Big Bell, Western Australia facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Big Bell Western Australia
The ruins of the Big Bell Hotel, 2009.
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Population	0 (abandoned)
Established	1936
LGA(s)	Shire of Cue
State electorate(s)	North West
Federal Division(s)	Durack

Big Bell is a ghost town in Western Australia. It is about 30 kilometers (18 miles) southwest of the town of Cue. This town was started in 1936. It was built because of the important Big Bell Gold Mine.

The Story of Big Bell

Finding Gold

Gold was first found here in 1904 by a person named Harry Paton. A mine was quickly set up. The mine changed owners several times over the years. In 1935, the Premier Gold Mining Company decided to make the Big Bell Mine much bigger.

Building the Town

A town was built near the mine in 1936. It was made to house all the mine workers. In April of that year, 36 land blocks were sold. Another 80 blocks were sold in June. Soon, about 850 people lived in Big Bell. The town had shops, a post office, and a hospital.

One idea for the town's name was "Townsend." The main street was going to be called "Coodardy Street."

The Big Bell Hotel

The Big Bell Hotel was built and opened in 1937. It was a beautiful building in the popular Art Deco style of that time. Today, it is mostly ruins. The hotel was a large, two-story building made of brick. It had brick columns on its north and east sides. It also had a curved corner and a tiled roof. People said this hotel had the longest bar in Australia.

The Railway Line

Big Bell was once the end point for a railway line. This line was in Western Australia's Murchison Region. The plan to build the line was approved in 1936. Before that, in March 1936, the Western Australian government agreed with the American Smelting and Refining Company to build it.

The first train arrived in Big Bell on January 6, 1937. However, the line was officially opened later, on August 12, 1937. Train services stopped in September 1944. They started again the next year when World War II was ending and the gold mine reopened. The railway line finally closed on December 31, 1955. The official closure happened in 1960.

The End of Mining

Mining at Big Bell stopped in 2003. The mining equipment was taken apart. It was moved to the Westonia minesite in 2007. Not many buildings are left in Big Bell today. But you can still see the old roads as dirt tracks. From the air, the town's original layout is very clear.