Southern Cross, Western Australia
| Southern Cross Western Australia |
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 Southern Cross townsite |
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 Southern Cross
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| Population: | 711 [1] | ||||||
| Established: | 1890 | ||||||
| Postcode: | 6426 | ||||||
| Elevation: | 355 m (1,165 ft) | ||||||
| Location: |
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| LGA: | Shire of Yilgarn | ||||||
| State electorate: | Eyre | ||||||
| Federal Division: | O'Connor | ||||||
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Coordinates: 31°15′14″S 119°20′38″E / 31.254°S 119.344°E
Southern Cross is a town in Western Australia, 371 kilometres east of Perth on the Great Eastern Highway. It was founded by gold prospectors in 1888, and gazetted in 1890.[2] It is the major town and administrative centre of the Shire of Yilgarn.[3] At the 2006 census, Southern Cross had a population of 711.[1]
The town of Southern Cross is one of the many towns which run along the Mundaring to Kalgoorlie Goldfields Water Supply Scheme engineered by C. Y. O'Connor.[4]
A succession of gold rushes in the Yilgarn region near Southern Cross in 1887, at Coolgardie in 1892, and at Kalgoorlie in 1893 caused a population explosion in the barren and dry desert centre of Western Australia.
It is named after the Southern Cross constellation,[2] and the town's most significant streets are named after stars.
Southern Cross is on the standard gauge railway from Perth to Kalgoorlie and beyond. The Prospector and Indian Pacific passenger trains service the town. The former narrow gauge railway reached Southern Cross on 1 July 1894.[5]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Southern Cross (State Suburb)". 2006 Census QuickStats. http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/ABSNavigation/prenav/LocationSearch?collection=Census&period=2006&areacode=SSC55581&producttype=QuickStats&breadcrumb=PL&action=401. Retrieved 2007-10-18.
- ^ a b Western Australian Land Information Authority. "History of country town names". http://www.landgate.wa.gov.au/corporate.nsf/web/History+of+country+town+names. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ "Shire of Yilgarn, Western Australia". Shire of Yilgarn. http://www.yilgarn.wa.gov.au/. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ "Southern Cross". Heritage Australia. http://www.heritageaustralia.com.au/search.php?state=WA®ion=160&view=1085. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
- ^ Wheat, Gold and Humming Birds: Southern Cross in Diesel Days Milne, Rod Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin, December, 2001 pp443-449
| Preceding station | Transwa Trains network | Following station | ||
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towards East Perth
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Prospector |
towards Kalgoorlie
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| Preceding station | Great Southern Railway | Following station | ||
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towards East Perth
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Indian Pacific |
towards Sydney
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