KARRATHA LOCAL HISTORY

'Karratha' translates as the 'good country' , in one of the thirty distinct local Aboriginal languages of the Pilbara region. So we can only imagine that the fertile lands and azure seas have made for a great place to live for at least 30,000 years.

Europeans saw the potential of the fertile country when Dr Baynton and Harry Whittal-Venn first started grazing sheep at Karratha Station in 1866. The Karratha Station only operated until 1879, but grazing dominated the economy of the Pilbara area for the next 100 years.

Pearling briefly enlivened the nearby town of Cossak at the end of the 19th century and a small gold rush also had some effect.

However, Karratha's significant history begins in the 1960s with the removal of Commonwealth restrictions on the export of iron ore in response to a growth in world demand. To cater for the accommodation needs of Hamersley Iron, the Western Australian state government entered into a joint housing project in 1968-9.

Karratha quickly grew beyond the reputation of a company town status and is now the largest centre in the Pilbara.