Prior to European arrival, diverse First Nation groups inhabited the area, and the present landowners belong to the Punuba (sometimes spelt Bunuba) language group. Fitzroy Crossing hosts five primary language groups: Bunuba, Nyikina, Walmajrri, Gooniyandi, and Wangkatjungka. Captain Stokes initially explored the Fitzroy River in 1838, naming it after Captain Robert Fitzroy from the HMS Beagle. Positive reports about the area's pastoral potential surfaced in Perth only after Alexander Forrest's exploration in 1879.

In the early 1880s, Solomon Emanuel established the Gogo station downstream from Fitzroy Crossing after a three-year cattle overland journey from Goulburn. Local Aboriginal resistance led to fierce battles against European pastoralists. Jandamarra, hiding in Tunnel Creek for three years, was fatally shot by a First Nation police tracker in April 1897. Joseph Blythe built the Crossing Inn in 1897, marking the town's inception.

The town's first bridge across the Fitzroy River was finalised in 1935, while the current bridge was completed in 1975, coinciding with the town's official gazetting. In 1979-1980, local Aborigines gained control of Noonkanbah Station southwest of Fitzroy Crossing. Despite a mining company's futile oil exploration claim and government involvement, drilling yielded no oil, leading to a wasteful endeavour.

Attractions

Without an identifiable town centre, and with some kilometres separating the new highway from the old river crossing, the town is a series of loosely connected small settlements rather than a single community.

Crossing Inn

The Crossing Inn, which was founded by Joseph Blythe in 1897, can be found at 35 Skuthorp Road. This building, which has undergone significant changes, is the most well-known edifice in the town. Initially, it functioned as a store and pub for transient groups such as stockmen, prospectors, and bullock team drivers.

The Original Fitzroy Crossing

The old Fitzroy Crossing townsite is located a brief distance away from the town on the Geikie Gorge Road. Nowadays, it contains only a few abandoned structures. Close to it is a low-level river crossing that can be passed through when the weather is dry. The reason it delayed travellers for several weeks during the rainy season is quite evident.

Fitzroy Crossing Visitor Centre and Art Gallery

The Fitzroy Crossing Visitor Centre was established by the Shire of Derby in 1997. Besides offering information on the local attractions, it also accommodates two magnificent Aboriginal art galleries.

Other Attractions

Geikie Gorge National Park

Geikie Gorge National Park lies 18 km northeast of Fitzroy Crossing and was named after Sir Archibald Geikie, a renowned British geologist, by Edward Hardman during his travel to the Kimberley region in 1883.

The park is home to an ancient "barrier reef" that dates back to the Devonian Period, around 350 million years ago. This reef is considered the largest in Australia and spans over 1000 km in length and 20 km in width, starting from the east of Kununurra and ending near Derby. The waters of the Lennard and Fitzroy Rivers have carved through the ancient reefs, forming stunning gorges. Geikie Gorge is teeming with wildlife, including the harmless Johnson crocodile, Coach-whip stingrays, and Leichhardt's sawfish, whose saltwater ancestors swam up the Fitzroy River millions of years ago. The park offers excellent camping amenities.

Bell Gorge

The Kimberley region's most well-known gorge is Bell Gorge, which is a stunning freshwater gorge located within the King Leopold Range Conservation Park. To reach it, one must take a path situated 30 km off the Gibb River Road, traverse some slippery rocks, and descend into a pristine pool.

Jandamarra and the "Pigeon" Heritage Trail

The Pigeon Heritage Trail explores Jandamarra's rebellion against early European settlers. It includes Windjana Gorge and Tunnel Creek and begins at Derby's old cemetery, where Pigeon's first victim, Police Constable Richardson, is buried.

Pigeon killed Richardson after being betrayed, freeing Aborigines accused of theft. They warned Pigeon of approaching stockmen with hundreds of cattle heading to Windjana Gorge, their tribal lands. Pigeon and his group ambushed the stockmen, killing two, leading to police intervention and a battle where Pigeon was injured but escaped. In reprisal, numerous Aborigines were indiscriminately killed.

Hiding in Tunnel Creek Cave for two years, Pigeon surprised authorities by stealing supplies from a police station in early 1896. His cunning and survival skills added to his legend, taunting police and pastoralists. Despite his skills, he was ultimately cornered and killed in 1897 near Tunnel Creek.

Windjana Gorge National Park

Windjana Gorge National Park, situated 95 km north of Fitzroy Crossing, boasts a sign at its entrance that explains how 380 million years ago, tiny lime-secreting organisms lived and died here and how their accumulation of limestone skeletons built up this Devonian Reef.

The grey cliffs on either side of the gorge are part of this reef, which was originally larger than the Great Barrier Reef, stretching over 1000 km from Kununurra in an arc through Derby and towards Fitzroy Crossing.

As you walk into the gorge, you'll come across signs indicating that Aborigines have been in the area for up to 60,000 years and that there was a time when megafauna roamed through the gorge. The riverbed walk is impressive, and the fact that the cliffs on either side are a fossilised coral reef is quite disorienting.

Tunnel Creek

Tunnel Creek is a unique formation located 63 km north of Fitzroy Crossing on the main Derby-Fitzroy Crossing Road. The 750 m tunnel was created by waters from the creek cutting through the ancient reef. It is 15 m wide and up to 12 m high, providing visitors with an ideal vantage point to see the ancient 'barrier reef.'

There are two easy walks: the Tunnel Entrance Walk, which is only 200 m return from the car park and offers visitors a glimpse of the fractured limestone rocks on the creek bed, and the Subterranean Trail, a 1.7 km walk through the Tunnel Cave, passing a hole in the roof and pools that need to be waded through. It's a genuine adventure.

At the entrance to the tunnel, there's a sign explaining the geology of the area and how Tunnel Creek once flowed across a ravine at the top of the range, adopting an underground course as water seepage gradually enlarged fractures in the limestone.

It's worth noting that Jandamarra (Pigeon) lived in this cave for almost three years and managed to successfully avoid the police before he was caught and killed near the entrance to the tunnel on 1 April 1897.

Fun Facts

Distance from Perth: 2,567 km North of Perth
Population: 1,022
Postcode: 6765
Founded: 1900