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Perth, Western Australia

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Geography of Oceania
(Australasia)

   Perth
   Western Australia
   Population:
   • Density:        1,477,800 ( 4th)
                     274.4/km²
   Established:      1829
   Area:             5,386 km²
   State District:   Perth
   Federal Division: Perth

   Perth is the capital of the Australian state of Western Australia. A
   population of 1,477,800 (June 2005) makes Perth the largest city in
   Western Australia and home to three-quarters of the state's residents.
   The city is also the fourth most populous urban area in Australia.

   The metropolitan area is located in the south west of the continent
   between the Indian Ocean and a low coastal escarpment known as the
   Darling Range. The central business district and suburbs of Perth are
   situated on the Swan River.

History

   Founded in 1829 by Captain James Stirling as the political centre of
   the free settler Swan River Colony, Perth has continued to serve as the
   seat of Government for Western Australia to the present day.

Pre-European era

   Prior to European settlement the area had been inhabited by the Whadjuk
   Noongar people for 40,000 years, as evidenced by archaeological
   findings on the Upper Swan River. . These Aboriginals occupied the
   southwest corner of Western Australia, living as hunter-gatherers. The
   lakes on the coastal plain were particularly important to them,
   providing both spiritual and physical sustenance.
   Rottnest and Garden Islands
   Enlarge
   Rottnest and Garden Islands

   Rottnest, Carnac and Garden Islands were also important to the Noongar.
   About 5,000 years ago the sea levels were low enough that they could
   walk to the limestone outcrops.

   The area where Perth now stands was called Boorloo by the Aboriginals
   living there at the time of their first contact with Europeans in 1827.
   Boorloo formed part of Mooro, the tribal lands of the Yellagonga, one
   of several groups based around the Swan River and known collectively as
   the Whadjuk. The Whadjuk were part of a larger group of thirteen or
   more tribes which formed the south west socio-linguistic block known as
   the Noongar (The People), also sometimes called the Bibbulmun.

Early sightings

   The first documented European sighting of the region was made by the
   Flemish Captain Willem de Vlamingh and his crew on January 10, 1697.
   Subsequent sightings between this date and 1829 were made by other
   Europeans, but as in the case of the sighting and observations made by
   Vlamingh, the area was considered to be inhospitable and unsuitable for
   the agriculture which would be needed to sustain a settlement.

The Swan River Colony

   The Foundation of Perth 1829 by George Pitt Morison is a historically
   accurate reconstruction of the official ceremony by which Perth was
   founded.
   Enlarge
   The Foundation of Perth 1829 by George Pitt Morison is a historically
   accurate reconstruction of the official ceremony by which Perth was
   founded.

   Although the British Army had established a base at King George Sound
   (later Albany) on the south coast of western Australia in 1826 in
   response to rumours that the area would be annexed by France, Perth was
   the first full scale settlement by Europeans in the western third of
   the continent. The colony itself would be officially designated Western
   Australia in 1832, but was known informally for many years as the Swan
   River Colony after the area's major watercourse.

   On 1 June 1829, newly arriving colonists had their first view of the
   mainland and Western Australia's Foundation Day has since been
   recognised by a public holiday on the first Monday in June each year.
   Captain James Stirling, aboard the Parmelia, said that Perth was "as
   beautiful as anything of this kind I had ever witnessed." On August 12
   that year, Mrs. Helen Dance, wife of the Captain of the second ship
   Sulphur, cut down a tree to mark the founding of the town.

   The name Perth was chosen by James Stirling for the new town. Stirling,
   a Scot, acted in accordance with the wish of Sir George Murray,
   Secretary of State for War and the Colonies, that the town be named
   after Perthshire, which was Murray's birthplace and parliamentary seat
   in the British House of Commons.
   Swans on the Swan River.
   Enlarge
   Swans on the Swan River.

   Beginning in 1831, hostile encounters between European settlers and
   Noongars – both large-scale land users with conflicting land value
   systems – increased considerably as the colony grew. This violent phase
   of the region's history culminated in a series of events in which the
   Europeans overcame the indigenous people, including the execution of
   Whadjuk tribal chief Midgegooroo, the murder of his son Yagan in 1833,
   and the one-sided Battle of Pinjarra in 1834.

   By 1843, when the tribal chief Yellagonga died, his tribe had begun to
   disintegrate after having been dispossessed of the land around the main
   settlement area of Perth. They retreated to the swamps and lakes north
   of the settlement area including Third Swamp, known to them as
   Boodjamooling. The oral history of the area as related by a Noongar
   elder, Fred Collard, likens Boodjamooling prior to white settlement to
   a supermarket for the aboriginal people, where there was a bountiful,
   self-sustaining, and varied supply of food.

   Boodjamooling continued to be a main campsite for the remaining Noongar
   people in the Perth region, and was also used by travellers,
   itinerants, and homeless people. By the goldrush days of the 1890s they
   were joined by miners who were en-route to the goldfields.

   [Adapted from 'History of the Town of Vincent', from Town of Vincent
   2001 Annual Report, p.52 (possibly based on J. Gentili and others) ]

   In 1850, Western Australia was opened to convicts at the request of
   farming and business people looking for cheap labour. Queen Victoria
   announced the city status of Perth in 1856.
   South Perth's skyline
   Enlarge
   South Perth's skyline

   After a referendum in 1900, Western Australia joined the Federation of
   Australia in 1901. It was the last of the Australian colonies to agree
   to join the Federation, and did so only after the other colonies had
   offered several concessions, including the construction of a rail line
   to Perth (via Kalgoorlie) from the eastern states.

   In 1933 Western Australia voted in a referendum to leave the Australian
   union, with a majority of two to one in favour of independence.
   However, an election held shortly before the referendum had turned out
   the incumbent "pro-independence" government, replacing it with a
   government which did not support the independence movement. Respecting
   the result of the referendum, the new government nonetheless petitioned
   the United Kingdom for independence, where the request was simply
   ignored.

   Perth has prospered by becoming a key service centre for the natural
   resource industries, being the closest city to huge reserves of gold,
   iron ore, nickel, alumina, diamonds, mineral sands, coal, oil, and
   natural gas. Most of the world's major resource and engineering
   companies have offices in Perth.

Geography

Location

   Perth is the most isolated metropolitan area on Earth. The nearest city
   to it with a population of over 1 million is Adelaide in South
   Australia, a distance of approximately 2,104 kilometers (1,307 miles).

City skyline

   Perth, Western Australia (Jan 2005)
   Enlarge
   Perth, Western Australia (Jan 2005)

   Traditionally, Perth and the Swan River have usually been viewed and
   photographed from Kings Park, situated on Mount Eliza to the near
   south-west of the city centre or from the South Perth foreshore. The
   historical record of the view shows clear river banks close to the city
   and a low skyline through to the 1960s. Since then, the filling in of
   the northern side of Perth Water and crowding of the skyline have
   continued unabated. Perth's city skyline displays the economic
   prosperity the city currently enjoys. The tallest building in the city
   is Central Park, which is the sixth tallest building in Australia.

Central Business District

   The CBD of Perth is bounded by the Swan River to the south and east,
   with Kings Park on the western end, while the railway lines form a
   northern border. St Georges Terrace is the prominent street of the area
   with more than two thirds of the 1.3 million m² of office space in the
   CBD. Hay Street and Murray Street have most of the retail and
   entertainment facilities.

Sand plain setting

   Perth is set on the Swan River, so named because of the native black
   swans. Traditionally, this water body has been known by local
   inhabitants as Derbal Yerrigan. A Dutch expedition in 1697 captained by
   Willem de Vlamingh led to Vlamingh naming the river after the black
   swans. The city centre and most of the suburbs are located on the sandy
   and relatively flat Swan Coastal Plain, which lies between the Darling
   Scarp and the Indian Ocean. The metropolitan area extends to Yanchep in
   the north, Mandurah in the south, total distance of approximately 125
   kilometres (78  mi) by road. From the Coast in the west to Mundaring in
   the east, a total distance of approximately 50 kilometres (30 mi) by
   road.
   Satellite imagery of Perth
   Enlarge
   Satellite imagery of Perth

   The coastal suburbs take advantage of Perth's oceanside location and
   clean beaches. To the east, the city is bordered by a low escarpment
   called the Darling Scarp. Perth is on generally flat, rolling land -
   largely due to the high amount of sandy soils and deep bedrock. The
   Perth metropolitan area has two major river systems, the first is made
   up of the Swan and Canning Rivers. The second is that of the Serpentine
   and Murray Rivers, which discharge into the Peel Estuary at Mandurah.

Water supply

   Reduced rainfall in the region in recent years has lowered inflow to
   reservoirs by two-thirds over the last 30 years, and affected
   groundwater levels. Coupled with the city's relatively high growth
   rate, this had led to concerns that Perth could run out of water in the
   near future. The Western Australian State Government has responded by
   introducing mandatory household sprinkler restrictions in the city. In
   November 2006, a sea water desalination plant was opened in Kwinana,
   able to supply 28 Gigalitres of potable water per hour; it is powered
   by electricity produced at the Emu Downs Wind Farm near Cervantes.
   Consideration was given to piping water from the Kimberley region,
   however the idea was rejected in May 2006 due primarily to its high
   cost. Other proposals being considered include extracting 45 gigalitres
   (12 billion U.S. gallons) of water a year from the Yarragadee aquifer
   in the south-west, or the construction of a second desalination plant.

Climate

   Perth summers are hot and dry, summer lasts from late December to late
   February, with February generally being the hottest month of the year.
   The hottest ever recorded temperature in Perth was 46.2 ° C (115 ° F)
   on 23 February 1991. Winters are cool and moist, though winter rainfall
   has been declining in recent years. This is an example of a
   Mediterranean climate. The coldest temperature recorded was -0.7 °C
   (30.7 °F) on 17 June 2006, and the only temperature ever recorded below
   freezing point. Even in mid-winter, maximum daytime temperatures only
   occasionally fall below 16 °C (60 °F). Though most rainfall occurs
   during winter, the wettest ever day was on 9 February 1992 when 121
   millimetres (4.75  in) fell. On most summer afternoons a sea breeze,
   also known as " The Fremantle Doctor", blows from the south-west
   cooling the city.

   CAPTION: Climatic Table

   Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
   Mean daily maximum temperature 29.7 °C
   85.5 °F 30.0°C
   86.0°F 28.0°C
   82.4°F 24.6°C
   76.3°F 20.9°C
   69.6°F 18.3°C
   64.9°F 17.4°C
   63.3°F 18.0°C
   64.4°F 19.5°C
   67.1°F 21.4°C
   70.5°F 24.6°C
   76.3°F 27.4°C
   81.3°F 23.3 °C
   73.9 °F
   Mean daily minimum temperature 17.9 °C
   64.2 °F 18.1°C
   64.6°F 16.8°C
   62.2°F 14.3°C
   57.7°F 11.7°C
   53.1°F 10.1°C
   50.2°F 9.0°C
   48.2°F 9.2°C
   48.6°F 10.3°C
   50.5°F 11.7°C
   53.1°F 14.0°C
   57.2°F 16.3°C
   61.3°F 13.3 °C
   55.9 °F
   Mean total rainfall 8.6  mm
   0.34  in 13.3 mm
   0.52 in 19.3 mm
   0.76 in 45.5 mm
   1.79 in 122.7 mm
   4.83 in 182.4 mm
   7.18 in 172.9 mm
   6.81 in 134.6 mm
   5.30 in 79.9 mm
   3.14 in 54.5 mm
   2.15 in 21.7 mm
   0.85 in 13.9 mm
   0.55 in 869.4  mm
   34.23  in
   Mean number of rain days 2.9 2.7 4.3 7.6 13.8 17.2 18.2 17.2 14.0 11.1
   6.5 4.2 119.6
   Source: Bureau of Meteorology

Government/Judicial

   Perth houses the Parliament of Western Australia, and the Governor of
   Western Australia. The metropolitan area is divided into over thirty
   local government bodies.

   Australia's High Court holds regular sittings in Perth, with permanent
   Federal and Family court operations. The highest court under Western
   Australian law, the Supreme Court is based in Perth, along with the
   district and local courts.

Demographics

    Perth Metropolitan Area
   Population by year ( ABS)
   1850 1,400
   1861 3,507
   1871 5,007
   1881 5,044
   1891 8,447
   1901 27,553
   1911 106,792
   1921 154,873
   1933 207,440
   1947 272,528
   1961 420,133
   1971 641,800
   1981 809,036
   1991 1,142,646
   2001 1,325,392
   2005 1,477,800

   Perth's earliest European settlers were British and Irish, and Britain
   and Ireland remained the city's primary source countries for the first
   century of its existence. However, by the mid-twentieth century
   significant numbers of Italians and Greeks had settled. As Fremantle
   was the first landfall in Australia for many migrant ships coming from
   Europe in the 1950s and 1960s, Perth started to experience a diverse
   influx which included Dutch, Germans, Croats and Macedonians and many
   others. The names of many of these migrants are listed on the honour
   board outside the Maritime Museum.

   More recently, large-scale immigration to Perth by air from Britain has
   continued, giving Perth the highest-proportion of British-born
   residents of any Australian city — according to the 2001 census, 23.5
   per cent of residents in the Joondalup North statistical subdivision in
   the north of the city were born in Britain, closely followed by
   Rockingham in the south with 19.8 per cent. The proportion of
   British-born in the Perth metropolitan area as a whole in 2001 was 12.4
   per cent, or 164,488 persons. This is significantly higher than the
   national proportion of 5.5 per cent.

   Whilst no other community approaches the demographic weight of those
   born in Britain, many migrants — 32,544 or 2.5 per cent in 2001 — are
   from New Zealand, due to the fact that New Zealanders, unlike other
   foreign nationals, are eligible for 'special category' visas, which
   allow them to live and work in Australia with little restriction. For
   this reason, the New Zealand-born community in Perth is increasing
   proportionately faster than any other birthplace group.

   Perth also has substantial immigrant communities from Europe — Italians
   are the third largest migrant group, numbering 20,611 or 1.6 per cent
   in 2001. Irish and Croats are also well represented.

   In the last three decades, South East Asia has became an increasingly
   important source of migrants, with communities from Malaysia, Vietnam,
   Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, China, Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka
   all now well-established. The Indian community includes a substantial
   number of Parsees who emigrated from Mumbai — Perth being the closest
   Australian city to India.

   Another more recent source has been Southern Africa, with many white
   South Africans and Zimbabweans settling in the city in the latter half
   of the 1990s. Perth nowadays also has the largest population of
   Anglo-Burmese in the world, in addition to a substantial Anglo-Indian
   community.

Metropolitan Regional Scheme

   The Metropolitan Region Scheme (MRS) is the legal land plan covering
   the Perth metropolitan region. It classifies land into broad zones and
   reservations. As the regions develop, so the schemes must be amended.
   Area of the Perth Metropolitan Region Scheme
   Enlarge
   Area of the Perth Metropolitan Region Scheme

   It is a large town planning scheme for land use in the Perth
   metropolitan area which defines the future use of land, dividing it
   into broad zones and reservations. It requires local government town
   planning schemes to provide detailed plans for their part of the
   region. These schemes must be consistent with the MRS.

   Deriving from Prof. Gordon Stephenson's 1955 Plan for the Metropolitan
   Region, Perth and Fremantle ("Corridor Plan"), the MRS has been in
   operation since 1963 and provides the legal basis for planning in the
   Perth metropolitan region.

Education

   Perth is home to four public universities, and one private university:
   the University of Western Australia, Murdoch University, Curtin
   University of Technology, Edith Cowan University, and the University of
   Notre Dame respectively.

   The University of Western Australia, which was founded in 1911 , is
   renowned as one of Australia's leading research institutions. The
   university's monumental neo-classical architecture, most of which is
   carved from white limestone, is a notable tourist destination in the
   city. Curtin University of Technology is Western Australia's largest
   university by student population, and was known from its founding in
   1966 until 1986 as the Western Australian Institute of Technology
   (WAIT) and had amalgamated with The WA School of Mines Kalgoorlie and
   the Muresk Agricultural College Northam. Murdoch University was
   established in the 1970s, and is Australia's geographically largest
   campus (2.27 square kilometres), necessary to accommodate Western
   Australia's only veterinary school. Edith Cowan University was
   established in the early 1990s from the existing Western Australian
   College of Advanced Education (WACAE) which itself was formed in the
   1970's from the existing Teachers Colleges at Claremont, Churchlands,
   and Mount Lawley. It incorporates the Western Australian Academy of
   Performing Arts (WAAPA). The University of Notre Dame was established
   in 1990.

   Colleges of TAFE (Technical and Further Education) provide trade and
   vocational training, including Diploma level courses. TAFE was formed
   in the 1970s to provide technical courses previously offered by WACAE.

Culture

   Perth CBD and Swan River from the air looking to the north-east
   Enlarge
   Perth CBD and Swan River from the air looking to the north-east

Sport

   The climate of Perth allows for extensive outdoor sport activity, and
   this is reflected in the wide variety of sports available to citizens
   of the city. Perth was host to the 1962 Commonwealth Games and also the
   1987 America's Cup defence (based at Fremantle). Australian rules
   football is the most popular spectator sport in Perth - some 1,030,000
   people attended WAFL or AFL matches in 2005. .

Music

   Bon Scott (of AC/DC) grew up in Fremantle and was cremated and his
   ashes was scattered across Fremantle Cemetery, but still bares a
   headstone. Other popular music acts from Perth include The Dugites,
   VCapri, The Scientists (including three founding Hoodoo Gurus members),
   The Manikins, Johnny Diesel, Baby Animals, Eurogliders, Dave Warner,
   Jebediah, Eskimo Joe, Little Birdy, The Panics, The Triffids,
   Gyroscope, End of Fashion, John Butler Trio, the Sleepy Jackson, Greg
   Packer, Pendulum, Bob Evans and Karnivool .
   Murray Street, Perth
   Enlarge
   Murray Street, Perth

   Perth is relatively isolated from other Australian cities so overseas
   artists often exclude it from their tour schedules. The more popular
   rock concerts held in Perth are the Big Day Out (nationwide) and
   Rock-It (Perth only). The city is also the setting to the Pavement song
   "I Love Perth".

   Perth has a very changeable and at times energetic Folk music culture.
   Bands such as The Settlers regularly played at Clancys Tavern in
   Fremantle and the earlier line ups of the Mucky Duck Bush Band that now
   has regular bush dances in Whiteman Park. A favourite spot was the
   Hayloft in West Perth - home of WA Folk music in the 1970's and later
   moving to the Peninsula hotel in Maylands.

   Perth is home to the West Australian Symphony Orchestra which performs
   a regular programme of orchestral music, usually from its base at the
   Perth Concert Hall; it also tours regional Western Australia. There are
   a large number of smaller professional, semi-professional and
   non-professional music groups and choral societies and choirs which
   perform in a variety of venues in and around Perth. Repertoire ranges
   from baroque to contemporary. The Perth International Festival of the
   Arts also includes music in its schedule. Opera is provided by West
   Australian Opera.

   The West Australian Youth Music Association (or WAYMA), allows the
   youth of Perth to experience playing in a musical ensemble. Acceptance
   is only granted to amateur student players under the age of 25 years
   and who are currently under instrumental tutelage. The association runs
   a symphonic band, a flute choir, several choirs and four orchestras in
   total (two string orchestras and two symphony orchestras).

Transport

   Perth Railway Station
   Enlarge
   Perth Railway Station
   The Northbridge Tunnel on the Graham Farmer Freeway
   Enlarge
   The Northbridge Tunnel on the Graham Farmer Freeway

   Perth is served by Perth Airport in the city's east for domestic and
   international flights and Jandakot Airport in the city's southern
   suburbs for general aviation.

   Perth has a road network with three freeways, nine metropolitan
   highways and no toll roads.

   Perth metropolitan public transport, including trains, buses and
   ferries, are provided by Transperth, with links to rural areas provided
   by Transwa. There are 59 railway stations and 15 bus stations in the
   metropolitan area.

   The Government of Western Australia has significantly increased
   metropolitan public transport funding in recent years. Initiatives
   include progressive replacement of the bus fleet and the SmartRider
   contactless smartcard ticketing system. Additionally, the rail network
   has been expanded in the northern and southern suburbs as part of the
   New MetroRail project.

   The Indian Pacific passenger rail service connects Perth with Adelaide
   and Sydney via Kalgoorlie. The Transwa Prospector passenger rail
   service connects Perth with Kalgoorlie via several wheatbelt towns.

   Rail freight terminates at the Kewdale Rail Terminal, 15 kilometres
   south-east of the city centre.

   Perth's main container and passenger port is at Fremantle, 19
   kilometres south west at the mouth of the Swan River . A second port
   complex is being developed in Cockburn Sound primarily for the export
   of bulk commodities.
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