History of the Shire

In 1848, the area was first surveyed by then State Surveyor-General John Septimus Roe. The Dunn brothers settled in the area in 1868 when they took up land at Coconarup. Thirty years later James Dunn found gold at Annabel Creek and was given a reward claim by the government. A gold rush occurred in the ensuing couple of years which resulted in the development of gold and copper mining in or around Ravensthorpe. Mining continued spasmodically over the years until today when a major nickel mining project with a projected life of 25 years, is now under construction.

Agriculture continued to grow after the depression in the nineteen-thirties and with further land releases in the nineteen sixties and seventies, remains the principal industry of the area.