Mingenew

History

Mingenew was named after Mingenew Spring, an Aboriginal word recorded by European settlers in 1856, possibly deriving from either the words Minga nu "the place of many ants and flies" or Mininoo "the place of many waters". Mingenew and the surrounding Irwin District were first explored by the brothers Augustus Charles and Francis Thomas Gregory in August 1847, looking for suitable grazing land. Settlement of the district then occurred in the 1850s because it was ideal country for cattle. The Midland railway line opened in August 1891, and private land was subdivided, followed in 1906 by subdivision of government land. In 1906, the town of Mingenew was gazetted.