The great pioneer of Western Australia, John Forrest, visited this area in 1869. On 21 June 1869, Forrest's party made camp near a prominent hill, which Forrest named Mount Leonora, after his six-year-old niece Fanny Leonora Hardey
In 1894, gold was discovered in the area by a prospector named Morrisey, and in the following two years a number of rich finds resulted in rapid development of the area. The Sons of Gwalia gold mine brought Leonora to the attention of the world. By 1897 a residential and business area had been established, and the town was gazetted as Leonora in 1898.
Leonora had a single track passenger tramway linking the town and nearby Gwalia, from 1901 to 1921. Initially steam driven, the service was electric from November 1908, and petrol powered from 1915.
Leonora is primarily a mining town. There are a number of major gold mines in the Shire, as well as the Murrin Murrin laterite nickel project. The area supports a significant pastoral industry.
It has a picturesque main street and many historic buildings. Surrounding the town are old gold mining centres and cemeteries that are popular with visitors interested in Australian gold rush history and genealogy.
The town hosts many of the Northern Goldfields’ events, from outback horse race meetings to the annual Golden Gift – a weekend of entertainment and athletics event held on the Western Australian Day long weekend in June.