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Nannine > Nannine Churches


NANNINE  -   Christ Church, Main Street

Gold was discovered here as early as 1890, and the big mine on lease 25N called “Nannine” produced 24,385.66 ozs of gold from 23,649.60 tonnes of ore between 1897 and 1916. This was the first goldmining lease registered in the Murchison district. The claim is made that Nannine was the first town on the Murchison Goldfields - it was gazetted in 1893. On 22-09-1896 it was declared a municipality which continued until 1930, when the last Roads Board meeting was held on 14-01-1930. The population of the town in 1901 was stated to be 93 plus 11 aborigines. It is 22 miles south west of Meekatharra and 51 miles north of Cue. 

In December 1894 the Rev’d D. Howell Griffith of Cue first visited Nannine and held a service. In 1897 W.A. Kenworthy was licensed to officiate as a lay reader in Nannine. The Rev’d B.G. Richardson [stationed at Cue 1898 - 1901] also held services in the Miners’ Hall. A committee was formed with R.C. Hall as Chairman. The first recorded Baptism was of the son of Mr and Mrs Timperley of the Royal Hotel and the first recorded wedding between the manager of the Nannine Mine, Martyn McCord, and Dora Stonnar of Melbourne.

A wood and iron church building, erected on Crown Grant Town Lots 53 and 54, on the south side of Main Street [also known as Marmion Street] was licensed for public worship on 05-06-1905. A local newspaper report states: “The Bishop of Perth formally opened the Mission Hall on Monday night, a large congregation being present. His Lordship, in the course of his address, explained the religious and practical object of churches. The choir sang the anthem ‘Ye shall dwell in the Lord’.” There was a Confirmation the next afternoon and a Social in the Miners’ Hall that night. A loan of £120 was made by the Diocesan Trustees at the time and a £30 grant came from the Marriott Bequest and £20 from SPCK. A school was run adjoining Mr Harding’s “residence for the convenience of parents with children who lived where no school was established. Boarders were especially catered for” according to The Murchison Times. An iron Clergy Camp was provided in 1908-9 - this was transferred to Wiluna in 1932.

On 23-08-1909 Bishop Riley consecrated the Anglican portion of the Public Cemetery. The town began to go into decline when the railway was extended to Meekatharra in 1910. In 1912 T.L. Harbutt was licensed as a lay reader for Nannine-Meekatharra.

The last services were held in the church on 06-11-1935, and in 1939 it was moved to Reedy while the Clergy Camp had gone to Wiluna.

It is recorded that services were held in Nannine every Sunday in 1905. In 1907 the parish included Tuckanarra, Burnakurra, Gabanitha, Peak Hill [gazetted as a township in 1897 and where the Rev’d G. Harding resided 1901 - 1902 as assistant to the rector of Cue], Meekatharra, Chesterfield, and Quinns. In 1909 Errolls was added to the list. Nannine district had a population at one time of 2,600, although there were only 93 in the 1901 Census. The Bishop reported it to be less than fifty in 1918.

In 1911 Nannine became part of the Meekatharra Parish and services were then held about once a month. The town was situated in the Diocese of Kalgoorlie from 1914 to 1929 and the Bishop of Kalgoorlie paid his first visit on 30th July 1914. It passed into the Diocese of North West Australia in 1929 and Bishop Frewer paid his first visit on 3rd December that year.

CLERGY STATIONED IN NANNINE

1903 - 1906      G. Harding

1907 - 1908     S.A. Milward, Layreader in charge]

 1908 - 1910     E.O. Phillips

 1910 - 1911     L.M. O’Neal was licensed as “Curate of Nannine” while in Deacon’s Orders

RECORDS HELD AT THE BATTYE LIBRARY

Service registers             1905 - 1935

Baptismal registers         1902 - 1943

Marriage registers          1904    [with some Meekatharra entries]

Burial registers             1902 - 1907

BIBLIOGRAPHY   Nannine by the Lake  by P.R. Heydon. Published by Ross Atkins Mining  and Hesperian Press 1990

Submitted by Fr Ted Doncaster

  


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