 Front cover of first edition of Hamersley News, 1969 | |
| Type | Fortnightly |
|---|---|
| Owner(s) | Hamersley Iron Pty Ltd |
| Founded | 1969 |
| Language | English |
| Ceased publication | 1980 |
| City | Perth |
| Country | Australia |
Hamersley News was a fortnightly English language newspaper published in Perth, Western Australia by Hamersley Iron Pty Ltd. It was distributed to mining communities in Dampier, Karratha, Tom Price and Paraburdoo.
Hamersley News was first issued as a monthly four page magazine for the personnel of Hamersley Iron Pty Ltd. [1] It ran from March 1969 until September 1972, when it moved to a newspaper format.
It provided news on topics of interest to people living in those communities, such as technical developments and production results, as well as news about visitors, sports results, and social activities. [1] It was intended to foster feelings of common interest and of belonging to a community, despite the large distances between Dampier and Karratha, and Tom Price and Paraburdoo.
In the last issue of the magazine, it was stated that Hamersley News would be changing to a free fortnightly tabloid newspaper. It would still cover all community activities and significant company events. It would be complemented by a quarterly review magazine. [2]
As a newspaper it featured a number of personal stories relating to local people. There was also a section called "Women's World" that included various domestic and cosmetic hints and tips, alongside recipes and stories about children and families.
Hamersley News came to an end with its 180th edition. In 1980 the newspaper was purchased from Hamersley Iron Pty Ltd by the Independent Newspaper Group of Perth. It was continued by the Pilbara Advertiser, extending the distribution to Wickham, Roebourne and Pannawonica. [3]
Prior to Hamersley News, newcomers to Hamersley's mining towns were welcomed with the booklet, North West with Hamersley. [1]
Issues of Hamersley News (1969-1980) have been digitised as part of the Australian Newspapers Digitisation Program, [4] a project of the National Library of Australia in cooperation with the State Library of Western Australia.
Hard copies of Hamersley News are available at the State Library of Western Australia, but access is limited for preservation reasons. [5] [6]
Pilbara Iron is a wholly owned subsidiary of the multinational Rio Tinto Group, that manages assets for Hamersley Iron Pty Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Rio Tinto, and Robe River Iron Associates, an unincorporated joint venture between Rio and three Japanese steel companies Mitsui Iron Ore Development P/L (33%), Nippon Steel Australia P/L (10.5%) and Sumitomo Metal Australia P/L (3.5%).
Dampier is a major industrial port in the Pilbara region in the northwest of Western Australia. It is located near the city of Karratha and Port Walcott.
The Pilbara is a large, dry, thinly populated region in the north of Western Australia. It is known for its Aboriginal peoples; its ancient landscapes; the red earth; and its vast mineral deposits, in particular iron ore. It is also a global biodiversity hotspot for subterranean fauna.
Newman, originally named Mount Newman until 1981, is a town in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. It is located about 1,186 kilometres (737 mi) north of Perth, and 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) north of the Tropic of Capricorn. It can be reached by the Great Northern Highway. Newman is a modern mining town, with homes contrasting with the surrounding reddish desert. As of the 2021 census, Newman had a population of 6,456. The Hickman Crater, a meteorite impact crater discovered in 2007, is 35 kilometres (22 mi) north of Newman.
Karratha is a city in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, adjoining the port of Dampier. It is located in the traditional lands and waters of the Ngarluma people, for whom is has been Ngurra (home/Country) for tens of thousands of years. It was established in 1968 to accommodate the processing and exportation workforce of the Hamersley Iron mining company and, in the 1980s, the petroleum and liquefied natural gas operations of the Woodside-operated North West Shelf Venture located on Murujuga. As of the 2021 census, Karratha had an urban population of 17,013. The city's name comes from the cattle station of the same name, which derives from a word in a local Aboriginal language meaning "good country" or "soft earth". More recently, Ngarluma people have indicated the name may actually relate to an early interpretation of "Gardarra", stemming from the sacred site for the whale, located in the Karratha area, called "Gardarrabuga". The city is the seat of government of the City of Karratha, a local government area covering the surrounding region.
Paraburdoo is a mining town in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The region is served by Paraburdoo Airport, which is situated 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) from the town.
Karratha Airport is an airport in Karratha, in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The airport is 14 km (8.7 mi) from Karratha and 5 nautical miles south of Dampier.
Pilbara newspapers is a selection of newspapers published in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
This timeline is a selected list of events and locations of the development of the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
The Hamersley & Robe River railway, majority-owned by Rio Tinto, and operated by its subsidiary Pilbara Iron, is a private rail network in the Pilbara region of Western Australia for the purpose of carrying iron ore. The network is larger than any other Australian heavy freight rail network in private ownership. The total length of its track is about 1,700 km (1,056 mi).
The Mount Tom Price mine is an iron ore mine located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, near the town of Tom Price.
The Marandoo mine is an iron ore mine located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, 45 kilometres east of Tom Price.
The Paraburdoo mine is an iron ore mine located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, near Paraburdoo.
The Channar mine is an iron ore mine located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, 17 kilometres south-east of Paraburdoo.
The Eastern Range mine is an iron ore mine in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, 10 kilometres south-east of Paraburdoo.
The Yandicoogina mine, often shortened to Yandi, is an iron ore mine located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, 95 kilometres north-west of Newman. it should not be confused with BHP Billiton's Yandi mine, which is located nearby.
Iron ore mining in Western Australia, in the 2018–19 financial year, accounted for 54 percent of the total value of the state's resource production, with a value of A$78.2 billion. The overall value of the minerals and petroleum industry in Western Australia was A$145 billion in 2018–19, a 26 percent increase on the previous financial year.
The Railways in the Pilbara are a collection of railways in the Pilbara region of north-west Western Australia.
Main Roads Western Australia controls the major roads in the state's Pilbara region. There are two main highways in the region: Great Northern Highway, which travels north through the region to Port Hedland and then north-west along the coast, as well as North West Coastal Highway, which heads south-west from Port Hedland. A series of main roads connects towns to the highways, and local roads provide additional links. The majority of these roads service the western half of the region, with few located in the various deserts east of the Oakover River. Roads are often named after the towns or areas they connect.
Manuwarra Red Dog Highway is a major road currently under construction in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, between Karratha and Tom Price. Originally known as Karratha–Tom Price Road, it acquired its new name in September 2020 after community consultation. Manuwarra means "'heaps' or 'masses'" in the Yindjibarndi language and is the indigenous name for the Red Dog Gorge in the Millstream Chichester National Park. Both the gorge and the highway acquired its English name from the eponymous Red Dog, a famous Kelpie/Cattle Dog and Pilbara mascot from the 1970s.