Kalgoorlie, Western Australia
Encyclopedia
Kalgoorlie, known as Kalgoorlie-Boulder, is a town in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia
, and is located 595 kilometres (370 mi) east-northeast of state capital Perth
at the end of the Great Eastern Highway
. The town was founded in 1893 during the Yilgarn-Goldfields gold rush, and is located close to the so-called "Golden Mile".
As at the 2006 census, it had a population of 28,250, making it the largest urban centre in the Goldfields-Esperance region and the fifth-largest in Western Australia.
The name Kalgoorlie is derived from the Wangai
word Karlkurla, meaning "place of the silky pears
".
In January 1893, prospector
s Patrick (Paddy) Hannan
, Tom Flanagan, and Dan O'Shea were travelling to Mount Youle when one of their horses cast a shoe. During the halt in their journey, the men noticed signs of gold in the area, and decided to stay put. On 17 June 1893, Hannan filed a Reward Claim, leading to hundreds of men swarming to the area in search of gold and Kalgoorlie, originally called Hannan's, was born.
The mining of gold, along with other metals such as nickel, has been a major industry in Kalgoorlie ever since, and today employs about one-quarter of Kalgoorlie's workforce and generates a significant proportion of its income. The concentrated area of large gold mines surrounding the original Hannan find is often referred to as the Golden Mile, and is considered by some to be the richest square mile of earth on the planet. The town's population was about 30,000 people in 1903 and began to grow into nearby Boulder.
The narrow gauge Government
railway line reached Kalgoorlie in 1896, and the main named railway service from Perth was the overnight sleeper train The Westland
which ran until the 1970s. In 1917, a standard gauge
railway line
was completed, connecting Kalgoorlie to the city of Port Augusta
, South Australia across 2000 kilometres (1,243 mi) of desert, and consequently the rest of the eastern states. The standardisation of the railway connecting Perth (which changed route from the narrow gauge route) in 1968 completed the Sydney-Perth railway, making it possible for rail travel from Perth to Sydney—and the Indian Pacific rail service commenced soon after. During the 1890s, the Goldfields area boomed as a whole, with an area population exceeding 200,000, mainly prospectors. The area gained a notorious reputation for being a wild west with bandits and prostitutes. This rapid increase in population and claims of neglect by the state government in Perth
led to the proposition of the new state of Auralia
but with the sudden diaspora after the Gold Rush these plans fell through.
Places, famous or infamous, that Kalgoorlie is noted for include its water pipeline
, designed by C. Y. O'Connor
and bringing in fresh water from Mundaring Weir near Perth, its Hay Street brothel
s , its two-up
school, the goldfields railway loopline, the Kalgoorlie Town Hall, the Paddy Hannan statue/drinking fountain, the Super Pit
and Mount Charlotte lookout. Its main street is Hannan Street, named after the town's founder. One of the infamous brothels also serves as a museum and is a major national attraction.
Kalgoorlie and the surrounding district was serviced by an extensive collection of suburban railways and tramways, providing for both passenger and freight traffic.
conference, held annually in August. It is Australia's premier international mining conference.
is an open-cut
gold mine approximately 3.6 kilometres (2.2 mi) long, 1.6 kilometre (0.994196378639691 mi) wide and 512 metres (1,680 ft) deep. It was created by Alan Bond
, who bought up a number of old mine leases in order to get the land area needed for the Super Pit. Every now and again the digging reveals an old shaft containing abandoned equipment and vehicles from the earlier mines.
The mine operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and a visitor centre overlooks it. The mine blasts at 1:00 pm every day, unless winds would carry dust over the town. Each of the massive trucks carries 225 tonnes of rock and the round trip takes about 35 minutes, most of that time being the slow uphill haul. Employees must live in Kalgoorlie; it is not a fly-in fly-out
operation. The mine is expected to be productive until about 2017. At that point, it is planned to abandon it and allow the groundwater
to seep in and fill it. It is estimated it will take about 50 years to fill completely.
There are also some hotels that no longer exist in the city;
In addition, Kalgoorlie has modern accommodation facilities, including;
And Previously
The Kalgoorlie-Boulder metropolitan area consists of a number of suburbs
Known as the home of the Super Pit, it is one of Kalgoorlie-Boulder's historical suburbs featuring many buildings and landmarks dating as far back as 1882. It was once the central business district for the Town of Boulder, but since amalgamation with Kalgoorlie, it is now more of a historical local centre. Boulder has its own post office, town hall and many hotels along its main thoroughfare, Burt Street. A significant refurbishment has been commenced as part of the 'Royalties for Regions' initiative.
A new housing suburb located next to the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Airport
which was recently expanded and is enjoying healthy growth in property values.
This area derives its name from the golf course that once occupied the area. It was released to provide affordable property to a growing population in Kalgoorlie-Boulder. Fairways features a private primary school, church, caravan park and small business.
Adeline was originally constructed around 1970 by the State Housing Commission. The suburb was built on the "Radburn" concept, with houses facing away from the street and common pathways linking homes. The area has been plagued by antisocial problems. In 2003, a significant urban renewal project, including the renaming of the suburb to Golden Grove and re-aligning of homes was commenced. The project has seen some success but has yet to fully eliminate antisocial problems within the area.
See Broadwood.
Located in Kalgoorlie's far north. Hannans was the first suburb to have its own independent shopping centre ("Hannans Boulevard") which includes a Coles Supermarket
. The area also has a primary school and an 18 hole golf course. The original course was not formally grassed but was recently refurbished. Several surrounding golf clubs joined together to form one club known as 'The Goldfields Golf Club'. A dam has been constructed to service what is now a luxury grass golf course and club. Alongside the golf course project has been the development and release of Greenview estate. It lies on the western border of Hannans. This ongoing project has been designed as an environmentally friendly estate, and will eventually consist of over 2000 homes, apartments and facilities such as parks and schools. As one of Kalgoorlie's highest growth areas there has been a proposal for a new alternative route, out of the suburb onto the Kalgoorlie Bypass, to avoid traffic problems on the already heavily used Graeme Street which is a direct route to the city centre. Other developments include 'Karkurla Rise' and 'Karkurla View' which have added an additional 400 homes to the area.
The central business district. Hannan Street, named after Paddy Hannan, is the Kalgoorlie's main street and stretches The length of the suburb. The western side of the suburb consists of housing and some light industry. The eastern side containss retail chains, banks, the police station, court house, restaurants, hotels, tourist attractions, schools, university and TAFE.
One of Kalgoorlie's oldest suburbs. Much like other older suburbs, almost every street is parallel with Hannan Street in Central Kalgoorlie and are noticeably wide. It houses North Kalgoorlie Primary School, small businesses, a medical practices, a hotel, tavern and a non-maintained 18 hole golf course.
Much smaller today than it originally was before the Super Pit expansion. It's located at the far east end of Lamington between the northern Goldfields railway and Goldfields Highway.
Officially O'Connor is the south-east section of the suburb of Somerville. Much of the area is increasingly now known as O'Connor. It is home to a primary school, private high school Goldfields Baptist College and shopping facilities. It also houses the city's only recreation centre.
A narrow suburb following Piccadilly street between Central Kalgoorlie and Lamington. It features the city's regional hospital, small businesses, a hotel, sporting arena and two grassed ovals.
Somerville marks the end of Great Eastern Highway that stretches between Kalgoorlie-Boulder and Perth. Much of the area is now referred to locally as O'Connor. Somerville contains residential area, schools, retail shops, light industry and some horse stables. In the past it also contained market gardens.
Stretching from Boundary Street, Kalgoorlie to Holmes Street, Golden Grove and bordering with Central Kalgoorlie, O'Connor and Golden Grove. South Kalgoorlie is mostly residential but also contains the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Racecourse, schools, some light industrial and small businesses. The suburb was expanded in the mid-1990s to include a sub-division named 'Sport of Kings' on Maxwell Street, using a surplus of land from the racecourse.
A residential only subdivision within Fairways estate along Burt Street.
Kalgoorlie's main industrial area. It is the first suburb as you approach Kalgoorlie on the Great Eastern Highway. It features the city's airport and small, medium and heavy industrial. Currently under expansion further west (ANZAC Drive Industrial Estate.)
The western tip of Lamington was built in the 1980s. It includes one shop, sporting facilities and an arboretum nature reserve.
The small remains of East Kalgoorlie which now consists mostly of 'The Super Pit' open cut mine. The small existing area features mostly housing with one small primary school. It is also home to the Mount Charlotte mine shaft and Nanny Goat Hill. Owners of 'The Super Pit' have purchased many of the houses in the Williamstown area leaving many houses empty and some demolished leaving empty lots. There have been revegetation research projects commenced in the area.
between the Western Australian Government Railways
's narrow gauge Eastern Goldfields Railway
and the Trans-Australian Railway
towards the Eastern states of Australia
. For eastward train travellers, on the transcontinental "Indian Pacific" service, Kalgoorlie is the last town encountered for hundreds of kilometres before entering the vast expanse of the Nullarbor Plain
. The "Prospector
" train run by Transwa
also provides daily services to Perth
.
Town bus services are provided by TransGoldfields
, there are three town routes as well as school services.
Daily commercial air services connect Kalgoorlie-Boulder with Perth
, operating out of the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Airport
. Airlines that provide regular flights include Qantas
, QantasLink
and Skywest
.
Kalgoorlie is linked to Perth by the Great Eastern Highway
, and is also on the Goldfields Highway
.
Radio Services available in Kalgoorlie:
Television
Television services available include
The programming schedule is mainly the same as the Seven, Nine and Ten stations in Perth with variations for News bulletins, sport telecasts such as the Australian Football League
and National Rugby League
, children's and lifestyle programs and infomercials or paid programming.
Both WIN and GWN7 provide local news services that screen Monday to Friday. WIN News
screens at 5.30 pm before Nine News Perth. GWN7 News screens at 5.30 pm before Seven News
Perth.
New Digital television services from GWN7 and WIN are expected to launch by the end of 2010. A new digital-only channel branded Ten West
commenced transmission on Thursday 10 June 2010, it is a sole Network Ten
affiliated channel.
Subscrition Television Service Foxtel
is available via Satellite.
Newspapers
The local newspaper for the Kalgoorlie-Boulder and Goldfields region is The Kalgoorlie Miner.
Newspapers from Perth including The West Australian
and The Sunday Times
are also available, as well as National Newspapers such as The Australian
and The Australian Financial Review
.
climate with hot summers and winters. The average annual rainfall is 260mm on an average of 65 days and, while the average rainfall is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year, there is considerable variation from year to year.
January is the hottest month with an average maximum temperature of 33.6 °C, but temperatures above 40.0 °C occur nearly once a week when hot, dry, north to northeasterly winds arrive. Such high temperatures are usually followed by a cool change from the south and occasionally with a thunderstorm.
By contrast winters are cool with July average maximum and minimum temperatures being 16.5 °C and 4.8 °C respectively. Cold wet days with a maximum below 12.0 °C occur about once every winter. The lowest maximum temperature recorded is 7.2 °C on 19 July 1961. Overnight temperatures fall below freezing about 4 times in a typical winter. Such events occur on clear nights following a day of cold southerly winds.
5.0 earthquake whose epicentre was 30 km north east of the town. The quake caused damage to a number of hotels commercial premises along Burt street in Boulder and it was reported that the underpass also on Burt street collapsed, although this was later found to be false. The entire Burt St. precinct was evacuated until 23 April. Work in the Superpit and many other mines around Kalgoorlie was stopped.
, netball
, basketball, rugby league
, soccer, hockey
and cricket
. Other popular sports in Kalgoorlie include tennis, lawn bowls, rugby union
and swimming.
Kalgoorlie also has a international squash tournament held every year at the YMCA.
In a statewide sense, the semi-professional Goldfields Giants
basketball team competes in the State Basketball League (SBL), and were SBL Champions in 2007 and 2008.
The Goldfields Titans
play in the Western Australia Rugby League
Harvey Norman Premiership state rugby league competition. Home games at the Oasis playing fields on Saturday afternoons.
Horse racing
is also very popular in the city, and Kalgoorlie-Boulder is home to the internationally recognised annual 'Race Round'.
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
, and is located 595 kilometres (370 mi) east-northeast of state capital 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....
at the end of the Great Eastern Highway
Great Eastern Highway
The Great Eastern Highway is a major road between the Western Australian cities of Perth and Kalgoorlie. It is a key route for vehicles accessing the eastern wheatbelt and the eastern goldfields...
. The town was founded in 1893 during the Yilgarn-Goldfields gold rush, and is located close to the so-called "Golden Mile".
As at the 2006 census, it had a population of 28,250, making it the largest urban centre in the Goldfields-Esperance region and the fifth-largest in Western Australia.
The name Kalgoorlie is derived from the Wangai
Wangai
Wangai, Wongai or Wankai is the name given by themselves to the 26 Aboriginal groups of the Goldfields of Western Australia. It comes from the word meaning "Speaker"...
word Karlkurla, meaning "place of the silky pears
Marsdenia australis
Marsdenia australis, commonly known as the bush banana, silky pear or green vine is an Australian native plant. It is found in Central Australia and throughout Western Australia. It is a bush tucker food for Aborigines....
".
History
Prospecting
Prospecting is the physical search for minerals, fossils, precious metals or mineral specimens, and is also known as fossicking.Prospecting is a small-scale form of mineral exploration which is an organised, large scale effort undertaken by mineral resource companies to find commercially viable ore...
s Patrick (Paddy) Hannan
Paddy Hannan
Patrick "Paddy" Hannan was a gold prospector whose discovery on 17 June 1893 near Kalgoorlie, Western Australia set off a gold rush in the area....
, Tom Flanagan, and Dan O'Shea were travelling to Mount Youle when one of their horses cast a shoe. During the halt in their journey, the men noticed signs of gold in the area, and decided to stay put. On 17 June 1893, Hannan filed a Reward Claim, leading to hundreds of men swarming to the area in search of gold and Kalgoorlie, originally called Hannan's, was born.
The mining of gold, along with other metals such as nickel, has been a major industry in Kalgoorlie ever since, and today employs about one-quarter of Kalgoorlie's workforce and generates a significant proportion of its income. The concentrated area of large gold mines surrounding the original Hannan find is often referred to as the Golden Mile, and is considered by some to be the richest square mile of earth on the planet. The town's population was about 30,000 people in 1903 and began to grow into nearby Boulder.
Western Australian Government Railways
Western Australian Government Railways was most common name of the Western Australian government rail transport authority from 1890 to 1976. It is, in its current form, known as the Public Transport Authority of Western Australia....
railway line reached Kalgoorlie in 1896, and the main named railway service from Perth was the overnight sleeper train The Westland
The Westland
The Westland was the name given in 1938 to the overnight train operated by the Western Australian Government Railways with sitting and sleeping cars that ran between Perth and Kalgoorlie in Western Australia, where it connected with the Trans-Australian Railway service to the Eastern states of...
which ran until the 1970s. In 1917, a standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
railway line
Trans-Australian Railway
The Trans-Australian Railway crosses the Nullarbor Plain of Australia from Port Augusta in South Australia to Kalgoorlie in Western Australia...
was completed, connecting Kalgoorlie to the city of Port Augusta
Port Augusta, South Australia
-Electricity generation:Electricity is generated at the Playford B and Northern power stations from brown coal mined at Leigh Creek, 250 km to the north...
, South Australia across 2000 kilometres (1,243 mi) of desert, and consequently the rest of the eastern states. The standardisation of the railway connecting Perth (which changed route from the narrow gauge route) in 1968 completed the Sydney-Perth railway, making it possible for rail travel from Perth to Sydney—and the Indian Pacific rail service commenced soon after. During the 1890s, the Goldfields area boomed as a whole, with an area population exceeding 200,000, mainly prospectors. The area gained a notorious reputation for being a wild west with bandits and prostitutes. This rapid increase in population and claims of neglect by the state government in 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....
led to the proposition of the new state of Auralia
Auralia
Auralia was a proposed state that would have been formed out of the south-eastern portion of the colony of Western Australia in the early twentieth century , and would have joined the newly formed Commonwealth of Australia...
but with the sudden diaspora after the Gold Rush these plans fell through.
Places, famous or infamous, that Kalgoorlie is noted for include its water pipeline
Goldfields Water Supply Scheme
The Goldfields Water Supply Scheme is a pipeline and dam project which delivers potable water to communities in Western Australia's Eastern Goldfields, particularly Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie...
, designed by C. Y. O'Connor
C. Y. O'Connor
Charles Yelverton O'Connor CMG was an Irish engineer who is best-known for his work in Australia, especially the Goldfields Water Supply Scheme.-Early life:...
and bringing in fresh water from Mundaring Weir near Perth, its Hay Street brothel
Brothel
Brothels are business establishments where patrons can engage in sexual activities with prostitutes. Brothels are known under a variety of names, including bordello, cathouse, knocking shop, whorehouse, strumpet house, sporting house, house of ill repute, house of prostitution, and bawdy house...
s , its two-up
Two-up
Two-up is a traditional Australian gambling game, involving a designated 'Spinner' throwing two or three coins into the air. Players gamble on whether the coins will fall with both heads up, both tails up, or with one coin a head, and one a tail...
school, the goldfields railway loopline, the Kalgoorlie Town Hall, the Paddy Hannan statue/drinking fountain, the Super Pit
Super Pit gold mine
The Fimiston Open Pit, colloquially known as the Super Pit, is Australia's largest open cut gold mine. The Super Pit is located off the Goldfields Highway on the south-east edge of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, Western Australia. The pit is oblong in shape and is approximately 3.5 kilometres long, 1.5...
and Mount Charlotte lookout. Its main street is Hannan Street, named after the town's founder. One of the infamous brothels also serves as a museum and is a major national attraction.
Kalgoorlie and the surrounding district was serviced by an extensive collection of suburban railways and tramways, providing for both passenger and freight traffic.
Mining
Since 1992, Kalgoorlie is home to the Diggers & DealersDiggers & Dealers
Diggers & Dealers is an annual mining conference held in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia. First held in 1992, the next conference will be from 1 to 3 August 2011, at The Goldfields Arts Centre. It is "Australia's premier international mining conference"....
conference, held annually in August. It is Australia's premier international mining conference.
The Super Pit
The Super PitSuper Pit gold mine
The Fimiston Open Pit, colloquially known as the Super Pit, is Australia's largest open cut gold mine. The Super Pit is located off the Goldfields Highway on the south-east edge of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, Western Australia. The pit is oblong in shape and is approximately 3.5 kilometres long, 1.5...
is an open-cut
Open-pit mining
Open-pit mining or opencast mining refers to a method of extracting rock or minerals from the earth by their removal from an open pit or borrow....
gold mine approximately 3.6 kilometres (2.2 mi) long, 1.6 kilometre (0.994196378639691 mi) wide and 512 metres (1,680 ft) deep. It was created by Alan Bond
Alan Bond (businessman)
Alan Bond is an Australian businessman noted for his criminal convictions and high-profile business dealings, including what was at the time the biggest corporate collapse in Australian history. Bond was born in the Hammersmith district of London, England, and emigrated to Australia with his...
, who bought up a number of old mine leases in order to get the land area needed for the Super Pit. Every now and again the digging reveals an old shaft containing abandoned equipment and vehicles from the earlier mines.
The mine operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and a visitor centre overlooks it. The mine blasts at 1:00 pm every day, unless winds would carry dust over the town. Each of the massive trucks carries 225 tonnes of rock and the round trip takes about 35 minutes, most of that time being the slow uphill haul. Employees must live in Kalgoorlie; it is not a fly-in fly-out
Fly-in fly-out
Fly-in fly-out is a method of employing people in remote areas. It is often abbreviated to FIFO when referring to employment status. This is common in large mining states in Australia...
operation. The mine is expected to be productive until about 2017. At that point, it is planned to abandon it and allow the groundwater
Groundwater
Groundwater is water located beneath the ground surface in soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. A unit of rock or an unconsolidated deposit is called an aquifer when it can yield a usable quantity of water. The depth at which soil pore spaces or fractures and voids in rock...
to seep in and fill it. It is estimated it will take about 50 years to fill completely.
Accommodation
There are 25 historical hotels and pubs in Kalgoorlie which are still operating today;- Albion Shamrock Hotel
- Broken Hill Hotel
- Caledonia House
- Cornwall Hotel
- Criterion Hotel
- de Bernales Tavern (formerly Victoria Tavern)
- The Eastern Hotel (formerly The Federal Hotel)
- Exchange Hotel
- Flanagans Bar (formerly Union Club Hotel)
- Gala Tavern
- Grand Hotel (Kalgoorlie)
- Grand Hotel (Boulder)
- Hannans Hotel
- Inland City Hotel
- Kalgoorlie Hotel
- Main Reef Tavern
- Metropole Hotel
- North End Tavern
- Palace Hotel
- Piccadilly Hotel
- Recreation Hotel
- Rock Inn (formerly Tattersalls)
- Star and Garter
- Tower Hotel
- York Hotel
- Boulder Block (demolished 1991) (Removed due to Super Pit expansion. This pub had a mine shaft so underground workers could access it.)
- Commercial Hotel (burnt down 3 November 1978)
- Foundry Hotel (closed 2005– Damaged by fire 3 July 2008, deliberately lit on fire in 2009)
- Glendevon Hotel (burnt down 1986)
- Mount Lyall (refurbished as restaurant 2004)
- Oriental Hotel (demolished July 1972)
- Golden Eagle [The collapsed balcony of the Golden Eagle hotel on the corner of Lane and Wittenoom St in Boulder.] Proof.
In addition, Kalgoorlie has modern accommodation facilities, including;
- The View On Hannans (Formerly The Hannans View Motel)
- Rydges Hotel
- Railway Hotel/Motel
- Quest Yelverton Apartments
- All Seasons Plaza Hotel
- Bel Eyre Motel
- Kalgoorlie Overland Motel
- Midas Motel
And Previously
- Old Australia Hotel (now part of Curtin University of Technology as Student Accommodation)
Suburbs
- Boulder
Known as the home of the Super Pit, it is one of Kalgoorlie-Boulder's historical suburbs featuring many buildings and landmarks dating as far back as 1882. It was once the central business district for the Town of Boulder, but since amalgamation with Kalgoorlie, it is now more of a historical local centre. Boulder has its own post office, town hall and many hotels along its main thoroughfare, Burt Street. A significant refurbishment has been commenced as part of the 'Royalties for Regions' initiative.
- Broadwood (aka – Hampton Heights)
A new housing suburb located next to the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Airport
Kalgoorlie-Boulder Airport
Kalgoorlie-Boulder Airport is an airport in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia. The airport is 7 km from the town center.In November 2007, Skywest Airlines attempted a three times weekly direct service from Kalgoorlie to Melbourne, which failed due to lack of patronage. This service has since been...
which was recently expanded and is enjoying healthy growth in property values.
- Fairways
This area derives its name from the golf course that once occupied the area. It was released to provide affordable property to a growing population in Kalgoorlie-Boulder. Fairways features a private primary school, church, caravan park and small business.
- Golden Grove (formerly Adeline)
Adeline was originally constructed around 1970 by the State Housing Commission. The suburb was built on the "Radburn" concept, with houses facing away from the street and common pathways linking homes. The area has been plagued by antisocial problems. In 2003, a significant urban renewal project, including the renaming of the suburb to Golden Grove and re-aligning of homes was commenced. The project has seen some success but has yet to fully eliminate antisocial problems within the area.
- Hampton Heights
See Broadwood.
- Hannans
Located in Kalgoorlie's far north. Hannans was the first suburb to have its own independent shopping centre ("Hannans Boulevard") which includes a Coles Supermarket
Coles Supermarkets
Coles Supermarkets is an Australian supermarket chain owned by Wesfarmers. It has 741 stores nationally Coles Supermarkets is an Australian supermarket chain owned by Wesfarmers. It has 741 stores nationally Coles Supermarkets is an Australian supermarket chain owned by Wesfarmers. It has 741...
. The area also has a primary school and an 18 hole golf course. The original course was not formally grassed but was recently refurbished. Several surrounding golf clubs joined together to form one club known as 'The Goldfields Golf Club'. A dam has been constructed to service what is now a luxury grass golf course and club. Alongside the golf course project has been the development and release of Greenview estate. It lies on the western border of Hannans. This ongoing project has been designed as an environmentally friendly estate, and will eventually consist of over 2000 homes, apartments and facilities such as parks and schools. As one of Kalgoorlie's highest growth areas there has been a proposal for a new alternative route, out of the suburb onto the Kalgoorlie Bypass, to avoid traffic problems on the already heavily used Graeme Street which is a direct route to the city centre. Other developments include 'Karkurla Rise' and 'Karkurla View' which have added an additional 400 homes to the area.
- Central Kalgoorlie
The central business district. Hannan Street, named after Paddy Hannan, is the Kalgoorlie's main street and stretches The length of the suburb. The western side of the suburb consists of housing and some light industry. The eastern side containss retail chains, banks, the police station, court house, restaurants, hotels, tourist attractions, schools, university and TAFE.
- Lamington
One of Kalgoorlie's oldest suburbs. Much like other older suburbs, almost every street is parallel with Hannan Street in Central Kalgoorlie and are noticeably wide. It houses North Kalgoorlie Primary School, small businesses, a medical practices, a hotel, tavern and a non-maintained 18 hole golf course.
- Mullingar
Much smaller today than it originally was before the Super Pit expansion. It's located at the far east end of Lamington between the northern Goldfields railway and Goldfields Highway.
- O'Connor
Officially O'Connor is the south-east section of the suburb of Somerville. Much of the area is increasingly now known as O'Connor. It is home to a primary school, private high school Goldfields Baptist College and shopping facilities. It also houses the city's only recreation centre.
- Piccadilly
A narrow suburb following Piccadilly street between Central Kalgoorlie and Lamington. It features the city's regional hospital, small businesses, a hotel, sporting arena and two grassed ovals.
- Somerville
Somerville marks the end of Great Eastern Highway that stretches between Kalgoorlie-Boulder and Perth. Much of the area is now referred to locally as O'Connor. Somerville contains residential area, schools, retail shops, light industry and some horse stables. In the past it also contained market gardens.
- South Kalgoorlie
Stretching from Boundary Street, Kalgoorlie to Holmes Street, Golden Grove and bordering with Central Kalgoorlie, O'Connor and Golden Grove. South Kalgoorlie is mostly residential but also contains the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Racecourse, schools, some light industrial and small businesses. The suburb was expanded in the mid-1990s to include a sub-division named 'Sport of Kings' on Maxwell Street, using a surplus of land from the racecourse.
- Victory Heights
A residential only subdivision within Fairways estate along Burt Street.
- West Kalgoorlie
Kalgoorlie's main industrial area. It is the first suburb as you approach Kalgoorlie on the Great Eastern Highway. It features the city's airport and small, medium and heavy industrial. Currently under expansion further west (ANZAC Drive Industrial Estate.)
- West Lamington
The western tip of Lamington was built in the 1980s. It includes one shop, sporting facilities and an arboretum nature reserve.
- Williamstown
The small remains of East Kalgoorlie which now consists mostly of 'The Super Pit' open cut mine. The small existing area features mostly housing with one small primary school. It is also home to the Mount Charlotte mine shaft and Nanny Goat Hill. Owners of 'The Super Pit' have purchased many of the houses in the Williamstown area leaving many houses empty and some demolished leaving empty lots. There have been revegetation research projects commenced in the area.
Transport
The town is located on the main East-West rail corridor across Australia, and was once a break-of-gaugeBreak-of-gauge
With railways, a break-of-gauge occurs where a line of one gauge meets a line of a different gauge. Trains and rolling stock cannot run through without some form of conversion between gauges, and freight and passengers must otherwise be transloaded...
between the Western Australian Government Railways
Western Australian Government Railways
Western Australian Government Railways was most common name of the Western Australian government rail transport authority from 1890 to 1976. It is, in its current form, known as the Public Transport Authority of Western Australia....
's narrow gauge Eastern Goldfields Railway
Eastern Goldfields Railway
The Eastern Goldfields Railway was built in the 1880s to connect Perth, Western Australia with the rich goldfields at Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie. The narrow gauge Eastern Railway line already connected Perth with Northam, and the EGR extended this line through semi-desert to the goldfields...
and the Trans-Australian Railway
Trans-Australian Railway
The Trans-Australian Railway crosses the Nullarbor Plain of Australia from Port Augusta in South Australia to Kalgoorlie in Western Australia...
towards the Eastern states of Australia
Eastern states of Australia
In Australia, the term eastern states refers to the states adjoining the east coast of Australia. These are the mainland states of New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria. The Australian Capital Territory and Jervis Bay Territory, while not states, are also included. The term usually includes the...
. For eastward train travellers, on the transcontinental "Indian Pacific" service, Kalgoorlie is the last town encountered for hundreds of kilometres before entering the vast expanse of the Nullarbor Plain
Nullarbor Plain
The Nullarbor Plain is part of the area of flat, almost treeless, arid or semi-arid country of southern Australia, located on the Great Australian Bight coast with the Great Victoria Desert to its north. It is the world's largest single piece of limestone, and occupies an area of about...
. The "Prospector
Transwa Prospector
The Transwa Prospector is a standard-gauge passenger train operated by Transwa that runs between Perth, Western Australia, and the Goldfields town of Kalgoorlie.-History:...
" train run by Transwa
Transwa
Transwa is Western Australia's regional public transport provider, linking 275 destinations within Western Australia, from Kalbarri in the north to Augusta in the south to Esperance in the east along with the regional centres of Bunbury, Kalgoorlie, Northam, Geraldton and Albany.Transwa is...
also provides daily services 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....
.
Town bus services are provided by TransGoldfields
TransGoldfields
TransGoldfields is a public bus service in the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, owned and maintained by Eastern Goldfields Transport Board. In 2005, the company was upgraded thanks to funding from the state government...
, there are three town routes as well as school services.
Daily commercial air services connect Kalgoorlie-Boulder with 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....
, operating out of the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Airport
Kalgoorlie-Boulder Airport
Kalgoorlie-Boulder Airport is an airport in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia. The airport is 7 km from the town center.In November 2007, Skywest Airlines attempted a three times weekly direct service from Kalgoorlie to Melbourne, which failed due to lack of patronage. This service has since been...
. Airlines that provide regular flights include Qantas
Qantas
Qantas Airways Limited is the flag carrier of Australia. The name was originally "QANTAS", an initialism for "Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services". Nicknamed "The Flying Kangaroo", the airline is based in Sydney, with its main hub at Sydney Airport...
, QantasLink
QantasLink
QantasLink is a regional brand of Australian airline Qantas and is an affiliate member of the Oneworld airline alliance. It is a major competitor to Regional Express Airlines, Virgin Australia and Skywest Airlines. As of September 2010 QantasLink provides 1900 flights each week to 54 domestic and...
and Skywest
Skywest Airlines
Skywest Airlines Pty Ltd is a regional airline company based in Perth, Western Australia, Australia; servicing key towns in the state of Western Australia, Darwin, Northern Territory and Melbourne, Victoria; as well as charter flights to Bali, Indonesia....
.
Kalgoorlie is linked to Perth by the Great Eastern Highway
Great Eastern Highway
The Great Eastern Highway is a major road between the Western Australian cities of Perth and Kalgoorlie. It is a key route for vehicles accessing the eastern wheatbelt and the eastern goldfields...
, and is also on the Goldfields Highway
Goldfields Highway
Goldfields Highway is a generally northwest-southeast highway in central Western Australia which links the Great Northern Highway at Meekatharra with Coolgardie-Esperance Highway south of Kalgoorlie...
.
Media
RadioRadio Services available in Kalgoorlie:
- ABC Goldfields-EsperanceABC Goldfields-EsperanceABC Goldfields-Esperance is an ABC Local Radio station based in Kalgoorlie. The station broadcasts to the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia, including the towns of Esperance, Coolgardie, Kambalda and Norseman....
: 6GF 648 AM \ 94.3 FM (Part of the ABC Local Radio Network) - ABC Classic FMABC Classic FMABC Classic FM is a classical music radio station available in Australia, and internationally online. It is operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation . It was established in 1976 as "ABC-FM", and later for a short time was known as "ABC Fine Music" , before adopting its current name...
: 6ABCFM 95.5 FM; - ABC Radio National: 6ABCRN 97.1 FM
- ABC Triple J: 6JJJ 93.5 FM \ 98.7 FM
- ABC News RadioABC News RadioABC News Radio is the radio service of ABC News, a division of the ABC Television Network. Formerly known as ABC Radio News, ABC News Radio feeds, through Cumulus Media Networks, newscasts on the hour to its more than 2,000 affiliates...
: 6PNN 100.3 FM - Hot FM (Australian radio network)Hot FM (Australian radio network)Hot FM is an Australian radio network, consisting of stations in north and central Queensland and Western Australia.The brand was created by DMG Radio Australia, before they sold their regional stations to Macquarie Regional RadioWorks in 2004.Hot 91.1 is not owned by Southern Cross Austereo; DMG...
, (Commercial Station) 6KAR: 91.9 \ 97.9 FM – Top 40 radio formatRadio formatA radio format or programming format not to be confused with broadcast programming describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. Radio formats are frequently employed as a marketing tool, and constantly evolve... - RadioWestRadioWestRadiowest is a group of 11 AM stations across the Southern half of Western Australia playing the 'songs you can sing along to' and targeting the 35+ audience. It is currently owned by Southern Cross Media. Formed in the early 90s, It was once previously owned by DMG Radio...
(Commercial Station) 6KG: 981 AM \ 92.7 FM – Adult Contemporary / Classic Hits / Talk radio format - Vision Radio Network 1431 AM : Community Narrowcast Station – Christian praise, worship music and talk.
- Tjuma Pulka (Media) Aboriginal Corporation : 96.3 FM (Aboriginal Community radio service)
- 6TAB Racing Radio – 88FM (LIVE broadcasts of Horse Racing, Greyhound Racing and Harness Racing, with talkback and music played at other times).
Television
Television services available include
- The Australian Broadcasting CorporationAustralian Broadcasting CorporationThe Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
(ABC) – ABC1ABC1ABC1 was a United Kingdom based television channel from Disney using the branding of the Disney owned American network, ABC.The channel initially launched exclusively on the British digital terrestrial television platform Freeview on 27 September 2004. On 10 December 2004 it was launched on...
, ABC2ABC2ABC2 is a national public television channel in Australia. Launched on 7 March 2005, it is the responsibility of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's television division, and is available nationally to digital television viewers in Australia...
, ABC3ABC3-Future shows:Programming confirmed for future broadcast will include:* After School Care * Bindi's Boot Camp * Bushwacked! * Dance Academy * Dancing Down Under...
, ABC News 24ABC News 24ABC News 24 is an Australian 24-hour news channel launched and owned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The channel replaced the former ABC High Definition simulcast of ABC1 and commenced broadcasting at 7:30pm 5:30 on Thursday, 22 July 2010.-Pre-launch:The ABC announced in January 2010...
(digital channels) - The Special Broadcasting ServiceSpecial Broadcasting ServiceThe Special Broadcasting Service is a hybrid-funded Australian public broadcasting radio and television network. The stated purpose of SBS is "to provide multilingual and multicultural radio and television services that inform, educate and entertain all Australians and, in doing so, reflect...
(SBS) – SBS One, SBS Two (digital channels) - WIN TelevisionWIN TelevisionWIN Television is an Australian television network owned by the WIN Corporation that is based in Wollongong, New South Wales. WIN commenced transmissions on 18 March 1962 as a single Wollongong-only station, and has since expanded to 24 owned-and-operated stations with transmissions covering a...
, a dual affiliate of both the Nine NetworkNine NetworkThe Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
and Network TenNetwork TenNetwork Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
. - GWN7 (Golden West Network), an affiliate of the Seven NetworkSeven NetworkThe Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
.
The programming schedule is mainly the same as the Seven, Nine and Ten stations in Perth with variations for News bulletins, sport telecasts such as the Australian Football League
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
and National Rugby League
National Rugby League
The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
, children's and lifestyle programs and infomercials or paid programming.
Both WIN and GWN7 provide local news services that screen Monday to Friday. WIN News
WIN News
WIN News is a local television news service in parts of regional Australia, produced by WIN Television. 20 regional bulletins are presented from studios in Wollongong, Canberra, Ballarat, Rockhampton, Toowoomba, Mount Gambier, Hobart and Perth.-History:As well as its flagship nightly...
screens at 5.30 pm before Nine News Perth. GWN7 News screens at 5.30 pm before Seven News
Seven News
Seven News is the television news service of the Seven Network in Australia.National bulletins are presented from Seven's high-definition studios in Martin Place, Sydney, while flagship 6pm bulletins are produced in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Perth. The network also produces Seven...
Perth.
New Digital television services from GWN7 and WIN are expected to launch by the end of 2010. A new digital-only channel branded Ten West
Ten West
Ten West is the official name for a digital television station broadcasting in rural Western Australia. It is jointly owned by the WIN Corporation and Prime Television Limited and is an affiliate of Network Ten, broadcasting a direct feed of NEW-10 from Perth....
commenced transmission on Thursday 10 June 2010, it is a sole Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
affiliated channel.
Subscrition Television Service Foxtel
Foxtel
Foxtel is an Australian pay television company, operating cable, direct broadcast satellite television and IPTV services. It was formed in 1995 through a joint venture established between Telstra and News Corporation....
is available via Satellite.
Newspapers
The local newspaper for the Kalgoorlie-Boulder and Goldfields region is The Kalgoorlie Miner.
Newspapers from Perth including The West Australian
The West Australian
The West Australian is the only locally-edited daily newspaper published in Perth, Western Australia, and is owned by ASX-listed Seven West Media . The West is published in tabloid format, as is the state's other major newspaper, The Sunday Times, a News Limited publication...
and The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times (Western Australia)
The Sunday Times, owned by News Limited, is a tabloid Sunday newspaper printed in Perth and distributed throughout Western Australia.-History:...
are also available, as well as National Newspapers such as The Australian
The Australian
The Australian is a broadsheet newspaper published in Australia from Monday to Saturday each week since 14 July 1964. The editor in chief is Chris Mitchell, the editor is Clive Mathieson and the 'editor-at-large' is Paul Kelly....
and The Australian Financial Review
The Australian Financial Review
The Australian Financial Review is a leading business and finance newspaper in Australia.Fairfax Media publishes it in a compact format six days a week, Monday to Saturday....
.
Notable people from Kalgoorlie
- Matt BirneyMatt BirneyMatthew John Birney is an Australian politician. He was a Liberal member of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly from 2001 to 2008, serving as Leader of the Opposition from 2005 to 2006....
, former WA Leader of the OppositionLeader of the Opposition (Western Australia)The Leader of the Opposition in Western Australia is the leader of the largest minority political party or coalition of parties in the Legislative Assembly of the Parliament of Western Australia. By convention, he or she is generally a member of the Legislative Assembly... - John CornellJohn CornellJohn Cornell is a film producer, actor and businessman.Born in Ballygarvan,Cork Cornell once managed Paul Hogan and often appeared alongside Hogan in his popular television show The Paul Hogan Show as Strop, a dim-witted dinkum Aussie surf lifesaver...
, actor and movie producer - Rica EricksonRica EricksonFrederica Lucy "Rica" Erickson AM, née Sandilands, was an Australian naturalist, botanical artist, historian, author and teacher. Without any formal scientific training, she wrote extensively on botany and birds, as well as genealogy and general history...
, historian, botanist and author - Brian HayesBrian Hayes (broadcaster)Brian Hayes is a radio presenter who is known in United Kingdom for his phone-in shows.The son of a miner, he left school aged 15 and worked as a clerk for a mining company before obtaining a job as a newsreader for a radio station in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia...
, British radio personality - Dean KempDean KempDean Kemp is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League....
, former Australian rulesAustralian rules footballAustralian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
footballer - Wallace KyleWallace KyleAir Chief Marshal Sir Wallace Hart Kyle GCB, KCVO, CBE, DSO, DFC, RAF was a senior Royal Air Force commander and the Governor of Western Australia from 1975 to 1980.-Career:...
- Air Marshall, last leader of RAF Bomber CommandRAF Bomber CommandRAF Bomber Command controlled the RAF's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. During World War II the command destroyed a significant proportion of Nazi Germany's industries and many German cities, and in the 1960s stood at the peak of its postwar military power with the V bombers and a supplemental... - Walter LindrumWalter LindrumWalter Albert Lindrum, OBE , often known as Wally Lindrum, was an Australian professional player of English billiards who held the World Professional Billiards Championship from 1933 until his retirement in 1950. He was named Walter Albert to have the initials of the state where he was born - W.A....
, champion professional billiards player - Barry MarshallBarry MarshallBarry James Marshall, AC, FRS, FAA is an Australian physician, Nobel Prize laureate in Physiology or Medicine, and Professor of Clinical Microbiology at the University of Western Australia. Marshall is well-known for proving that the bacterium Helicobacter pylori Barry James Marshall, AC, FRS, FAA...
, Nobel Prize winnerNobel Prize in Physiology or MedicineThe Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine administered by the Nobel Foundation, is awarded once a year for outstanding discoveries in the field of life science and medicine. It is one of five Nobel Prizes established in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, in his will... - Bob Marshall, champion billiards player
- Tim RogersTim RogersTim Rogers is the frontman of Australian rock band You Am I. He is also a solo artist, as well as having fronted and released albums with bands The Twin Set and The Temperance Union.-History:...
, singer/songwriter - Terry WalshTerry WalshTerence Arthur Walsh is a former field hockey striker from Australia, who competed in two Olympic Games for his native country.-External links:*...
, field hockey striker and coach - Kevin Bloody WilsonKevin Bloody WilsonKevin Bloody Wilson is a comedy singer/songwriter who uses his heavy Australian accent/style with great success...
, singer and comedian - Steve JohnstonSteve JohnstonSteven Paul "Steve" Johnston is an Australian international motorcycle speedway rider. He has represented the Australian speedway team in two Speedway World Cup finals in 2004 and 2005....
, speedway rider - Michael PatriziMichael PatriziMichael Patrizi born 4 May 1984 in Kalgoorlie Western Australia, is best known as a professional race driver. Starting off in karts in his native Western Australia, he moved to Formula Ford in 2004, then to Formula BMW in Asia 2005, then UK in 2006. 2007 he joined the competitive ranks for the...
, V8supercar Driver - Dean FioreDean FioreDean Fiore Dean Fiore Dean Fiore (born December 1, 1983 in Kalgoorlie Western Australia is an Australian racing driver. Fiore presently races for his own team, Triple F Racing, a satellite operation of Paul Morris Motorsport in the 2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series....
, V8supercar Driver
Climate
Kalgoorlie has a aridArid
A region is said to be arid when it is characterized by a severe lack of available water, to the extent of hindering or even preventing the growth and development of plant and animal life...
climate with hot summers and winters. The average annual rainfall is 260mm on an average of 65 days and, while the average rainfall is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year, there is considerable variation from year to year.
January is the hottest month with an average maximum temperature of 33.6 °C, but temperatures above 40.0 °C occur nearly once a week when hot, dry, north to northeasterly winds arrive. Such high temperatures are usually followed by a cool change from the south and occasionally with a thunderstorm.
By contrast winters are cool with July average maximum and minimum temperatures being 16.5 °C and 4.8 °C respectively. Cold wet days with a maximum below 12.0 °C occur about once every winter. The lowest maximum temperature recorded is 7.2 °C on 19 July 1961. Overnight temperatures fall below freezing about 4 times in a typical winter. Such events occur on clear nights following a day of cold southerly winds.
Earthquakes
On 20 April 2010, Kalgoorlie was rocked by a richter magnitudeRichter magnitude scale
The expression Richter magnitude scale refers to a number of ways to assign a single number to quantify the energy contained in an earthquake....
5.0 earthquake whose epicentre was 30 km north east of the town. The quake caused damage to a number of hotels commercial premises along Burt street in Boulder and it was reported that the underpass also on Burt street collapsed, although this was later found to be false. The entire Burt St. precinct was evacuated until 23 April. Work in the Superpit and many other mines around Kalgoorlie was stopped.
Schools
There are currently 10 primary schools, 4 high schools and 1 university in the Kalgoorlie-Boulder area.Primary schools
- Boulder Primary School
- East Kalgoorlie Primary School
- Goldfields Baptist College (private)
- Hannans Primary School
- Kalgoorlie Primary School
- North Kalgoorlie Primary School
- O'Connor Primary School
- Saint Joseph's Primary School (private)
- Saint Mary's Primary School (Kalgoorlie Catholic Primary School) (private)
- South Kalgoorlie Primary School
High schools
- Eastern Goldfields CollegeEastern Goldfields CollegeEastern Goldfields College is a high school located in Kalgoorlie, it is located on the Curtin University of Technology campus and shares many facilities with the university...
(formerly the Eastern Goldfields Senior High School Senior Campus) - John Paul College (formerly Prendiville CollegePrendiville CollegePrendiville College Kalgoorlie, was founded in 1971. The full title was Prendiville Catholic Girls College which was named after the late Archbishop Redmond Prendiville .The first Principal was Sr. Concepta Prendiville College Kalgoorlie, was founded in 1971. The full title was Prendiville Catholic...
& Christian Bros. College (amalgamated)) (private) - Kalgoorlie-Boulder Community High School (formerly the Eastern Goldfields Senior High School Middle School Campus)
Universities
- Curtin University of Technology – Kalgoorlie Campus (includes the Western Australian School of Mines and Curtin VTEC; formerly Kalgoorlie College)
- University of Western Australia and University of Notre Dame Australia – Rural Clinical School of Western Australia http://www.rcs.uwa.edu.au
Sport
Kalgoorlie-Boulder's location, being approximately 600 km from Perth, contributes to high levels of participation in Australian rules footballAustralian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
, netball
Netball
Netball is a ball sport played between two teams of seven players. Its development, derived from early versions of basketball, began in England in the 1890s. By 1960 international playing rules had been standardised for the game, and the International Federation of Netball and Women's Basketball ...
, basketball, rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
, soccer, hockey
Hockey
Hockey is a family of sports in which two teams play against each other by trying to maneuver a ball or a puck into the opponent's goal using a hockey stick.-Etymology:...
and cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
. Other popular sports in Kalgoorlie include tennis, lawn bowls, rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
and swimming.
Kalgoorlie also has a international squash tournament held every year at the YMCA.
In a statewide sense, the semi-professional Goldfields Giants
Goldfields Giants
The Goldfields Giants are a semi-professional basketball team who compete in the State Basketball League of Western Australia . The Giants are based in the West Australian regional city of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, and their home court is the 1200-capacity Neils Hansen Stadium.Since debuting in the...
basketball team competes in the State Basketball League (SBL), and were SBL Champions in 2007 and 2008.
The Goldfields Titans
Goldfields Titans
The Goldfields Titans are a semi professional rugby league club based in Kalgoorlie-Boulder, Western Australia, Australia. They compete in the Western Australia Rugby League's Harvey Norman Cup first grade competition from 2010 and home games are played at the Goldfields Oasis Playing Fields.The...
play in the Western Australia Rugby League
Western Australia Rugby League
The Western Australia Rugby League is responsible for administering the game of rugby league in Western Australia. Western Australia is an Affiliated State of the overall Australian governing body the Australian Rugby League....
Harvey Norman Premiership state rugby league competition. Home games at the Oasis playing fields on Saturday afternoons.
Horse racing
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
is also very popular in the city, and Kalgoorlie-Boulder is home to the internationally recognised annual 'Race Round'.
See also
- Yilgarn cratonYilgarn cratonThe Yilgarn Craton is a large craton which constitutes the bulk of the Western Australian land mass. It is bounded by a mixture of sedimentary basins and Proterozoic fold and thrust belts...
- AuraliaAuraliaAuralia was a proposed state that would have been formed out of the south-eastern portion of the colony of Western Australia in the early twentieth century , and would have joined the newly formed Commonwealth of Australia...
(proposed Australian state with its capital in Kalgoorlie)
Further reading
- 100th anniversary of rail link (History of the Eastern Goldfields railway, officially completed on 1 January 1897, to the present, including introduction of the ProspectorTranswa ProspectorThe Transwa Prospector is a standard-gauge passenger train operated by Transwa that runs between Perth, Western Australia, and the Goldfields town of Kalgoorlie.-History:...
train on 29 November 1971) Kalgoorlie Miner 1 January 1997, p. 2 - Early Railways in the Kalgoorlie Area Shepley, W.H. Australian Railway Historical Society BulletinAustralian Railway HistoryAustralian Railway History , is the premier magazine covering railway history in Australia...
, November 1965