The Arthur River is located in the

south-west The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each se ...

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 ...

. The river was named by Governor James Stirling in October 1835 after Arthur Trimmer, who was a member of the exploring expedition led by Stirling. The headwaters of the Arthur River is located about north of Wagin in the Arthur River Nature Reserve near the small settlement of Arthur River on

Albany Highway Albany Highway links Western Australia's capital city Perth with its oldest settlement, Albany, on the state's south coast. The highway travels through the southern Wheatbelt and Great Southern regions, and is designated State Route ...

. The longest

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...

of Arthur River is

Beaufort River The Beaufort River is a river in the South West of Western Australia. The river was named in 1835 by John Septimus Roe, Surveyor General of Western Australia, after a friend Rear Admiral Sir Francis Beaufort who was Hydrographer of the Navy fr ...

but other tributaries include Hillman River, Kojonup Brook, Narrogin Brook and Yilliminning River. The river flows in a generally south-westerly direction until it meets with the

Balgarup River Balgarup River is a river in Western Australia that has its headwaters south-east of Kojonup just below Byenup Hill. The river flows is a north-westerly direction crossing Albany Highway south of Kojonup then through the town of Muradup and ...

to form the Blackwood River. The river flooded in 1895 following heavy rains when the swollen river rose swiftly causing several near drownings among the settlers who lived along the banks at the township of Arthur River. The bridge near Piesseville was left underwater following heavy rains near Wagin cause the river the rise downstream. More flooding occurred in 1939 rendering the bridge at Arthur River impassable and closing it for two days while repair crews worked to make the bridge usable again.

References

Rivers of the South West region {{WesternAustralia-river-stub