by the Indian Ocean to the west and north. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) designates the body of water south of the continent as part of the Indian Ocean; in Australia it is officially gazetted as the Southern Ocean . The total length of the state's eastern border
4452-720: The middle stop of the Prospector train. At Merredin, the train stops for a scheduled 10 minutes, giving passengers a chance to stretch their legs. There, the train stewards disembark and serve the Prospector going back to Perth, so they never go any farther. The same is true for Kalgoorlie stewards, who disembark and get onto the Kalgoorlie train. It is also the terminus for the Merredinlink rural train service. The following people were either born or raised in Merredin. Western Australia Western Australia (WA)
4536-513: The north "over 50,000 years ago and possibly as much as 70,000 years ago". Over thousands of years they eventually spread across the whole landmass. These Indigenous Australians were long established throughout Western Australia by the time European explorers began to arrive in the early 17th century. The first Europeans to visit Western Australia were those of the Dutch Dirk Hartog expedition, who on 25 October 1616 landed at what
4620-458: The north) and that he heard the town's name from the local Aboriginal people . Hunt claimed that the local Aborigines referred to the place as "Merriding" while other explanations suggest that the name comes from "merrit-in" – "the place of the merrit" ( Eucalyptus flocktoniae or ‘Merritt ’ is a tree which was used for making spears) – or that it was the name used by the Aborigines to describe
4704-538: The northern coast, and below that the drier Victoria Plains tropical savanna inland, and the semi-desert Pilbara shrublands , Carnarvon xeric shrublands , and Western Australian mulga shrublands to the southwest. Southwards along the coast are the Southwest Australia savanna and the Swan Coastal Plain around Perth, with the jarrah-karri forest and shrublands on the southwest corner of
4788-582: The only mountain-building since then has been of the Stirling Range with the rifting from Antarctica , the land is extremely eroded and ancient, with no part of the state above 1,249 metres (4,098 ft) AHD (at Mount Meharry in the Hamersley Range of the Pilbara region). Most of the state is a low plateau with an average elevation of about 400 metres (1,200 ft), very low relief, and no surface runoff . This descends relatively sharply to
4872-443: The percentage of people who identified as having no religious affiliation has increased from 8.7% in 1971 to 42.9% in 2021. A small minority of the population are Muslims (2.5%), Buddhists (2.2%) and Hindus (2.0%). Western Australia's economy is largely driven by extraction and processing of a diverse range of mineral and petroleum commodities. The structure of the economy is closely linked to these natural resources, providing
4956-576: The pipeline was utilised for a number of country towns adjacent to its route, and also into the Great Southern region . The Public Works Department started this project in the 1950s following the raising of the weir wall in the early 1950s and it completed this work in 1961. The scheme was "interpreted" by the National Trust of Western Australia in its Golden Pipeline Project , which created guide books, web sites, and tourist trails along
5040-474: The present state began with the establishment by Lockyer of a convict-supported settlement from New South Wales at King George III Sound . The settlement was formally annexed on 21 January 1827 by Lockyer when he commanded the Union Jack be raised and a feu de joie fired by the troops. The settlement was founded in response to British concerns about the possibility of a French colony being established on
5124-412: The prospectors used Hunt's waterholes road and this meant that they passed through the site of the modern town. In 1893 the narrow-gauge (1,067 mm, 3 ft 6 in) railway that was being continually extended eastwards from Perth, reached the town. Merredin's importance as a town was directly related to the establishment of a superb water catchment scheme on Merredin Peak. The narrow-gauge railway
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#17327724578625208-431: The pumping stations. Communities oriented to the maintenance of the pipeline and pumping stations grew up along the route. With improved power supplies and modern machinery and automation, the scheme now has more unattended pumping stations operated by fewer people. Construction of the dam started in 1898. When completed in 1902 it was claimed to be the highest overflow dam in the world. Shortly after World War II, raising
5292-466: The raising of a loan to construct a pipeline to transport 23 megalitres (5 million imperial gallons) of water per day to the burgeoning population on the goldfields. The pipeline, known as the Goldfields Water Supply Scheme , was completed in 1903. C. Y. O'Connor , Western Australia's first engineer-in-chief, designed and oversaw the construction of the pipeline. It carries water 530 km (330 mi) from Perth to Kalgoorlie , and
5376-511: The scheme and found no basis for the press accusations of corruption or misdemeanours on the part of O'Connor. The pipes were manufactured locally from flat steel sheets imported from Germany and the United States. Mephan Ferguson was awarded the first manufacturing contract and built a fabrication plant at Falkirk (now known as the Perth suburb of Maylands ) to produce half of the 60,000 pipes required. C & G Hoskins established
5460-566: The scheme pipeline and tracing the older power station locations and communities that serviced the scheme. The Trust achieved the responsibility in an agreement with the Water Corporation in 1998. Most of the material was developed between 2001 and 2003. In 2007 two items were produced that were overviews of the scheme: The history of the construction of the Goldfields Water Supply Scheme was detailed in
5544-636: The scheme. O'Connor died by suicide in March 1902 less than 12 months before the final commissioning of the pipeline. Lady Forrest officially started the pumping machinery at Pumping Station Number One (Mundaring) on 22 January, and on 24 January 1903 water flowed into the Mount Charlotte Reservoir at Kalgoorlie. O'Connor's engineer-in-chief, C. S. R. Palmer took over the project after his death, seeing it through to its successful completion. The government conducted an inquiry into
5628-478: The sense that it started as a stopping place on the way to the goldfields . The first European explorer into the area was the Surveyor General J. S. Roe , who travelled through the region in 1836 but was not impressed by its dryness and the low rainfall. By the 1850s sandalwood cutters were in the area but there was little agriculture. It was not until Assistant Surveyor Charles Cooke Hunt explored
5712-467: The slope of the pipeline, stations one to four required two pumping units to be in operation. Stations five to eight only required one operating pump, due to a lower rise in height between those stations. James Simpson and Co supplied 3,500 tonnes of equipment in 5,000 separate boxes for the construction of the pumping sets. All the original pumping stations were powered by steam. Branch mains, or extensions, were started as early as 1907. Water from
5796-401: The soils has required heavy application by farmers of fertilisers. These have resulted in damage to invertebrate and bacterial populations. The grazing and use of hoofed mammals and, later, heavy machinery through the years have resulted in compaction of soils and great damage to the fragile soils. Large-scale land clearing for agriculture has damaged habitats for native flora and fauna. As
5880-555: The state and national economy. In the period 2010–2019 wheat production in WA has averaged nearly 10 million tonnes (22 billion pounds), valued at $ 2.816 billion in 2019, accounting for half the nation's total and providing $ 2–3 billion in export income. Other significant farm output includes wool, beef, lamb, barley, canola, lupins, oats and pulses. There is a high level of overseas demand for live animals from WA, driven mainly by southeast Asia's feedlots and Middle Eastern countries, where Islamic dietary laws and
5964-451: The state). Other significant population centres include Bunbury (73,989), Geraldton (37,961), Kalgoorlie-Boulder (30,420), Albany (33,998), Karratha (16,446), Broome (14,501) and Port Hedland (14,285). At the 2016 census, the most commonly nominated ancestries were: 3.1% of the population, or 75,978 people, identified as Indigenous Australians ( Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders ) in 2016. At
6048-424: The sum of AU$ 1 with the state government banking that investment would follow. The partnership in the years since has been successful. Upgraded facilities include bitumen runways, an operations viewing platform (which does not fulfil the regulatory requirements of a control tower), fire control equipment, hangars, classrooms, and housing. Although the aerodrome is leased by China Southern West Australian Flying College,
6132-634: The third built a series of wells and dams (the Hunt's Dam at Merredin is located about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) north of town off the Merredin-Chandler Road). The result was a road which later became known as the York to Goldfields road and, until the arrival of the railway, was the only link between the coast and the gold towns of Kalgoorlie and Coolgardie . It is almost certain that Hunt climbed Merredin Peak (a short distance out of town to
6216-550: The time transportation ceased in 1868, convicts outnumbered free settlers 9,700 to 7,300. In the 1890s, interstate immigration, resulting from a mining boom in the Goldfields region , resulted in a sharp population increase. Western Australia did not receive significant flows of immigrants from Britain, Ireland or elsewhere in the British Empire until the early 20th century. At that time, its local projects—such as
6300-527: The wall was proposed and by 1951 the height of the dam wall was increased by 9.7 metres (32 ft). The Public Works Department originally constructed and ran the railway from the Mundaring railway station for the purpose of delivering materials to the construction site. The Western Australian Government Railways took over the railway operation. It ceased operation in 1952, and the connecting railway line at Mundaring closed in 1954. The distance
6384-572: The water over the Darling Scarp. The scheme was devised by C. Y. O'Connor who oversaw its design and most of the construction project. Although supported by Premier Forrest, O'Connor had to deal with widespread criticism and derision from members of the Western Australian Parliament as well as the local press based on a belief that the scope of the engineering task was too great and that it would never work. There
6468-452: Was also a concern that the gold deposits would soon be depleted, and the state would have a significant debt to repay but little or no commerce to support it. Sunday Times editor Frederick Vosper – who was also a politician, ran a personal attack on O'Connor's integrity and ability through the paper. Timing was critical, Forrest as a supporter had moved into Federal politics, and the new Premier George Leake had long been an opponent of
6552-428: Was built in 1915, thus completing the narrow-gauge rail link that linked Merredin and Narrogin. In 2023 Merredin was listed among several Western Australian towns to be affected by an outbreak of the venereal disease syphilis . During World War II , Merredin was the location of RAAF No.26 Inland Aircraft Fuel Depot (IAFD), built in 1942 and closed on 14 June 1944. It was situated on Cummings Street and has since had
6636-569: Was completed. The pipeline joined the waterless goldfields at Kalgoorlie and Boulder with the plentiful supplies of water in the Helena River east of Perth. Merredin Peak's Railway Dam continued to supply water to the railway until 1968 and even today is still used as the water supply for the fountain outside the Merredin Railway Museum and railway station . In 1904 the Agricultural Research Station
6720-441: Was compounded by the height the water had to be lifted. To rise the almost 400 metres (1,300 ft) in altitude, issues with friction meant that a head of 800 metres (2,600 ft) had to be achieved. O'Connor had eight pumping stations that each pumped the water to the next of the receiving tanks in his plans. Leakages were noted early; by the early 1930s, 1,700,000 kilolitres (370,000,000 imp gal) of water per year –
6804-729: Was established. It was here that the Bencubbin strain of wheat was developed. Land in the present townsite was offered for sale in 1906 and by 1911 the Merredin Roads Board had been formed. The narrow-gauge rail line from Merredin to Bruce Rock was built in 1913 to serve the developing sheep and wheat belt area of Western Australia, now known as the Great Southern. The final section of the Narrogin-Merredin narrow-gauge rail line, from Bruce Rock to Corrigin,
6888-517: Was extended eastwards from Merredin to Southern Cross in July 1894, and to Kalgoorlie in January 1897. A rock wall was built around the contours of Merredin Peak. It led to a 100 m (330 ft) channel which in turn led into a dam which had a storage capacity of 25 million litres (6.6 million US gallons). The scheme held every drop of water which landed on the Peak and directed it all into
6972-402: Was leased under a 100-year lease arrangement by China Southern West Australian Flying College (CSWAFC), a Western Australian Joint Venture Company owned by China Southern Airlines (China) and CAE Inc. (Canada) and was used as one of two pilot training facilities until September 2016. CSWAFC also operated, and continues to operate from Jandakot Airport in Perth. Merredin airport was leased for
7056-653: Was reported in the Perth Hills , as far north as Wongan Hills and as far east as Salmon Gums . However, even in the Stirling Range, snowfalls rarely exceed 5 cm (2 in) and rarely settle for more than one day. The highest observed temperature of 50.7 °C (123.3 °F) was recorded in Onslow on 13 January 2022. The lowest temperature recorded was −7.2 °C (19.0 °F) at Eyre Bird Observatory on 17 August 2008. The south geomagnetic pole
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