Population 395 (2006 census) Postcode(s) 6519 Elevation 257 m Postal code 6519 Lga Shire of Three Springs | Established 1907 State electorate(s) Moore Founded 1907 Local time Friday 2:44 PM Federal division Division of Durack | |
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Location 313 km (194 mi) N of Perth
172 km (107 mi) SE of Geraldton
49 km (30 mi) S of Mingenew Weather 32°C, Wind SE at 14 km/h, 19% Humidity | ||
Three Springs is located 313 km north of Perth, Western Australia on the Midlands Road. The town is the seat of the Shire of Three Springs; wheat farming is the main industry of both the town and the Shire.
Contents
Map of Three Springs WA 6519, Australia
History
The first Europeans to pass through the Three Springs area were Lieutenant George Grey and his party in 1839. The next exploration of the area in 1846 was undertaken by brothers Henry, Francis and Augustus Gregory. This was a government sponsored trip to seek out new ‘runs’ for stock.
During 1867, while surveyor Charles Cooke Hunt was undertaking a road survey, he recorded the words ‘Three Springs’ at the site of the current town after some nearby springs. The name began to appear on official maps from then on and land in this region was soon taken up for pastoral leasing.
When the Midland railway from Midland Junction to Walkaway was opened in 1895, Three Springs was a siding on the line, and the area really opened up.
In 1907 the government decided to declare a townsite adjacent to the Three Springs Station, and it was gazetted as Kadathinni in 1908. It was also intended to change the name of the station when the townsite was named, but this was overlooked, and it remained Three Springs. The townsite was also locally known as Three Springs, and in 1946 the name was officially changed to Three Springs to conform with local usage.
In 1932 the Wheat Pool of Western Australia announced that the town would have two grain elevators, each fitted with an engine, installed at the railway siding.
Geography
Banksia trifontinalis (Three Springs Dryandra) is named after this town, in the vicinity of which it was first collected.
Economy
Wheat farming is the main industry of Three Springs and its surrounding Shire.
Luzenac, an Imerys company, operates the largest talc mine in the southern hemisphere just outside the Three Springs townsite. Up until 2004, the talc was railed to Geraldton for export.