Meckering, Western Australia

Meckering is a town 130 km east of Perth, Western Australia along the Great Eastern Highway. Meckering is located within the Shire of Cunderdin.A railway line was completed in the area in 1895 and Meckering was selected as a station site. The first name chosen for the townsite was Beebering, the Aboriginal name for the hills just north of the town.The townsite of Beebering was gazetted in 1895. The name of the town was changed to Meckering in 1897 to agree with the station name and the name for the town that was used locally. Meckering is an Aboriginal word thought to mean "moon on the water" or "good hunting".In early 1898 the population of the town was 225, 150 males and 75 females.In 1932 the Wheat Pool of Western Australia announced that the town would have two grain elevators, each fitted with an engine, installed at the railway siding.The surrounding areas produce wheat and other cereal crops. The town is a receival site for Cooperative Bulk Handling.EarthquakeAt 10:59 am on 14 October 1968, a 40-second earthquake measuring 6.9 on the Richter Scale destroyed the town, and had effect on a considerable area in the south western region of Western Australia. Surface faulting was up to 3 metres high, and almost 40 km long. As it was a public holiday, the risk of casualties was reduced. Buildings in the metropolitan area of Perth were damaged as a result of the earthquake, and tremors were felt as far away as Geraldton, Kalgoorlie, Esperance, and Albany. The building codes and various structural issues for Western Australia were modified as a result of the earthquake and further development of earthquake engineering. The memory and significance of the event is commemorated by the local and wider community in a number of ways.