WICKHAM, WESTERN AUSTRALIA

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Built as the support town for the mining operation of Cliffs Robe River Iron Associates at Pannawonica.
Location: 1,476 km north of Perth
Origin of name: recalls John Clements Wickham (1798-1864) of HMS Beagle who carried out extensive surveys of the North-west coast of WA between January 1838 and March 1841. Famed naturalist Charles Darwin was aboard HMS Beagle during one of the expeditions.
Brief history: Wickham was constructed as recently as 1970 by Cliffs Robe River Iron Associates as a company town. The aim was to create a processing plant for the iron ore mined at nearby Pannawonica, a port (at Cape Lambert) from which to ship the produce, and a town to house the associated employees. The town's status as a company town began to diminish in the 1980s when the local Shire of Roebourne began to assume some civic responsibilities.
Built features: shiploading facilities