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River

Ord

River

Ord is a mapped river in the YearMaps hydrographic index. River courses organise settlement, agriculture and frontier-making more durably than any political boundary, and this reach is indexed against the dams, lakes and cities within its catchment.

Feature Class
River
Coordinates
-16.83°, 128.69°
7.0
Coordinates: 16.8270° S, 128.6909° ECountry: AustraliaOpenStreetMap ↗

About Ord

The Ord River is a 651-kilometre-long (405 mi) river in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. The river's catchment covers 55,100 square kilometres (21,274 sq mi).

The lower Ord River and the confluence with Cambridge Gulf create the most northern estuarine environment in Western Australia.

The Ord River Irrigation Scheme was built in stages during the 20th century. Australia's largest artificial lake by volume, Lake Argyle, was completed in 1972.

The lower reaches of the river support an important wetland area known as the Ord River Floodplain, a protected area that contains numerous mangrove forests, lagoons, creeks, flats, and extensive floodplains.

The traditional owners are the Miriwoong and Gajerrong peoples who have inhabited the area for thousands of years and know the Ord River as Goonoonoorrang. In a letter to the Surveyor General, dated 12 October 1959, Louise Gardiner, Secretary of the Nomenclature Advisory Committee wrote: "'Cununurra'...means 'Black Soil'. It is the native name for Ord River. Perhaps it may be the native name for any big river, but according to Mary Durack it is definitely the name for the 'Ord'."

Encyclopedic summary adapted from Wikipedia: Ord River (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Ord: Key Facts

Key facts about Ord
Length650 km
Drainage basin55,100 km²
MouthTimor Sea
TributariesFrank River, Dunham River, Panton River, Nicholson River, Negri River, Behn River, Bow River

Facts from Wikidata Q2028742 (CC0).

Major River Dossiers

Hand-written studies of the great river systems of history.

Connected Reaches

Nearby watercourses in the same drainage network.

Water Bodies in the Catchment

Settlements Along the Reach

Hydraulic Infrastructure Nearby

Surrounding Terrain

Ord: Quick Answers

Where is Ord?
Ord is located in Australia, at 16.8270° S, 128.6909° E.
Are there dams on the Ord?
No dam on the Ord is recorded in the YearMaps dam index, which covers major structures only.