Rawlinna, Western Australia facts for kids
Quick facts for kids RawlinnaWestern Australia |
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Employee house of the former Commonwealth Railways at Rawlinna
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 Rawlinna
Location in Western Australia
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| Postcode(s) | 6434 |
| Elevation | 183 m (600 ft) |
| Area | [convert: needs a number] |
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| LGA(s) | City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder |
| State electorate(s) | Eyre |
| Federal Division(s) | O'Connor |
Rawlinna is a very remote place in Western Australia. It is located along the Trans-Australian Railway. This small community is about 900 kilometers (560 miles) east of Perth. It is also about 350 kilometers (220 miles) west of the border with South Australia.
Rawlinna is found on the vast, flat area known as the Nullarbor Plain. The land here is mostly flat and covered with grass. You can also see saltbush and bluebush plants. There are small groups of myall and myoporum trees. The area gets about 288 millimeters (11 inches) of rain each year. Summer days are usually around 38°C (100°F). Winter days are cooler, around 19°C (66°F). In 2016, about 30 people lived in this area.
Rawlinna is the southern end of the Connie Sue Highway. This is a 4-wheel drive track. It stretches about 650 kilometers (400 miles) north. It leads to the Aboriginal community of Warburton. Even though Rawlinna is far to the east, it is managed by the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder.
Rawlinna Station: A Giant Sheep Farm
Right next to the railway line is Rawlinna Station. This is Australia's largest working sheep station. It covers a huge area of over 1 million hectares (2.5 million acres). This is roughly the same size as the city area of Sydney.
In a good season, Rawlinna Station can have up to 65,000 Merino sheep. Finding and moving these sheep is a big job. Workers use motorbikes and even small aircraft to locate them. The sheep shearing program starts in January. It takes about 10 weeks to shear all the sheep. Sometimes, a group of sheep needs to be moved up to 100 kilometers (60 miles). They are taken to the shearing shed at a place called Jumbuck's "Depot" outstation.
What Else is in Rawlinna?
About 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) north of Rawlinna, there is a small open-cut limestone mine. Here, lime is dug out of the ground. This lime is then used in gold production in Kalgoorlie.
Each year, many visitors come to Rawlinna for a popular event. It's called the "Nullarbor Muster". This is a fun gymkhana event. A gymkhana is a series of horse riding games and races. The Nullarbor Muster helps to raise money for different charities.
The Trans-Australian Railway
Rawlinna is a stop for the Indian Pacific train. This special train offers tourism experiences. It travels between Perth and Sydney.
The Indian Pacific is the modern version of an older train. This older train was called the Trans-Australian. It started running in 1917 when the railway line first opened. Before 1951, steam trains were used. These trains needed to stop often for service. This was because the water quality was not very good. Rawlinna was one of four main stations that had workshops. It also had facilities like a food store and a bakery. These were run by the Commonwealth Railways. There was even a school in Rawlinna. Students from this school took part in an annual sports day. They competed against students from Cook and Tarcoola. Today, all the old Commonwealth Railways buildings have been taken down. About a dozen other buildings still remain.
