Perth Western Australia

A Brief History on Perth Western Australia

Aborigines have inhabited the Swan River region (Perth Western Australia) for thousands of years. With some artefacts discovered dating back 35,000yrs. The first recorded European visit was in 1697 by Willem de Vlamingh, a Dutch sailor on the ship Geelvinck. Vlamingh named the Swan River after the black swans he saw whilst exploring the river entrance.

The Aboriginal tribes in the Perth area were part of the Nyoongar people and the Swan region consisted of 3 tribes called The Mooro Tribe who moved around Pelican point area, The Ballaruk tribe from The Milyu area and The Beeliar tribe who worked the Alfred cove area.

The French visited Western Australia in 1801 and charted the Swan River up to Heirrison Island (named after Ensign Francois Heirrison).

It was not until 1829 that the British took possession when Captain Fremantle on the ship HMS Sulphur, landed at the mouth of the Swan River in Fremantle to prepare for the arrival of, Captain James Stirling, who was bring the first settlers to officially settle in Perth and established a new colony Perth was originally called The Swan River Colony, then changed to Perth at a later date by Capt James Stirling.

Capt James Stirling had visited The Swan River two years early to study the viability of starting a colony.

The Swan Colony as it was Known before the name Perth was used was, unlike the Eastern States, was populated by free settlers. The hardships and labour shortages the new colony experienced led to the arrival of convicts in 1850. As a result, Perth's industry, transportation and communication networks grew rapidly. Prominent city landmarks built with convict labour include Government House, Perth Town Hall, Trinity Church and the Old Courthouse.

Perth was eventually, named after the Scottish city of the same name. Perth was proclaimed a City by Queen Victoria in 1856. The first Perth City Council met in 1858, and by January 1871 the City of Perth was incorporated and several other municipal councils and road boards were established.

In the mid 1890's the discovery of gold in Kalgoorlie and Coolgardie to the east transformed the City as its population soared with immigrants coming from all over the world and the East Coast.

 The new buildings constructed during this economic boom, shows the wealth generated in this period. Then again in the 1960s valuable commodities of iron ore and nickel created another boom for Perth. It was at this time that the city's skyline began to change, with office towers being constructed.

Perth is known as the City of Lights, not only for its visibility and brightness, but also as a result of the first Mercury spacecraft passing over the city in 1962. Perth became a blaze of light as thousands of street, porch; house and office lights were switched on to greet American Astronaut Colonel John Glenn on his orbital flight. Over 35 years later, Perth once again lit up its sky to welcome back John Glenn during his Discovery space flight in 1998.

Western Australia the size of the stateArea  2,525,500 square kilometres
Western Australia Population  2.0million
The Capital of Western Australia is the City of Perth Area  8.75 square kilometres
Estimated Daytime Population in CBD  130,000
Estimated Residential Population (June 1999 ABS)  6,370
Number of Households (Estimate 1996)  2,246
Total Inner City Residential Units (December 1996)  3,123
Total Office Floorspace in CBD (January 1999)  1,271,100 square metres
Total Office Floorspace in West Perth (January 1997)  330,500
Total Length of Roads  256 kilometres
Total Area of Parkland and Reserves  95 hectares
Number of Parkland Areas  26
City of Perth Foundation Day  August 12, 1829
Oldest Park  Stirling Gardens (est)1845
Oldest Building  The Old Courthouse (est) 1836
Largest Building by floor area  Central Park 67,500 square metres
Tallest Building Central Park 261.7 m (51 floors)
 
Sister Cities to Perth Western Australia  
Kagoshima, Japan (1974)
Houston, Texas, USA (1984)
Rhodes, Greece (1984)
Megisti, Greece (1984)
San Diego, California USA (1987)
(Reciprocal Membership Rights have been arranged for members of the San Diego and Royal Perth Yacht Clubs. If you are visiting Perth or San Diego and would like more information about this, please look at the Royal Perth Yacht Club website.)
Vasto, Italy (1989)
Charters of Mutual Friendship  Grenoble, France (1985)
Nanjing, China (1998)
Taipei, Taiwan (1999)

Council Composition  9 Elected Members, comprising the Lord Mayor and 8 Councillors

For more information about the City of Perth or Western Australia