Dongara, Western Australia
Encyclopedia
Dongara is a town located 351 km north-northwest of Perth
on the Brand Highway
. The town is located at the mouth of the Irwin River
. In recent years the area has been marketed as the 'Rock lobster
capital of Australia'.
Dongara is the seat of the Shire of Irwin. The shire has a population of around 3,500 people, with 2,700 of these residing in the towns of Dongara and Port Denison
.
adjacent to the town, meaning 'sea lion
place'.
European settlement around the estuary began in 1853 when a harbourmaster, Edward Downes, was stationed there to look out for passing ships. He was employed by the Cattle Company which was establishing large pastoral stations about 15 kilometres inland. By the 1860s, ex-convict small farmers were occupying the local river flats, and a flour mill (the Irwin or Smith's Mill) was operating. A townsite
was surveyed, and in 1871 it became the seat of a local council established that year (now the Irwin Shire Council), and site of a police station and public school. The Anglican Church of St John the Baptist and a Methodist
Church were built in the 1880s.
In the 1890s, the larger Royal Steam Roller Flour Mill was built on the flats next to the new railway that connected the district to Perth
, and the town was slowly developing, and although it was still a comparatively small village by the time of Federation
in 1901, it had several churches, municipal offices and hall, a variety of shops, two hotels, a public school and a railway station. The nearby localities were populated by small wheat and sheep farmers, centred around the hamlets of Bookara, Irwin and Strawberry. There was also a small population of fishermen, including several Chinese men, at Port Denison.
Dongara is the centre for a small oil and gas industry which began with the discovery of the Dongara Gas Field in 1966. Arc Energy
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....
on the Brand Highway
Brand Highway
Brand Highway is a 362 kilometre main highway linking the northern outskirts of Perth, the capital of Western Australia, to the port city of Geraldton in Western Australia's Mid West region. Together with North West Coastal Highway, it forms part of the Western Australian coastal link to the...
. The town is located at the mouth of the Irwin River
Irwin River
The Irwin River is a river in the Mid West of Western Australia.The headwaters of the Irwin are located below Canna near Pindar and the river flows west until discharging into Arurine bay near Dongara....
. In recent years the area has been marketed as the 'Rock lobster
Rock lobster
Jasus edwardsii, the southern rock lobster, red rock lobster, or spiny rock lobster, is a species of spiny lobster found throughout coastal waters of southern Australia and New Zealand including the Chatham Islands. This species is commonly called crayfish or crays in New Zealand and in Māori...
capital of Australia'.
Dongara is the seat of the Shire of Irwin. The shire has a population of around 3,500 people, with 2,700 of these residing in the towns of Dongara and Port Denison
Port Denison, Western Australia
Port Denison is a town in the Mid West region of Western Australia. Its local government area is the Shire of Irwin and it is located southwest of Dongara on the Indian Ocean coast.-History:...
.
History
The place name 'Dongara' is an anglicised rendition of Thung-arra, the local Wattandee people's name for the estuaryEstuary
An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....
adjacent to the town, meaning 'sea lion
Sea Lion
Sea lions are pinnipeds characterized by external ear-flaps, long fore-flippers, the ability to walk on all fours, and short thick hair. Together with the fur seal, they comprise the family Otariidae, or eared seals. There are six extant and one extinct species in five genera...
place'.
European settlement around the estuary began in 1853 when a harbourmaster, Edward Downes, was stationed there to look out for passing ships. He was employed by the Cattle Company which was establishing large pastoral stations about 15 kilometres inland. By the 1860s, ex-convict small farmers were occupying the local river flats, and a flour mill (the Irwin or Smith's Mill) was operating. A townsite
Townsite
A townsite is a legal subdivision of land for the development of a town or community. In the historical development of the United States, Canada, and other former British colonial nations, the filing of a townsite plat or plan was often the first legal act in the establishment of a new town or...
was surveyed, and in 1871 it became the seat of a local council established that year (now the Irwin Shire Council), and site of a police station and public school. The Anglican Church of St John the Baptist and a Methodist
Methodism
Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...
Church were built in the 1880s.
In the 1890s, the larger Royal Steam Roller Flour Mill was built on the flats next to the new railway that connected the district to 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 the town was slowly developing, and although it was still a comparatively small village by the time of Federation
Federation of Australia
The Federation of Australia was the process by which the six separate British self-governing colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia formed one nation...
in 1901, it had several churches, municipal offices and hall, a variety of shops, two hotels, a public school and a railway station. The nearby localities were populated by small wheat and sheep farmers, centred around the hamlets of Bookara, Irwin and Strawberry. There was also a small population of fishermen, including several Chinese men, at Port Denison.
Dongara is the centre for a small oil and gas industry which began with the discovery of the Dongara Gas Field in 1966. Arc Energy
Significant people from or associated with Dongara
- Sir David BrandDavid BrandSir David Brand KCMG was the 19th and longest serving Premier of Western Australia and a Member of the Legislative Assembly from 1945 to 1975.-Early life:...
(1912–1979), 19th Premier of Western Australia - Carmen LawrenceCarmen LawrenceCarmen Mary Lawrence is a retired Australian politician; a former Premier of Western Australia and the first woman to become Premier of a State of the Commonwealth of Australia....
(1948- ), 25th Premier of Western Australia - Robert BruningRobert BruningRobert Bruning was an Australian actor and producer.Bruning worked as an amateur actor at the New Theatre in the Sydney suburb of Newtown in the 1940s and 1950s. Bruning also was a regular guest performer in Homicide, Division 4, The Sullivans, and A Country Practice...
(1928–2008), born Robert Bell, PMG linesman, sales manager, actor, film producer, screenwriter, script editor