Editing Whyalla (section)

=== 20th century ===
Whyalla was founded as "Hummock's Hill", and was known by that name until 1916.<ref name=":2">{{Cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204679870 |title= Clashing place names |date=1916-11-08 |work=Journal (Adelaide, SA : 1912 - 1923) |access-date=2017-09-27 |page=2 |via= Trove }}</ref><ref name=RegisterPg6>{{Cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article59904148 |title= Clashing place names |date=1916-11-08 |work=Register (Adelaide, SA : 1901 - 1929) |access-date=2017-09-27 |page=6 |via= Trove }}</ref>  It was officially founded as Hummock's Hill in 1901 by the [[BHP Whyalla Tramway]], which transported iron ore from [[Iron Knob]] in the [[Middleback Range]] to the sea. Its first shipment was transported across [[Spencer Gulf]] to [[Port Pirie]], where it was used in lead [[smelter]]s as a [[flux (metallurgy)|flux]]. A jetty was built to transfer the ore and the first shipment was sent in 1903. The early settlement consisted of small cottages and tents clustered around the base of the hill. The post office opened in 1901 as Hummock's Hill.<ref name=":0">{{cite web | publisher= Phoenix Auctions History | title = Post Office List | url = http://www.phoenixauctions.com.au/cgi-bin/wsPhoenix.sh/Viewpocdwrapper.p?SortBy=SA&filter=*Whyalla* | access-date =9 February 2021}}</ref>

In 1905 the town's first school opened. It was originally called Hummock Hill School but was subsequently renamed to Whyalla Primary School and Whyalla Higher Primary School. The school's current name is Whyalla Town Primary School.

The arid environment and lack of natural fresh water resources made it necessary to import water in barges from Port Pirie.

The Post Office was renamed Whyalla on 1 November 1919,<ref name=":0" /> and on 16 April 1920 the town was officially proclaimed with its new name. The ore conveyor on the jetty was improved, and the shipping of ore to the newly built [[Newcastle Steelworks]] commenced. The town grew slowly prior to the development of steelmaking and shipbuilding facilities in the late 1930s.

The ''BHP Indenture Act'' was proclaimed in 1937 and provided the impetus for the construction of a [[blast furnace]] and harbour. In 1939 the blast furnace and harbour began to be constructed and a commitment for a water supply pipeline from the [[Murray River]] was made. A [[shipyard]] was built to provide ships for the [[Royal Australian Navy]] during [[World War II]]. The population began to rise rapidly and many new facilities, including a hospital and abattoirs, were built.

In 1941 the first ship from the new shipyard, {{HMAS|Whyalla|J153|6}}, was launched and the blast furnace became operational. By 1943 the population was more than 5,000. On 31 March 1943, the [[Morgan - Whyalla pipeline]] became operational. In 1945 the city came under combined company and public administration and the shipyard began producing commercial ships. In 1948, [[displaced person]]s began arriving from Europe increasing the cultural diversity of Whyalla.

In 1958 BHP decided to build an integrated [[Whyalla Steelworks|steelworks at Whyalla]] and it was completed in 1965. In the following year, salt harvesting began and [[coke (fuel)|coke]] ovens were built. The population grew extremely rapidly, and the [[South Australian Housing Trust]] was building 500 houses each year to cope with the demand. Plans for a city of 100,000 were produced by the Department of Lands. A second water supply pipeline from Morgan was built to cope with the demand.

In 1970 the city adopted full local government status. Fierce competition from Japanese ship builders resulted in the closing of the shipyards in 1978, which were at the time the largest in Australia. From a peak population of 38,130 in 1976, the population dropped rapidly. A decline in the BHP iron and steel industry since 1981 also impacted employment.<ref>Stanley, Peter [https://theconversation.com/diminishing-city-hope-despair-and-whyalla-69988 Diminishing city: hope, despair and Whyalla] ''The Conversation'', 20 February 2017. Retrieved 12 July 2021.</ref>