Outback Towns

Warburton

Warburton or Warburton mission is a tiny settlement in Western Australia, just to the south of the Gibson Desert on the Great Central Road and Gunbarrel Highway.

About Warburton

Warburton or Warburton mission (26°7′S 126°34′E) is a tiny settlement in Western Australia, just to the south of the Gibson Desert on the Great Central Road and Gunbarrel Highway. The settlement has been an Aboriginal mission since 1934, when Will Wade, his wife and his children established the mission under the auspices of the UAM (United Aborigines Mission). It is named after explorer Peter Warburton, the first European to cross the Great Sandy Desert.

Warburton is a "dry" community where the use of alcohol is prohibited. Tourists need a permit to enter the town. Warburton is the centre of a very large Aboriginal reserve, Ngaanyatjarra which is extremely isolated, stretching east to the Northern Territory border. Beyond there the first major settlement is Yulara, near Uluru. West along the Gunbarrel Highway the first town is Wiluna over 1000 km away. There is regular traffic between those towns as the Aboriginal people there are often related. The town features an artistic glass works, producing glass panels for interior design. The art gallery exhibits Aboriginal art from the region.

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