Land in the area was settled by James Oliver in 1851, the area was surveyed in 1871 and the name Watheroo was charted for the first time. Watheroo is a thriving farming Wheatbelt town, farming livestock and grain. The town was an original station on the Midland Railway Company railway line to Walkaway. The townsite was gazetted in 1907.[2]
Railway
Following flooding along the Moore River in 1907, the railway lines between Watheroo and Moora were closed for some time when parts of the track were washed away.[3] Rail services were again affected in 1917 when 1.7 inches (43 mm) of rain fell in three hours causing more flooding, washways and the railyard in town to be submerged.[4]
Etymology
The name is Indigenous Australian in origin and was the name of a nearby spring. The word Watheroo is derived from the word wardo which means little bird or more specifically the willy wagtail or from the word wardoro which means water.[5]
