Northam (Western Australia)

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Northam
Northam street SMC.jpg
State : AustraliaAustralia Australia
State : Flag of Western Australia.svg Western Australia
Founded : 1833
Coordinates : 31 ° 38 ′  S , 116 ° 40 ′  E Coordinates: 31 ° 38 ′  S , 116 ° 40 ′  E
Height : 170  m
Area : 24  km²
Residents : 6,548 (2016)
Population density : 273 inhabitants per km²
Time zone : AWST (UTC + 8)
Postal code : 6401
LGA : Shire of Northam
Northam (Western Australia)
Northam
Northam

Northam is a city and shire in Western Australia at the confluence of the Avon River and Mortlock River. She is the birthplace of Shirley Strickland , Frederick Henry Piesse and Carmen Lawrence . With a population of 6,550 (2016), Northam is the largest city in the Avon region. It is also the largest non-mining city in Inner Western Australia.

geography

Northam is located 60 miles northeast of Perth in the Avon Valley .

Area: 1419 km² (Shire), 24 km² (city) Altitude: 170 meters above sea level. NN

history

The Northam area was first toured in 1830 by a group of colonists led by Robert Dales. Then in 1833 Northam was founded. It got its name from James Stirling , who named the city after a place of the same name in Devon , England . The city immediately became an important departure point for explorers and settlers who were interested in the areas further to the east.

The initial importance of the place ended with the growing importance of nearby towns like York and Beverley , but the construction of the railroad made the town the main starting point for miners en route to the gold fields to the east.

A notable scandal occurred in 1933 when the police rounded up the entire Aboriginal population like cattle and shipped them to the Moore River Settlement. The city council justified this measure with the statement that the Aborigines had scabies and were a health risk.

Steve Fossett , the first person to fly non-stop around the world alone in a balloon, took off from Northam on June 19, 2002 .

railroad

Avon Yard freight yard

Northam is a major rail hub and commercial hub for much of the Wheatbelt region . The two-gauge line ( three-rail track ) of the Eastern Railway ends here and the Eastern Goldfields Railway has been running standard gauge (1435 mm) eastwards since 1968 . The routes of the Great Southern Railway to the south, to York and to the north, to Goomalling (a railway junction) are Cape gauge (1067 mm).

Northam Station is served by the following trains:

  • Indian Pacific : West Perth – Sydney, weekly
  • Prospector: West Perth – Kalgoorlie, daily (2 trains Monday and Friday)
  • AvonLink: Northam – Midland (connection to S-Bahn to Perth), Monday to Friday (1 train)
  • MerredinLink: West Perth – Merredin, Monday, Wednesday and Friday (1 train)

The original station on Fitzgerald Street opened in 1900 and closed in 1966 when the Eastern Railway's new routing was completed.

Sports

There are several sports teams in Northam. Northam has two football teams that play in the Avon Football Association (Federals and Railways).

Hockey , cricket and netball also delight many players and spectators. Individual sports such as tennis are also popular. There is also a jogger club.

Web links

Commons : Northam, Western Australia  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics : Northam (Urban Center / Locality) ( English ) In: 2016 Census QuickStats . June 27, 2017. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  2. Transwa timetable download page