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Category: History / Mining Industry / Government and Politics

WA ghost town Gwalia gets $1m to protect heritage

Sunday, 5 Jun 2016 13:19:17 | Rhiannon Shine

The Gwalia preservation work is long overdue, according to the Shire of Leonora. (Supplied: Kate Ferguson)

A historic West Australian ghost town which was once home to a future United States president has received almost $1 million in federal funding to preserve its heritage.

Gwalia thrived from the late 1890s until the final whistle blew on the Sons of Gwalia Mine in 1963, with the 1,200-strong population plummeting to just 40 in less than three weeks.

Its first mine manager was a young American engineer named Herbert Hoover, who went on to become the 31st president of the US.

Today the abandoned town, about 230 kilometres north of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, is one of the Goldfields' biggest tourist attractions.

The Liberal Member for O'Connor, Rick Wilson, has announced $980,000 will be spent preserving 11 timber and iron miners' cottages, three brick buildings and a timber headframe.

"The Gwalia upgrade project will protect a valuable part of Goldfields history and invest in the region's tourism industry at a time when it's important to diversify the local economy," Mr Wilson said.

Shire of Leonora heritage services manager Elaine Labuschagne said the project would bring significant economic benefits to the region.

"We estimate there will be a 20 per cent increase in visitor numbers, which would create 16 new additional jobs for the region," she said.

"Our aim is not to make [Gwalia] look brand new — we don't want it to lose the ghost town charm or feel."

Ms Labuschagne said the preservation work was overdue, with the last major conservation work carried out in 1996.

"Gwalia is the most comprehensive historic miner settlement in Western Australia remaining today," she said.

"It's a really significant heritage site, not just for Leonora and the Goldfields, but also for Western Australia and also Australia.

"There are not many settlements still in situ like we have in Gwalia."

Ms Labuschagne said the restoration project should be complete by 2018, and pledged the shire would match the Federal Government's investment.

A black and white photograph showing buildings in Gwalia in 1902. Photo: The gold mine at Gwalia employed nearly 900 men by 1902. (Supplied: Shire of Leonora)

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