Leonora, Western Australia
Encyclopedia
Leonora is a town in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia
, located 833 kilometres (518 mi) northeast of the state capital, Perth
, and 237 kilometres (147 mi) north of the city of Kalgoorlie
. At the 2006 census
, Leonora had a population of 401, about a third of whom are of Aboriginal
descent. The area is extremely arid, with a mean annual rainfall of just 230 millimetres (9 in). It is also quite warm, with mean daily maximum temperatures ranging from 18°C (64°F) in July to 37°C (99°F) in January.
Leonora is primarily a mining
town. There are a number of major gold
mines in the Shire, and the Murrin Murin laterite nickel project
is located in the shire. The area is too arid to support agriculture
, but there is a substantial pastoral industry.
The Leonora area was first explored by John Forrest
, who visited the area in 1869. Forrest's party made camp near a hill, which Forrest named Mount Leonora, after a lady friend of his, Miss Phylis Leonora Hardey. In 1894, gold
was discovered in the area by a prospector named Morrisey, and in the following two years a number of rich finds resulted in rapid development of the area. The Gwalia
and Sons of Gwalia
gold mines brought Leonora to the attention of the world. By 1897 a residential and business area had been established, and the town was gazetted as Leonora in 1898.
Leonora had an urban tramway system between 1901 and 1921: perhaps it was the smallest town in the world to have an electric tram.
In 2010, the Rudd Government
relocated asylum seekers from Christmas Island
to a former mining camp near Leonora.
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
, located 833 kilometres (518 mi) northeast of the state capital, Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
, and 237 kilometres (147 mi) north of the city of Kalgoorlie
Kalgoorlie, Western Australia
Kalgoorlie, known as Kalgoorlie-Boulder, is a town in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia, and is located east-northeast of state capital Perth at the end of the Great Eastern Highway...
. At the 2006 census
Census in Australia
The Australian census is administered once every five years by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The most recent census was conducted on 9 August 2011; the next will be conducted in 2016. Prior to the introduction of regular censuses in 1961, they had also been run in 1901, 1911, 1921, 1933,...
, Leonora had a population of 401, about a third of whom are of Aboriginal
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
descent. The area is extremely arid, with a mean annual rainfall of just 230 millimetres (9 in). It is also quite warm, with mean daily maximum temperatures ranging from 18°C (64°F) in July to 37°C (99°F) in January.
Leonora is primarily a mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
town. There are a number of major gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
mines in the Shire, and the Murrin Murin laterite nickel project
Murrin Murrin Joint Venture
The Murrin Murrin Joint Venture is a major nickel-cobalt mining operation being conducted in the North Eastern Goldfields, approximately 60 km east of Leonora, Western Australia...
is located in the shire. The area is too arid to support agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
, but there is a substantial pastoral industry.
John Forrest
Sir John Forrest GCMG was an Australian explorer, the first Premier of Western Australia and a cabinet minister in Australia's first federal parliament....
, who visited the area in 1869. Forrest's party made camp near a hill, which Forrest named Mount Leonora, after a lady friend of his, Miss Phylis Leonora Hardey. In 1894, gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
was discovered in the area by a prospector named Morrisey, and in the following two years a number of rich finds resulted in rapid development of the area. The Gwalia
Gwalia
Gwalia is an archaic Welsh name for Wales. It derives from the Medieval Latin Wallia, which in turn is a Latinisation of the English 'Wales'...
and Sons of Gwalia
Sons of Gwalia
Sons of Gwalia was a Western Australian mining company which mined gold, tantalum, spodumene, lithium and tin.Sons of Gwalia was Australia's third-largest gold producer and also controlled more than half the world's production of tantalum, before entering administration in August 2004 following a...
gold mines brought Leonora to the attention of the world. By 1897 a residential and business area had been established, and the town was gazetted as Leonora in 1898.
Leonora had an urban tramway system between 1901 and 1921: perhaps it was the smallest town in the world to have an electric tram.
In 2010, the Rudd Government
Rudd Government
The Rudd Government refers to the federal Executive Government of Australia of the Australian Labor Party from 2007 to 2010, led by Kevin Rudd as Prime Minister. The Rudd Government commenced on 3 December 2007, when Rudd was sworn in along with his ministry...
relocated asylum seekers from Christmas Island
Christmas Island
The Territory of Christmas Island is a territory of Australia in the Indian Ocean. It is located northwest of the Western Australian city of Perth, south of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, and ENE of the Cocos Islands....
to a former mining camp near Leonora.