Morawa, Western Australia
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Morawa Western Australia |
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 Morawa
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| Coordinates | 29°12′40″S 116°0′32″E / 29.21111°S 116.00889°ECoordinates: 29°12′40″S 116°0′32″E / 29.21111°S 116.00889°E | ||||||
| Population | 655 (2011 census) | ||||||
| Established | 1913 | ||||||
| Postcode(s) | 6623 | ||||||
| Elevation | 274 m (899 ft) | ||||||
| Location | |||||||
| LGA(s) | Shire of Morawa | ||||||
| State electorate(s) | Moore | ||||||
| Federal Division(s) | Durack | ||||||
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Morawa is a town in the Mid West region of Western Australia. It is located within the Shire of Morawa, approximately 370 kilometres (230 mi) north of the state capital Perth, on the railway line between Wongan Hills and Mullewa.
The name Morawa is an Indigenous Australian name; it probably derives from the Morowar, the local dialect's word for the dalgite. The name was first used on maps of the area in 1910, in reference to a rock hole. When the railway was being planned in 1913, it was decided to locate a siding at the location, and the name Morawa was chosen for it. The Lands Department then decided to establish a townsite there, and Morawa was gazetted in September 1913. In 1921 the Railways Department decided that Morawa was too similar to Mullewa and requested a name change. In response, the town's name was changed to Merkanooka in January 1922. However the Railway Department, which had pressed for the name change in the first place, did not rename the siding, and in June the town's name reverted to Morawa at the request of the townspeople.
Most of the farmland around Morawa was given to returned servicemen after the First World War under the provisions of the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Acts which spurred the growth of the town.
In 1932 the Wheat Pool of Western Australia announced that the town would have two grain elevators, each fitted with an engine, installed at the railway siding.
Population growth in Morawa has been fairly stable since the 1990s, without much increase, possibly due to people moving out to the Perth metropolitan area. Farms had been amalgamating for a number of years for economic reasons and the larger farms required fewer staff.
Morawa is primarily a farming town. The area supports a range of farming activities including wheat, sheep, cattle and sandalwood. The town is a receival site for Cooperative Bulk Handling.
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