Inland Australia intrigued new comers to the continent from its very beginning. Allusions about an ‘inland sea’ and the whole unknown brought about a continual trek of exploration. Mining, pastoralism, railway lines and telegraph lines opened the vast interior to the world.

With that also brought the numerous clans and tribes of Aborigines into contact with European society. The history of the struggle of Aborigines to come to terms with this interference into their established social structures is well documented. Today, the Aboriginal communities that comprise a large portion of this region are taking the future into their own hands – balancing the benefits of the western society with the virtues of their cultural heritage.

The region is historically a kaleidoscope of cultures. European pastoralists opened vast areas of inland Australia – including household names like the Kidmans. Afghan cameleers provided a vast network of transportation of goods to all areas of arid Australia. Their deeds are still evident along the Flinders Ranges and Oodnadatta Track where the old Ghan railway line once stood. Broken Hill has a strong recorded history of their exploits.

Early Chinese settlers provided market gardens and retail houses in the small townships that built up around the railway lines and mining sites.

People from all over the world moved to new gold diggings in Tibooburra and along the Barrier Highway; to opal fields that dot the entire region. Broken Hill itself has an inspiring history in silver, lead and zinc mining that extended its tentacles globally.

The descendants today and the new horde of settlers into the Outback encompass long traditional values  –proud, honest, innovative and creative. They protect the environment with a passion and embrace new technologies quickly to ensure that their knowledge to improve their quality of life continues.