Burlong Pool is a section of the Avon River in

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

between

Spencers Brook Spencer's may refer to: * Spencer's (department store), a defunct department store chain in British Columbia, Canada * Spencer's Gifts, a North American retail chain * Spencer Plaza in Chennai, India * Spencer's Retail Spencer's Retail is an In ...

and Northam.

Water trains

Burlong Pool was a former railway stopping place, which was used as a location for drawing water into the water trains to the Eastern Goldfield locations prior to the completion of the

Goldfields Water Supply Scheme The Goldfields Water Supply Scheme is a pipeline and dam project that delivers potable water from Mundaring Weir in Perth to communities in Western Australia's Eastern Goldfields, particularly Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie. The project was co ...

. During dry weather in the late 1890s up to five separate water trains per day would be drawing water from the pool and travelling between Northam and the goldfields.

Swimming location

Following the completion of the Goldfields water supply pipeline the water was no longer extracted from the pool, but the location was notable for being used as the Northam swimming carnival location, swimming location and rail excursions, and the site of drownings.

Wagyl location

As a long deep pool that was well watered in summertime, the location was known to the

Noongar The Noongar (, also spelt Noongah, Nyungar , Nyoongar, Nyoongah, Nyungah, Nyugah, and Yunga ) are Aboriginal Australian peoples who live in the south-west corner of Western Australia, from Geraldton on the west coast to Esperance on the so ...

as a place where the

Wagyl The Wagyl (also written Waugal and Waagal and variants) is the Noongar manifestation of the Rainbow Serpent in Australian Aboriginal mythology, from the culture based around the south-west of Western Australia. The Noongar describe the Wagyl as ...

had a summer resting place.

Military history

Burlong Pool was owned by the

Western Australian Government Railways Western Australian Government Railways (WAGR) was the operator of railway services in the state of Western Australia between October 1890 and June 2003. Owned by the state government, it was renamed a number of times to reflect extra responsi ...

. It was leased by the

Australian Army during World War II The Australian Army was the largest service in the Australian military during World War II. Prior to the outbreak of war the Australian Army was split into the small full-time Permanent Military Forces (PMF) and the larger part-time Militia. Foll ...

. During the 1940s and 1950s it was the location for training for water crossings, bridge building and water obstacles. Many bridge parts and tools are believed to lie on the bottom of the pool. A rock river crossing allowed access from the rear of the Northam Army Camp to Burlong and Spencers Brook Roads.

Notes

{{coord missing, Western Australia Avon River (Western Australia) Northam, Western Australia Eastern Railway (Western Australia) Swimming venues in Australia Natural pools

Water trains

Swimming location

Wagyl location

Military history

See also

Notes