McKinlay Shire was named after the great Australian explorer John McKinlay, who undertook the first and greatest transcontinental feat in Australia, travelling from Adelaide to the Gulf of Carpentaria in the 1860s. The main industries are sheep and cattle grazing, and mining at BHP Cannington near McKinlay.

The administrative centre of this 41,000 square kilometre shire is Julia Creek. Other Townships include Mckinlay and Kynuna on the Matilda Highway and Nelia situated via the Flinders highway.

Shire Attractions:

Combo Waterhole, made famous as the billabong in A.B. "Banjo" Paterson's work and now Australia's national song, "Waltzing Matilda" is situated near Kynuna at the southern end of the shire.

Have a drink at the Blue Heeler Hotel. It's more than a century old, picturesque and truly living history for some of the events that helped to shape the Australian Psyche.

Visit the Matilda Expo, better known as the Swagman's Hall of fame, situated in Kynuna. The Living Aussie Heritage of Waltzing Matilda - the answers and history of Combo Waterhole, along the Matilda Highway can be heard at the Expo.

The Walkabout Creek Hotel at McKinlay became famous in Paul Hogan's film, "Crocodile Dundee".  The pub was originally the shire head-quarters in the days when it was an important stopover for the Cobb & Co coaches.

BHP Cannington, located 85km southwest of McKinlay is the largest single mine producer of silver and lead in the  world. Discovered by BHP in 1990, the Cannington deposit commenced operations in October 1997 and now produces in excess of 22 million ounces of silver, 150,000 tonnes of lead metal and 44,000 tonnes of zinc metal each year. BHP Cannington was the official supplier of silver for the Sydney 2000 Olympic games.