Tarcoola is at an important railway
junction. From a point just west of the township the Ghan line heads north and the Indian Pacific line heads west.
Tarcoola was named after the
Melbourne Cup winner of 1893 – the year gold was discovered in the area. There were 2000 people living on the gold fields by 1900 and there was even a town plan surveyed just north of
the junction in 1915. These days only the hotel and a few houses remain in use. Recently, someone tried to contact the proprietor of the hotel and was told that the hotel—the last public service in
Tarcoola had closed some years ago, shortly after the opening of the new railway from
Tarcoola to
Alice Springs.