and there are also many better-documented murders and other violent acts towards Aboriginal people in this area. Geography The town of Elliston lies on Waterloo Bay, a small coastal inlet which is partially protected by a number of reefs lining the entrance to the bay. Outside of the bay, the coastline is exclusively large cliffs, with a number of surf beaches located on these stretches. Inside the bay, it is relatively calm and shallow, with seagrass beds and reefs underwater, and sandy beaches lining most of the bay. Inland, the country is mostly flat agricultural land. The southern end of the Lake Newland Conservation Park lies about 10 km to the north of the town. Offshore, Flinders Island is west south west of Wellington Point at Elliston. Climate Eliston experiences a warm-summer mediterranean climate bordering on the hot-summer subtype (Köppen: Csb/Csa, Trewartha: Csbl); with warm, dry summers; mild to warm, relatively dry springs and autumns; and mild, moderately rainy winters. Occasionally very hot air from the deserts will produce sweltering temperatures and extremely dangerous fire conditions, but marine cooling keeps most summer afternoons around with low humidity. Winters are generally mild with cool to cold mornings and frequent showers, although occasionally low pressure systems or northwest cloudbands will provide more persistent rainfall. The wettest month on record has been June 1956 with and the wettest year 1920 with , whilst the driest year has been 1959 with . Economy Agriculture, fishing and tourism make up Elliston's economy. Barley and wheat farming take place alongside sheep grazing on the adjacent farmland. Marine activities include abalone diving, lobster and scale fisheries. The area is a tourist destination, the town having two caravan parks as well as motel and hotel accommodation. Fishing, swimming and other water based activities are common in the protected bay. Surfing is possible at stretches along the coast, but high numbers of sharks make it risky. Many surf beaches are known for catches of salmon, mulloway and shark as well, with Lock's Well one of the more established beaches. Community In the 2006 Australian Bureau of Statistics Census of Population and Housing, the population of the Elliston town census area was 377 people. Males outnumbered females. 92.8% of the population was born in Australia, with immigrants coming from England, Thailand, France, Germany, Papua New Guinea and the Republic of Korea. Christianity is the most followed religion in the town