WAPlanned settlement
Exmouth
A defence installation created a town beside Ningaloo.
1963Town gazetted · naval communications base
WHAT STARTED IT
Exmouth was planned and gazetted in 1963 to house people building and operating the Harold E. Holt naval communication station at North West Cape. Before that, the peninsula had only scattered pastoral and military activity.
WHAT SUSTAINED IT
The station and town officially opened in 1967. Defence employment produced rapid early growth, while Cyclone Vance caused severe damage in 1999. Tourism around Ningaloo Reef subsequently became a second defining industry.
TURNING POINTS
1963Town gazetted for the naval station.
1967Town and communication station open.
1999Cyclone Vance severely damages Exmouth.
WHAT IT DOES NOW
A remote service and tourism town for Ningaloo Coast visitors, while the immense communications masts still reveal its strategic origin.