Karratha Western Australia

Karratha is a modern and expensive town catering for mining workers
in the Pilbara region located 1557 km north of Perth Western Australia,
on a great fishing spot called Nickol Bay.

Karratha is a modern town providing accommodation and services for
the employees of Hamersley Iron, Robe River Associates, Woodside
Energy LTD and the Dampier Salt Company.

The Karratha area was first settled as a result of F. W. Gregory's glowing
reports about the pastoral potential of the Pilbara in 1866 Dr Baynton
and Harry Whittal-Venn established Karratha sheep station.
The name 'Karratha' supposedly meant 'good country' in the language
of the local Aborigines.
The station continued to operate under Baynton and Whittal-Venn until 1879.

The modern town of Karratha, was planned and constructed in 1968-9 as
a joint State government with the Hamersley Iron project to meet the
expanding accommodation needs of the mining company.

The township of Dampier which is only 30 kilometers
away, which was serving the needs Hamersley Iron
and housing the people employed at the port facilities,
was restricted in its ability to grow and consequently
Karratha was developed on the Nickol Bay area
as by 1973 Dampier had reached its growth capacity.

As it grew the other major mining company, Robe River Iron Associates, invested
money in the town. Today it is home to over 12000 people and, as the population
continues to increase, the town has taken on a life of its own and the number of
service industries continues to grow.
It is the only town in the north west to have a major industrial estate servicing
the needs of the community. It is planned that the town will eventually house
over 30 000 people.
Inevitably the administrative functions of the Pilbara have all been moved to the town.

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