And All So Far From Home....
Kalgoorlie
Western Australia
The Wardens Tent at Hannans (Kalgoorlie)
1894
Kalgoorlie is the major city in the eastern goldfields region, and is located 596 km east north east of Perth. It was gazetted a townsite in September 1894. Paddy Hannan, Daniel Shea and Thomas Flanagan made a rich gold find near Mt Charlotte in June 1893. The find soon led to a gold rush with thousands of diggers prospecting the rich alluvial field. When the government decided to declare a townsite here in 1894, the place was locally known as "Hannan's Find", and at first the name "Hannans" was nominated for the townsite. In suggesting the name Hannans to the Commissioner of Crown Lands, the Under Secretary for Lands, R Cecil Clifton, noted that the "native name of the place is "Calgoorlie" but this is rather too much like Coolgardie and if adopted is, I fear likely to lead to postal mistakes". R Cecil Clifton supported "Hannan", but Cabinet chose "Kalgoorlie" in August 1894. Although local preference was for Hannan's Find, Kalgoorlie soon came to be accepted as the name of the rapidly developing town. An alternative spelling of "Kalgurli" was also used unofficially on occasions. Just when the name Kalgoorlie was first recorded and the precise meaning of the name is unknown. Various sources give it as either meaning: Aboriginal dog chasing a kangaroo; the Aboriginal name of a shrub from the area ("Galgurli");or the Aboriginal name for the local edible silky pear ("Kulgooluh").
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Books of interest................
"Heads and Tails"
by Danny Sheehan & Wayne Lamotte
The story of the Kalgoorlie Two-up School
self published 1985
ISBN 0 9589443 0 X
"The Voice of the Goldfields"
by Norma King
100 years of the Kalgoorlie Miner newspaper
Pictures and indexed
Published by WA Newspapers 1985
ISBN 0 86778 057 6
"North Kal - A Golden Century"
by Tess Thomson 2002
the history of North Kalgoorlie Primary School
pictures and indexed
Published by North Kalgoorlie School
ISBN 0 9581511 05
"At the Deep End"
by Noeline Duncan
A century of Goldfields swimming
photos and indexed
Published by Kalgoorlie Amateur Swimming Club 2001
"A Claim to Fame" by Tess Thompson
Self published 1992
A full research of Paddy Hannan and the finding of the first gold,
plus lots more with photos and index
ISBN 0646 13053 6
"The Glittering Years" - Kalgoorlie & Boulder
1907 - 1928
by Arthur L Bennett
A good read to get the atmosphere of the place - indexed
Published by St. George Books 1981
ISBN 0 86778 021 5
"What's in a Name?" - Street Names of Kalgoorlie
Boulder
by E.A. (Ted) Dawson
Want to know how a street in Kalgoorlie Boulder got its name?
This is the little book to look up in Alphabetical order
Published by Eastern Goldfields Historical Society 1997
ISBN 0 646 34541 9
"Miners and Mentors"
A Centenary History of the Western Australian School of Mines
by Glen McLaren
great history of lecturers and students at WASM and indexed
Published by Curtin Uni of Technology WA School of Mines 2001
ISBN 0 646 49919 X
