DESCRIPTION
Tammin is one of many small wheat belt towns.
The name's origin is a bit uncertain with some sources saying that the Aboriginal word tammin means grandmother or grandfather.
Another possibility is that the name originates with the tammar wallaby.
The wallaby was once listed as extinct on the mainland but re-introduction has seen numbers increase in some areas.
The town is on the Great Eastern Highway between the larger centres of Cunderdin and Kellerberrin.
If you are looking for somewhere to stay in Tammin in a caravan, motorhome or camper, you won't find a better spot that the
local sports ground.
There is a small fee that is payable to the local shire office but for that you get power, water, toilets, showers, BBQ,
playground and an under cover area you can use if it is raining.
It is about the best value you will find anywhere these days.
There is a black water dump point at the southern end of the sportsground as well so facilities for travellers are very good.
The toilets at the sportsground are open all the time but you will need to get a key from the shire to access the showers.
Other public toilets are available just behind the Tammin Hall in the main street.
There is an excellent op-shop in Tammin that is worth checking out.
When we visited it was open from 9 am to 1pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays but this may vary depending on the availability of
volunteers.
HISTORY
Exploration started with Charles Cooke Hunt in 1864. Hunt seems to have travelled far and
wide for John Forrest is quoted to have said of him;
"Will I ever find a place where this man has not been before me."
In 1864, as he passed through the area, Hunt had his men construct a well. His diary entry for 4 March records:
'During the early part of the day the working party engaged sinking well - having made a hole about 10' long by 7' broad and 6' deep - by noon
we obtained a plentiful supply of water for travelling purposes.'
Hunt sank many such wells through out the wheat belt and this was one of the contributing factors in opening the area up for settlement.
The first settler in the area was John Packham who arrived in 1893 (another source says 1881 but 1893 appears to be the officially accepted date). Ten years
later the goldfields water pipeline arrived and this helped to guarantee the town's survival. The town site was gazetted in 1899.
A local progress committee was formed in 1903. A bank, post office, hotel, stores and hall were all built between 1908 and 1911. The town was once much larger than it is today
and the population once numbered around 2,000.
A military training ground was established and troops inspected by General Lord Kitchener in 1910. Although the lease was cancelled in 1921 it continued to be called Kitchener's Field.
In 1928 an airfield was established close to town and it played host to some very famous pilots including Charles Kingsford Smith (1928), Major H deHaviland, and H.C.
Miller during the West Australian Centennial Air Race of 1929 and Amy Johnson in 1930. The air race was the longest in the world at the time and of 17 starters an amazing 15 completed the race.
Originally part of the Meckering district, the Tammin Road Board became independent in 1948.
The Meckering earthquake in 1968 had its effects on Tammin with the local hotel and several other buildings being so badly damaged that they had to be demolished.
By 1987 the town's population was in decline and businesses were closing in the main street. The remaining residents got together to for a co-operative and set about re-vitalising the town.
This was largely successful and by 1990 the population had stabilised about the 500 mark and a number of businesses had re-opened.
The huge wheat silos that dominate the main street of Tammin were constructed in 1960 and were some of the very first concrete silos to be built in Australia.
They originally held 13,600 tonnes of grain and were extended in 1996 to hold 25,990 tonnes.
TALL TALES AND TRUE
Nothing known at this time.
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OTHER INFORMATION
ATTRACTIONS
Hunts Well, Yorkrakine Rock, Charles Gardner Reserve.
BUILDINGS OF NOTE
Post Office, Town Hall, Bank, fire station, wheat silo.
ELECTORAL ZONES
State : Central Wheatbelt
Federal : Durack
OTHER INFO.
Postcode : 6409
Local Government : Shire of Tammin
PHOTOS
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