The Town of Northam was a

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a State (administrative division), state, province, divi ...

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 ...

for the town of Northam in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, north-east of the capital,

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

along

Great Eastern Highway Great Eastern Highway is a road that links the Western Australian capital of Perth with the city of Kalgoorlie. A key route for road vehicles accessing the eastern Wheatbelt and the Goldfields, it is the western portion of the main road link ...

. The Town had a population of 6,009 as of the

2006 census 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...

. In January 2007, the Department of Local Government and Regional Development recommended the council merge with the surrounding

Shire of Northam The Shire of Northam is a local government area in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, beyond the northeastern fringe of the Perth metropolitan area centred on the town of Northam itself. The Shire covers an area of . In 2007, it merg ...

to become a single entity. Following the failure of a referendum on 28 April 2007 within the Shire of Northam to stop the move, the

amalgamation Amalgamation is the process of combining or uniting multiple entities into one form. Amalgamation, amalgam, and other derivatives may refer to: Mathematics and science * Amalgam (chemistry), the combination of mercury with another metal **Pan am ...

proceeded on 1 July 2007.

History

On 4 November 1879, the Municipality of Northam was constituted to govern the affairs of the town of Northam. The town expanded beyond the municipal boundaries, which were set at about , and on 6 September 1957, the municipal boundaries were adjusted to bring all of Northam under it. On 1 July 1961, the Municipality became a Town under the ''Local Government Act 1860''.

Amalgamation

In September 2006, the Town received a report into the possibility of merging with the

, and on 31 October 2006, the Local Government Advisory Board received a proposal to that effect from both councils. Public meetings in December 2006 announced that the new council would be known as the Shire of Northam, and would come into existence on 1 July 2007, initially operated by a board of commissioners (two from each entity plus an independent chair). In January 2007, the Local Government Advisory Board officially recommended to the Minister for Local Government that the amalgamation proceed.

Wards

The town had 9 councillors plus an elected mayor, and no wards.

Population

References

{{coord, -31.653, 116.666, type:adm2nd_region:AU-WA, format=dms, display=title Northam 1879 establishments in Australia Northam, Western Australia 2007 disestablishments in Australia