Shire of Irwin
Local government area in Western Australia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Shire of Irwin is a local government area in the Mid West region of Western Australia, about 50 kilometres (30 mi) south of Geraldton and about 360 kilometres (220 mi) north of the state capital, Perth. The Shire covers an area of 2,374 square kilometres (917 sq mi), and its seat of government is the town of Dongara.
Shire of Irwin | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Location in Western Australia | |||||||||||||
 | |||||||||||||
 Interactive map of Shire of Irwin | |||||||||||||
| Country | Australia | ||||||||||||
| State | Western Australia | ||||||||||||
| Region | Mid West | ||||||||||||
| Council seat | Dongara | ||||||||||||
| Government | |||||||||||||
| • Shire President | Michael Smith | ||||||||||||
| • State electorate | |||||||||||||
| • Federal division | |||||||||||||
| Area | |||||||||||||
• Total | 2,374.4 km2 (916.8 sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Population | |||||||||||||
| • Total | 3,680 (LGA 2021)[1] | ||||||||||||
| Website | Shire of Irwin | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
History
The Irwin Road District was created on 24 January 1871 as one of the first regional local government areas in Western Australia. Before this, it was the "Victoria District". On 16 June 1916, Irwin received a large land area from the Upper Irwin Road Board shortly before that entity's dissolution. Sections of the district separated as part of the formation of the Carnamah Road District on 24 August 1923 and the Three Springs Road District on 2 November 1928.[2]
On 1 July 1961, it became a shire following the passage of the Local Government Act 1960, which reformed all remaining road districts into shires.[2]
Population
Historical population | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wards
The Shire is divided into four wards:
- Denison Ward (four councillors)
- North Ward (two councillors)
- South East Ward (two councillors)
- Town Ward (two councillors)
Towns and localities
The towns and localities of the Shire of Irwin with population and size figures based on the most recent Australian census:[4][5]
| Locality | Population | Area | Map |
|---|---|---|---|
| Allanooka | 19 (SAL 2016)[6][7] | 323.6 km2 (124.9 sq mi) |  |
| Arrowsmith | 17 (SAL 2021)[8] | 821.7 km2 (317.3 sq mi) |  |
| Bonniefield | 217 (SAL 2021)[9] | 53.9 km2 (20.8 sq mi) |  |
| Bookara | 149 (SAL 2021)[10] | 141.4 km2 (54.6 sq mi) |  |
| Dongara | 1,393 (SAL 2021)[11] | 8.3 km2 (3.2 sq mi) |  |
| Irwin | 72 (SAL 2021)[12] | 5.6 km2 (2.2 sq mi) |  |
| Milo | 16 (SAL 2021)[13] | 201.4 km2 (77.8 sq mi) |  |
| Mount Adams | 8 (SAL 2021)[14] | 293.3 km2 (113.2 sq mi) |  |
| Mount Horner | 13 (SAL 2021)[15] | 258.2 km2 (99.7 sq mi) |  |
| Port Denison | 1,452 (SAL 2021)[16] | 15 km2 (5.8 sq mi) |  |
| Springfield | 276 (SAL 2021)[17] | 14.7 km2 (5.7 sq mi) |  |
| Yardarino | 48 (SAL 2021)[18] | 234.3 km2 (90.5 sq mi) |  |
Notable councillors
- Samuel James Phillips, Irwin Road Board member 1883; later a state MP
- Charles Maley, Upper Irwin Road Board member 1907–1929; also a state MP
Heritage-listed places
As of 2023, 157 places are heritage-listed in the Shire of Irwin,[19] of which 16 are on the State Register of Heritage Places.[20]
