Wyndham, Western Australia
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Wyndham Western Australia |
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The town of Wyndham, looking towards the south with the King River and Cockburn Range in the distance.
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 Wyndham
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| Coordinates | 15°28′57″S 128°7′22″E / 15.48250°S 128.12278°ECoordinates: 15°28′57″S 128°7′22″E / 15.48250°S 128.12278°E | ||||||
| Population | 669 (2006 census) | ||||||
| Established | 1886 | ||||||
| Postcode(s) | 6740 | ||||||
| Elevation | 11 m (36 ft) | ||||||
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| LGA(s) | Shire of Wyndham-East Kimberley | ||||||
| State electorate(s) | Kimberley | ||||||
| Federal Division(s) | Durack | ||||||
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Wyndham is the oldest and northernmost town in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, located on the Great Northern Highway, 2,210 kilometres (1,373 mi) northeast of Perth. It was established in 1886 as a result of a gold rush at Halls Creek, and it is now a port and service centre for the east Kimberley with a population of 800. Wyndham is split into two areas. The original town site of Wyndham Port is situated on Cambridge Gulf, while Wyndham's Three Mile area is the residential and shopping area of the town. Wyndham is part of the Shire of Wyndham-East Kimberley.
The first European to visit the area was Phillip Parker King in 1819. He was instructed to find a river 'likely to lead to an interior navigation into the great continent'. He sailed into Cambridge Gulf, which he named after the Duke of Cambridge, and then sailed up a river which was subsequently named after him. Finding no fresh water on the mudflats, he departed.
The town of Wyndham was established by John Forrest in 1886 as the major port and trading station of the East Kimberley, after finds of gold in Halls Creek a year earlier. By mid-1886, the town was booming. There were six pubs, one of which was a two-storey building. Ships brought in at least five thousand miners who headed off to the Halls Creek goldfields. It is known that during this boom there were times when up to 16 vessels were moored in Cambridge Gulf.
However, by 1888, the gold rush at Halls Creek had ended and the fortunes of Wyndham declined. Wyndham became a tiny settlement serving the pastoral interests in the East Kimberley. By 1912, money had virtually disappeared from the Wyndham economy, and purchases were paid for using promissory notes known as "shinplasters".
During World War II, the town was attacked several times by Japanese aircraft.
Wyndham's significance as a service centre was crucial for the construction of the Ord River Diversion Dam and the town of Kununurra in the early 1960s. With the rise of Kununurra as a larger population centre the significance of Wyndham as a service centre had diminished by the 1980s. Wyndham has regained significance as the port for the region with new mines shipping ore from the port.
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Wikipedia