Gracetown (Western Australia)

Gracetown is a place in Western Australia. The coastal town is located 283 km south of the Western Australian capital Perth at the Augusta - Margaret River Shire and has, according to the 2006 census 323 inhabitants.

History

The settlement arose from a popular holiday destination that should be developed starting in 1957 at a campsite and Karavanpark. The government then decided to found a fixed settlement, were offered from 1961 to 1963 land acquisition for the. Minister Stewart Bovell decided to name the new settlement after Grace Bussell, who had become after a shipping disaster on the coast of the area in 1876 by ​​the rescue of more than 50 castaways to a regional hero.

Gracetown Tragedy

On September 27, 1996, occurred as a " Gracetown Tragedy" become known incident when, while surfing event in the school a storm began and visitors examined under an overhang of existing limestone cliff protection. In the abrupt termination of the overhang nine people, including four children died. The event and the handling of the small municipality with the loss, and the search for a responsible person to be in the television documentary, Surviving the Fall: The shown Gracetown Tragedy.