Shire of Morawa explained

Type:	lga
Shire of Morawa
State:	wa
Region:	Mid West
Area:	3515.8
Seat:	Morawa
Image2 Upright:	0.81
Local Map:	yes
Zoom:	8
Url:	http://www.morawa.wa.gov.au
Mayor:	Karen Chappel
Mayortitle:	Shire President
Fedgov:	Durack
Stategov:	Moore
Near-Nw:	Greater Geraldton
Near-N:	Greater Geraldton
Near-Ne:	Yalgoo
Near-W:	Mingenew
Near-E:	Perenjori
Near-Sw:	Three Springs
Near-S:	Perenjori
Near-Se:	Perenjori

The Shire of Morawa is a local government area in the Mid West region of Western Australia, about 170km (110miles) east-southeast of the city of Geraldton and about 390km (240miles) north of the state capital, Perth. The Shire covers an area of 3516km2, and its seat of government is the town of Morawa.

History

The Shire of Morawa originated as the Morawa Road District, established on 27 April 1928 when the Perenjori-Morawa Road District (which had separated from the Upper Irwin Road District in 1916), split into separate Morawa and Perenjori road districts.^[1]

On 1 July 1961, Morawa became a shire following the passage of the Local Government Act 1960, which reformed all remaining road districts into shires.

On 18 September 2009, the Shires of Mingenew, Three Springs, Morawa and Perenjori announced their intention to amalgamate. A formal agreement was signed five days later, and the name Billeranga was later chosen.^[2] However, by February 2011, community pressure had led to the negotiations stalling, and on 16 April 2011, voters from the Shire of Perenjori defeated the proposal at a referendum.^{[3] [4]}

Wards

The Shire is no longer divided into wards and the seven councillors sit at large. Prior to the 1997 election, the Shire was divided into wards:

• Town Ward (three councillors)
• Central Ward (two councillors)
• North Ward (two councillors)
• South Ward (two councillors)
• Pintharuka Ward (two councillors)

Towns and localities

The towns and localities of the Shire of Morawa with population and size figures based on the most recent Australian census:^{[5] [6]}

Locality	data-sort-type=number	Population	data-sort-type=number	Area	Map
			Id: Q5032541 Zoom: 9 Mapframe: yes Wikidata: yes
			Id: Q5621728 Zoom: 9 Mapframe: yes Wikidata: yes
			Id: Q6430601 Zoom: 9 Mapframe: yes Wikidata: yes
			Id: Q34639265 Zoom: 9 Mapframe: yes Wikidata: yes
			Id: Q3862840 Zoom: 10 Mapframe: yes Wikidata: yes
			Id: Q7196519 Zoom: 9 Mapframe: yes Wikidata: yes

Population

Prior to 1933 the census area was incorporated in the Perenjori-Morawa Road District.^[7]

Heritage-listed places

See main article: List of State Register of Heritage Places in the Shire of Morawa. As of 2023, 54 places are heritage-listed in the Shire of Morawa,^[8] of which six are on the State Register of Heritage Places.^[9]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Municipality Boundary Amendments Register . Western Australian Electoral Distribution Commission . 11 January 2020.
2. News: Mid-West councils to amalgamate. ABC Online. 18 September 2009.
3. Web site: Archived copy . 2013-03-28 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130419043210/http://www.morawa.wa.gov.au/uploaddocs/referendum%20results.pdf . 19 April 2013 . dmy-all .
4. News: Perenjori amalgamation not to proceed. Mid West News. 18 April 2011. 26 May 2012.
5. Web site: SLIP Map . . maps.slip.wa.gov.au . . 14 January 2023 .
6. Web site: NationalMap . . nationalmap.gov.au . . 14 January 2023 .
7. Web site: Historical Census Data . Australian Bureau of Statistics . 9 March 2020 . Canberra . 25 June 2017.
8. Web site: Shire of Morawa Heritage Places. . inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au . Heritage Council of Western Australia . 23 February 2023.
9. Web site: Shire of Morawa State Register of Heritage Places. . inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au . Heritage Council of Western Australia . 23 February 2023.