Comet Vale, Western Australia

Comet Vale
Western Australia
Old Gladsome Mine, Comet Vale, Western Australia, ca. 1928
Comet Vale is located in Western Australia
Comet Vale
Comet Vale
Coordinates29°56′31″S 121°07′34″E / 29.942°S 121.126°E / -29.942; 121.126
Established1916
Postcode(s)6438
Elevation386 m (1,266 ft)
Location
LGA(s)Shire of Menzies
State electorate(s)Electoral district of Kalgoorlie
Federal division(s)O'Connor

Comet Vale is an abandoned town in Western Australia located in the Goldfield region of Western Australia located between Kalgoorlie and Laverton on the Goldfields Highway. It is within the Shire of Menzies.

The town site was named after a comet that could be seen at about the time gold was discovered in the area. By 1895 the town had a population of approximately 500,[1] and by 1897 the townspeople were demanding a post-office. The postmaster general instructed postmasters at Menzies and Googarrie prepare daily mail bags for Comet Vale which were then distributed at one of the stores in town.[2] The Comet Vale Hotel was established some time prior to 1898.[3] The town was gazetted in 1916.[1]

A prospector, Dan Baker is credited with the initial gold discovery. Two mines were in production in 1900 named Lady Margaret and Long tunnel.[4] The Gladsome mine was operating before 1905,[5] and the Moss brothers built a 10-head stamp mill and Coonega at Comet Vale.[6]

Comet Vale was a stop on the Kalgoorlie to Leonora railway line but, while the railway line is still in operation, the town is now longer shown as a stop on contemporary maps.[7][8][9]

More mines opened later including Sand Queen and Happy Jack both of which continued to operate after World War I. A police station had been established in the town and was destroyed in 1916. A coach service used to service the town coming from Goongarrie and continuing to the Ularring district.[4]

In 1921 fresh water was found in old shafts not far from town to replace water requirements that had been sent by rail from Kalgoorlie.[10]

References

  1. ^ a b "History of country town names – C". Western Australian Land Information Authority. Archived from the original on 14 March 2022. Retrieved 15 February 2011.
  2. ^ "The wants of Menzies". The West Australian. Vol. 13, no. 3, 452. Western Australia. 18 March 1897. p. 5. Retrieved 27 December 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. ^ "Attack on a Trading Schooner". Coolgardie Miner. Vol. 4, no. 956. Western Australia. 4 January 1898. p. 2. Retrieved 27 December 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ^ a b "Morowa Historical Society" (PDF). 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 March 2011. Retrieved 15 February 2011.
  5. ^ "Mining and Stocks and Shares". The West Australian. Vol. XXI, no. 6, 029. Western Australia. 13 July 1905. p. 6. Retrieved 27 December 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  6. ^ "Mining and Stocks and Shares". The West Australian. Vol. XXI, no. 5, 975. Western Australia. 11 May 1905. p. 5. Retrieved 27 December 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. ^ "Public Transport Authority: Railway System: April 2019" (PDF). Public Transport Authority. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  8. ^ "Railway map of Western Australia, 1952". Trove. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  9. ^ "Arc Map Network" (PDF). Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  10. ^ "Comet Vale Water supply". Western Argus. Vol. 26, no. 5072. Western Australia. 18 January 1921. p. 13. Retrieved 27 December 2016 – via National Library of Australia.