History and Heritage
Geo Hub of the spectacular semi arid and ancient Murchison Region, Mount Magnet is Western Australia’s longest continuous goldmining centre since 1891 and home to the famous Hill 50 GM – Australia’s deepest and for a time, richest, underground gold mine.
Surrounded by awesome rocks and nearby rock sites, a staggeringly old geological history underlies the presence of human habitation here. Descendants of the Badimaya people live in Mount Magnet today, their stories told through language and photo books and emerging indigenous art. Pastoral families, who first settled here from 1878, work creatively and collaboratively towards sustainable pastoralism. Mount Magnet has a rich heritage and progressive future. Be sure to visit the Mining and Pastoral Museum.
Mount Magnet is the only service centre in the vast Mining and Pastoral Region of Western Australia, where you can arrive and depart on sealed roads to all four points of the compass. Mount Magnet is situated 560km north east of Perth on Great Northern Highway, which continues north to the Kimberleys.
Central to the Gascoyne Murchison Outback Miners Pathway, Mount Magnet offers easy access on sealed roads to Cue (80km north), Meekatharra (170km north), Sandstone (158km east), Paynes Find (145km south) and Yalgoo (124km west).
The closest major regional centre to Mount Magnet is the port city of Geraldton, 342km west. The sealed east – west link from ocean to ocean, connects the Murchison Goldfields to the Northern Goldfields, onto Kalgoorlie-Boulder in the Eastern Goldfields and beyond. The adventurous can travel by sealed road east, then onto Wiluna or Laverton to connect with the Gunbarrel Highway and Outback Way.
Mount Magnet also offers a convenient stopover for travellers to Newman (610km north) and turn off to Karijini National Park (772km north).
A commercial airport with sealed runway is located 6km south of Mount Magnet. Skippers Aviation offers a regular scheduled passenger air service between Mount Magnet and Perth most weekdays, with direct flights only 1 hour and 15 minutes from Perth. For current flight schedules, online bookings and general information, please visit the Skippers website at www.skippers.com.au or call on 1300 729 924. The airport is also busy with Fly In Fly Out services for the mining sector.
