Iron Baron was a
settlement
Settlement may refer to:
*Human settlement, a community where people live
*Settlement (structural), downward movement of a structure's foundation
*Settlement (finance), where securities are delivered against payment of money
*Settlement (litigatio ...
associated with the Iron Baron
iron ore
Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the f ...
mine
() on
Eyre Peninsula
The Eyre Peninsula is a triangular peninsula in South Australia. It is bounded by the Spencer Gulf on the east, the Great Australian Bight on the west, and the Gawler Ranges to the north.
Earlier called Eyre's Peninsula, it was named after e ...
at the southern edge of
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...
's
Far North region, north-west of
Adelaide
Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...
.
The settlement was situated about 200 metres from the eastern boundary of the mine.
BHP
BHP Group Limited, founded as the Broken Hill Proprietary Company, is an Australian multinational mining and metals corporation. BHP was established in August 1885 and is headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria.
As of 2024, BHP was the worldâ ...
owned and serviced the settlement, having built it about 1938. There were several dozen houses, a one-teacher primary school, a general store, oval, swimming pool, netball courts, picnic areas and licensed community club.
Before the mine’s re-opening in 2011, BHP bulldozed all the settlement's surface infrastructure, including buildings, into a pit at the mine. Employees now commute from
Whyalla
Whyalla is a city in South Australia. It was founded as Hummock's Hill, and was known by that name until 1916. It is the fourth most populous city in the Australian state of South Australia after Adelaide, Mount Gambier, and Gawler, and along ...
or elsewhere.
Operation of the nearby mine
The Iron Baron mine is one of several large orebodies in the
Middleback Range
The Middleback Range is a mountain range on the eastern side of Eyre Peninsula in South Australia. The Middleback Range has been a source of iron ore for over a century, particularly to feed the Whyalla Steelworks. Mines in the region were first ...
, with a production capacity of about two million tonnes of haematite a year. Built by BHP in 1933, it went out of operation between 1947 and 1958; it was re-opened in 2011.
On-site facilities now include a fully functional ore
beneficiation plant.
Related mines
*
Iron Knob
Iron Knob is a town in the Australian state of South Australia on the Eyre Peninsula immediately south of the Eyre Highway. At the 2006 census, Iron Knob and the surrounding area had a population of 199. The town obtained its name from its prox ...
* Iron Knight
* Iron Duke
See also
*
List of cities and towns in South Australia
This is a list of town and locality names in South Australia outside the metropolitan postal area of Adelaide.
:For a list of suburbs in metropolitan areas of Adelaide, see lists inside following individual city council articles: City of Adela ...
References
Towns in South Australia
Mining in South Australia
Far North (South Australia)
Iron ore mines in Australia
Eyre Peninsula
Places in the unincorporated areas of South Australia
{{SouthAustralia-geo-stub