The Sandstone cemetery was established in 1908. The first burial to take place in the cemetery was that of 10-month-old Horace Arthur Mahood on 4 March 1908. In July of that year Mr Gregory, the Minister for Mines and Railways, promised to assist in securing a grant of 75 pounds to enable the Black Range Road Board to fence the cemetery. (The Black Range Courier, 17/7/1908, p. 2) Using a grant of 50 pounds, this work was undertaken in September along with the erection of gates to the reserve.

Morbus Cordis: Heart disease. A catch-all phrase for death by natural causes when the exact cause was not evident 

That there was an Aboriginal presence in the Black Range area before the coming of the Europeans has never been in doubt.

It is believed there were two distinct tribes within the Sandstone district. The Wongi in the eastern half and the Yamagee in the western half. It has been suggested that neither tribe would cross into the other’s territory except for tribal meetings. Furthermore, considering the scarcity of water in the area it is also thought both tribes may have only lived in the area on a non-permanent basis.

There are, however, definite signs of an Aboriginal presence through the district. These include hand stencils on rock formations, old camping grounds, stone cairns and the evidence of flint tool making. Gnamma holes have also been discovered throughout the years, mainly by farmers when their stock fell into them. Sadly, many of these holes have been filled in since then for this exact reason.

Discovery

The first European into the area was John Forrest who, in 1869, led an expedition through the East Murchison in search of the remains of Ludwig Leichhard.

In 1894 a prospector, Ernest Shillington, discovered gold about 20 km south of the present site of Sandstone and in 1903 (very late in the history of the region) George Dent and two brothers from the Hack family found gold only a few hundred metres from the present townsite.

The first gold in this general area may have been found by George WOODLEY as early as 1889/90, but it was the party of Ernest E. SHILLINGHAM, George RALPH, Thomas WRIGHT, John McINTYRE and A. [Frenchy] ANGELO, that found gold in 1894, and were granted the reward for finding the first gold in 1895 about 20 km south of present-day Sandstone. In 1903, gold was found by George Dent and two brothers from the Hack family only a few hundred metres from the present townsite.

Early History

The district where Sandstone was eventually developed was known as the Black Range and in 1903, 14 km south of present-day Sandstone, the town of Nungarra had been gazetted. By this time there were about 1000 people in the town and the surrounding area.

However, after the local progress association requested that a townsite be declared in 1905, The Murchison Times Day Dawn Gazette reported in July 1906 that a new townsite has been chosen and partly surveyed about eight miles north of the present one (Nungarra) so as to serve Hans Irvine's, Sandstone, Wandejieadd Birrigrin mines to better advantage, but that the proposal to build a new town “is causing a great amount of ill-feeling. The business people, or those conducting business in Nungarra, consider a new town quite unnecessary, and sent a deputation to Perth on the matter”.

Correspondence of the time shows that the area was locally known as Hans Irvine's Find and that a large amount of money had been spent on building hotels, banks and other services required by the residents. When the townsite was gazetted in 1906 the name of Sandstone was approved, based on the recommendation of Warden Lawlers who reported "I have since been to Black Range, but could not get the native name of the locality, and cannot suggest a suitable native name. I would recommend the town be called 'Sandstone' or 'Sandhurst'. The place is now well known as Sandstone but a small change such as to Sandhurst would not take the public long to get into the way of calling the town by the correct name, but I would prefer the name 'Sandstone'."

Building materials were too expensive to just leave behind, so many of the buildings in Nungarra were dismantled and reassembled in Sandstone. Within a year, Nungarra’s population dropped to a mere 50-60 people. Shortly after, Nungarra became a ghost town.

From 1907 Sandstone was a small city of some 6,000 to 8,000 people. With four hotels, four butchers, many cafes, stores and business houses, as well as a staffed police station and two banks, things were booming

In 1910 the railway was completed between Mount Magnet and Sandstone. The Jundoo Dam was completed in 1910 to provide water for the steam trains; the dam could hold 16 megalitres (3.5 million imperial gallons) of water and cost £5,000 to build. The population of the town was approximately 2,000 adults at this time, and it boasted two schools one State and the other Catholic

By 1912 Sandstone had a population of 8,000. The first pastoral leases including Youanmi Downs, Yuinmery and Lake Barlee Stations were being established in the Youanmi district at this time.

A state-run battery operated from 1904 to 1982 - which was dismantled in Paynesville and pulled to Sandstone by teams of bullocks and donkeys in 1904. The battery treated a total of 135,809 tons of ore, producing 115,787 ounces of gold.

The town¹s decline coincided with the outbreak of war in Europe. Many of the miners went off to serve overseas and never returned. Others, seeing the declining fortunes of the mines, slowly drifted away from the area. By 1919 the population had dwindled to a mere 200 people.

In accordance with the Local Government Act, 1960, Black Range Road District became the Shire of Sandstone on 1 July 1961.