In 1938, the Australian Commonwealth Naval Board (ACNB) identified the need for a general purpose 'local defence vessel' capable of both anti-submarine and mine-warfare duties, while easy to construct and operate.

[5] The need for locally built 'all-rounder' vessels at the start of World War II saw the "Australian Minesweepers" (designated as such to hide their anti-submarine capability, but popularly referred to as "corvettes") approved in September 1939, with 60 constructed during the course of the war: 36 ordered by the RAN, 20 (including Kalgoorlie) ordered by the British Admiralty but manned and commissioned as RAN vessels, and four for the Royal Indian Navy.

[9] She was launched on 7 August 1941 by the wife of Premier of South Australia Thomas Playford IV, and was commissioned into the RAN on 7 April 1942.

[9] Initially operating along the east coast of Sydney, the corvette was moved to Darwin in August 1942 and taken with convoys between Australia, Thursday Island and Timor.

[9] Kalgoorlie spent the rest of the year on convoy escort duties, before joining the British Pacific Fleet at the end of 1944.