Gabanintha is a

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * Ghost Town (1936 film), ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * Ghost Town (1956 film), ''Ghost Town'' ...

located in the

Mid West The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...

region of

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 ...

approximately 40 km south east of Meekatharra on the Meekatharra-

Sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

road. The town is situated within the Murchison goldfields. The name of the town is Aboriginal in origin but of unknown meaning. The name of the town can be found on maps dating as far back as 1894, with

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

mining leases being taken out in the surrounding areas in 1895 to 1910. In 1895, an abandoned lease known as ''The Emerald Isle Star of the East'' was taken up by a syndicate and renamed Gabanintha. While driving on the old workings 3 ft of reef was exposed showing good gold. A shopkeeper from Nannine, William Small, built a hotel in the town and applied for a licence in 1896. The

state government A state government is the government that controls a subdivision of a country in a federal form of government, which shares political power with the federal or national government. A state government may have some level of political autonomy, or ...

was petitioned in 1897 by the miners of the area to survey the townsite which had land reserved the following year resulting in the town being gazetted in 1898. The population of the town was 46 (44 males and 2 females) in 1898. Lots were surveyed in 1905 and mining continued around the town until 1944. The townsite is one of many ghost towns in the area; others include: Peak Hill,

Horseshoe A horseshoe is a fabricated product designed to protect a horse hoof from wear. Shoes are attached on the palmar surface (ground side) of the hooves, usually nailed through the insensitive hoof wall that is anatomically akin to the human toen ...

and Garden Gully.

References

{{authority control Ghost towns in the Mid West of Western Australia Shire of Meekatharra