Yunndaga is an abandoned town located in the Goldfields-Esperance region in

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

, between

Kalgoorlie Kalgoorlie-Boulder (or just Kalgoorlie) is a city in the Goldfields–Esperance region of Western Australia, located east-northeast of Perth at the end of the Great Eastern Highway. It is referred to as Kalgoorlie–Boulder as the surroundi ...

and Leonora along the

Goldfields Highway Goldfields Highway is a generally northwest–southeast highway in central Western Australia which links the Great Northern Highway at Meekatharra with Coolgardie-Esperance Highway south of Kalgoorlie. The highway is approximately in length, ...

. In the mid-1890s

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

was discovered in the area, and by 1898 a layout for businesses and residences was planned, initially called Woolgar. By 1904 the mining warden sought for the town to be declared. A town named Woolgar already existed in

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, so ''Yunndaga'' was chosen instead. The town was gazetted in March 1904. In 1897 when construction of the

Menzies Menzies is a Scottish surname, with Gaelic forms being Méinnearach and Méinn, and other variant forms being Menigees, Mennes, Mengzes, Menzeys, Mengies, and Minges. Derivation and history The name and its Gaelic form are probably derived f ...

railway line Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of land transport, next to road ...

commenced a siding was later established in Yunndaga. The narrow gauge line was closed in 1973 and the siding was subsequently demolished. A Roman Catholic and

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

church had both been built in the town by 1904. The Yunndaga hotel was built prior to 1918, and was sold to J. K. Robinson for £3000 at that time. By 1924, the town was home to several businesses, including the Royal Group Hotel. One of the main mines close to town at the time was the Menzies Consolidated Gold Mine. In 1936 there were 50 residents living in the town. The name of the town is Aboriginal in origin and was originally spelt as ''Yundagar''. The meaning of the name is not known.

References

{{authority control Ghost towns of the Goldfields of Western Australia Shire of Menzies