Wolfram Camp, QLD: Remnants of a Mining Past

Wolfram Camp, which is named after Wolframite, the ore of the metal tungsten, is located 90 kilometres (56 miles) west of Cairns, in the old Hodgkinson goldfield, within the Shire of Mareeba, Queensland. 

Located at an altitude of approximately 538 metres, Wolfram Camp can be accessed via the Kennedy Highway to Dimbulah and then by the partly-sealed (7 km) Wolfram Camp Road.

Djankun and Kuku Djungan People 

Before European settlement, the Djankun and Kuku Djungan people lived a hunter/gatherer lifestyle in the Mareeba region, which was severely disrupted during the colonial period.

The Kuku Yalanji, also known as “rainforest people”, according to Tindale & Birdsell, shared cultural characteristics with other tribes of the region (including the Djankun): a patrilineal moiety system, or a 4-class system, partial mummification of the dead, carrying the skull and jaw bones of the dead for long periods before disposal by burning, food cannibalism, large decorated fighting shields, the wearing of beaten bark blankets, fig-tree baskets sewn with lawyer cane, specialised food collection and preparation, such as leaching alkaloids from toxic nuts. (Tindale & Birdsell, 1941). 

A ration station for Aboriginal people was later set up at Thornborough, not far from Wolfram Camp. Then, in 1888, a meeting of all eight northern members of parliament was held in the Legislative Committee rooms in Brisbane to discuss, "the possibility of ameliorating the condition of Aboriginal people in North Queensland". There were also calls for the greater protection of Aboriginal people and the abolition of the Native Police in the region.

Aboriginal man, Scanned image from 1889 book

Decorated, fighting shields and one-handed swords are distinctive features of the material culture of the Aboriginal Rainforest people

1890s

Wolfram Camp, which is set in the gaps between steep hills, became a hive of activity back in the 1890s when many hopeful miners rushed to the remote location with the hope of finding the valuable ores and making their fortune. 

There are various claims about who was the first person to realise that rich deposits of wolfram could be found on the Hodgkinson goldfield. However, one of the first people to notice the potential of Wolfram Camp was Willie Joss, who was droving cattle when he noticed the black mineral. 

John James was directed to the Wolfram Camp location a few years later by a Mr Byrnes, the brother of one time Queensland Premier, Thomas Joseph Byrnes. James established a field named James' Hill. The Byrnes brothers supposedly owned a property on land below Wolfram Camp, named Boonboora. Byrnes Street in Mareeba is said to be named after these men. 

McIntyre Mine, Wolfram, Dimbulah District, NT QLD, circa 1918

Originally Fletcher's Hotel, run by Edward Fletcher and his wife Mehomey (Walters) Fletcher, Wolfram Camp, QLD

Main street, Wolfram, Queensland, Australia

Bridget Agnes and James Tully, circa 1880. The Tullys owned the Tully Mine at Wolfram Camp. State Library of Queensland

The Glory Days

During the 1890s, waggons, drays, buggies, packhorses and people pushing wheelbarrows filled with their tools and meagre possessions, made their way to Wolfram Camp to try their luck.

Miner pushing his barrow 

 John James' store at the Top Camp was made from bark and has disappeared. More solid buildings were erected at the Bottom Camp. Along the steep road connecting both camps, you would have found the Catholic Church, which was later dismantled and moved to Dimbulah ( and then to Chillagoe in the late 1990s).

"The little township, thrown haphazardly into the gaps between steep hills...."

"In the heyday of wolfram production, when the traffic crossed the Walsh from Dimbulah siding, Wolfram Camp's transport point, in an almost unending stream, money passed from hand to hand in careless fashion. Twenty three waggons and buckboards, drays and buggies, 200 pack horses and mules, went ceaselessly over the 14 miles of sand and stones that separated the mines from the railway."

"Billy Johnson, at the Junction Hotel, Dimbulah, bad a line of coaches running out to the Carnp.- Bill Wall used to drive for him. Alf Burnell was another of his drivers. 'Later Mick Carr brought up from Charleville one of the big Cobb and Co. coaches built to carry eight passengers, but could and did at times carry twenty five. Halfway along the road was, Tom Parrott's Halfway Hotel."

"PATHWAYS OF YESTERDAY." Cairns Post (Qld. : 1909 - 1954) 26 April 1939

Some early miners at Wolfram Camp were, John Tate, John M. Nichols and Alf Baker, who opened the Forget Me Not claim at the Top Camp, which was to produce record amounts of Wolfram, molybdenite and bismuth. One claim, originally owned by W. H. Nicholls, was taken over by Paddy Wall and Paddy Larkins. When Phil McGuire, who owned a claim on the main hill later passed away at the Mareeba Hospital, he had a ward named after him, as he left money to the institution.

Stores and Hotels

In 1900, about 100 adults lived at Wolfram Camp and there were three stores, one hotel, one butcher shop and a bakery. Later in 1920, various buildings were damaged during a storm. The damaged buildings included the Union Hall, Mullivey's Hotel, Murray's Tailor Shop, Blackeny's two-story hotel and Comerford's Store.

The first teacher of the Wolfram State School was Billy Alexander and later, Mr McCahon was the headteacher. Mrs Wright's dining room was the place to socialise. In 1900, W. E. Keating applied for a victualler's license for premises at Wolfram Camp, to be named the Exchange Hotel. Though, earlier, Mrs Anna Chesterman had operated a hotel here. 

Miners, B. Fletcher and W. Walters at Wolfram Camp operated an aerial tramway from their claim to the pack track, a stretch of between 200 and 300 yards, which was a labour-saving device, sparing the pack horses.

(Mail Coaches to Kingsborough and Wolfram Camp). Oct. 11, 1909. £1.3.O to Government Election Committee - horse hire and 2 meals.

Original copy of account from W. Johnson (Junction Hotel) Dimbulah 

The Junction Hotel, Dimbulah, 1930. P.D. State Library of Queensland

Australia's Wolfram Queen

Mrs May Brown, inherited her Crest of the Wave, wolfram mine, from her husband, James Burns. Along with her second husband, Charles Brown, Mrs Brown was engaged in mining operations. She worked with Chinese miners and with the cleaning and dressing of ores and even mending pumps and machinery. 

Mrs Brown was regarded at one time as the "best-dressed woman in Darwin" and she did not miss attending the Melbourne Cup for a period of 28 years. Mrs Brown was also described as "flamboyant" and the "thrice-married May Brown, Australia's Wolfram Queen". However, when blackwater fever broke out at Wolfram, Mrs Brown nursed many of the miners of Wolfram Camp back to health. After her husband died, May Brown began operating a hotel.

"OUT in the centre and the north, I found that the names of many women are written in the local histories of gold and opal and lead and even wolfram. For eighteen years Mrs. May Brown, of the Crest of the Wave wolfram mine, 45 miles from Pine Creek, worked that mine alone with 95 Chinese, and no other white woman within the 45 miles.

Wolfram brought a fortune during the Great War, and Mrs. Brown was always below with the Chinese coolies, attending to the cleaning and dressing of ores, and even mending pumps and machinery, of which they had no knowledge. She made several trips to Europe, was "the best-dressed woman in Darwin," and never missed the Melbourne Cup in 28 years."

Northern Miner (Charters Towers, Qld. : 1874 - 1954), Saturday 30 September 1905

Morning Post (Cairns, Qld. : 1897 - 1907), Saturday 28 September 1907

Ball at Wolfram Camp.
"The ball in aid of the Wolfram Camp Roman Catholic Church, given by the pupils of Mrs. Raper's dancing class, was a great success."

Ball at Wolfram Camp. (1908, November 12). The Northern Miner (Charters Towers, Qld. : 1874 - 1954)

Miners Home Hotel at Wolfram, circa 1910

"M. Paulot, representative of a French syndicate is at Wolfram camp and is arranging with the miners to treat their mulloch on 7½ per cent. royalty basis."

Mareeba. (1911, May 17). The Evening Telegraph (Charters Towers, Qld.

Cairns Post (Qld. : 1909 - 1954), Friday 29 March 1918

Wolfram Camp, North QLD, Queenslander (Brisbane, Qld. : 1866 - 1939), Saturday 24 December 1921

The township of Wolfram Camp, between two hills, QLD.  "The little township, thrown haphazardly into the gaps between steep hills...."

"In the heyday of wolfram production, when the traffic crossed the Walsh from Dimbulah siding, Wolfram Camp's transport point, in an almost unending stream, money passed from hand to hand in careless fashion. Twenty three waggons and buckboards, drays and buggies, 200 pack horses and mules, went ceaselessly over the 14 miles of sand and stones that separated the mines from the railway."

"Billy Johnson, at the Junction Hotel, Dimbulah, bad a line of coaches running out to the Camp.- Bill Wall used to drive for him. Alf Burnell was another of his drivers. 'Later Mick Carr brought up from Charleville one of the big Cobb and Co. coaches built to carry eight passengers, but could and did at times carry twenty five. Halfway along the road was,Tom Parrott's Halfway Hotel."

"PATHWAYS OF YESTERDAY." Cairns Post (Qld. : 1909 - 1954) 26 April 1939

Works site of the Societe francaise des metaux rares, Wolfram, 1912, State Library of Queensland

Walter Bird's horse team pulling a boiler in the Wolfram district, QLD. State Library of QLD

The Wolfram AWU Hall, Daily Standard (Brisbane, Qld. : 1912 - 1936), Saturday 19 June 1915

 Arrival of the boiler at Wolfram Camp, QLD. Northern Herald (Cairns, Qld. : 1913 - 1939), Friday 7 December 1917

Aerial ropeway off-loading station and processing works, Wolfram, Dimbulah district, QLD. 1919, P.D.

Ropeway off-loading station at Wolfram, QLD, Dimbulah District

Main dam, Wolfram, Dimbulah district. State Library of Queensland, 1919

The Gilmore Family outside a miner's house at Wolfram Camp in 1919. State Library of Queensland

Wolfram Mine and camp site, QLD, circa 1920. P.D.

Wolfram Mine and camp site, circa 1920, QLD. State Library of QLD

The Telegraph, Tue 14 December 1926

Cairns Post (Qld. : 1909 - 1954), Saturday 9 October 1937

Cairns Post (Qld. : 1909 - 1954)
Wed 26 Apr 1939
Page 11
PATHWAYS OF YESTERDAY.

In the 1940s, Bill Hambling was still carrying the Royal Mail by a horse-drawn service. He would cross the Walsh River with the horses pulling the old buckboard accompanied by his dog; until the dog was killed in an instant by a taipan. The council did, however, operate boats that crossed the Walsh River at Dimbulah.

1950s

Cairns Post (Qld. : 1909 - 1954), Wednesday 31 March 1954

There remains little of the vibrant Wolfram Camp today, other than a cemetery and the foundations of some buildings.

Around Wolfram Camp

Ruins at Wolfram Camp, QLD

Historical marker at Wolfram Camp, QLD

Grave of Louis Ericson, at Wolfram Camp Cemetery, QLD

A plaque at Wolfram Camp, QLD

Ruins Thermo Electric Ore Reduction Corporation Mill (2003)

Retaining walls, Wolfram Camp, QLD

Historical marker at Wolfram Camp, QLD

Historical Marker at Wolfram Camp, QLD

Dimbulah Museum/Heritage Park. 10 Raleigh St, Dimbulah QLD 4872 Denisbin

Wolfram Camp Cemetery, Nt QLD

Buried at Wolfram Cemetery

Far North Queensland, Australia, Pioneers & Settlers Registers, 1825 -1920 Ancestry.com

Name:	Laurence James Comerford
Birth Date:	27 Jan 1887
Birth Place:	Ravenswood
Marriage Date:	15 Nov 1911
Marriage Place:	Cairns, Queensland, Australia
Death Date:	21 Aug 1922
Death Place:	Wolfram, Queensland, Australia

Name:	Catherine French Stevens
Maiden Name:	Tudehope
Birth Date:	19 Oct 1907
Birth Place:	Queensland, Australia
Death Date:	2002
Cemetery:	Wolfram Cemetery
Burial or Cremation Place:	Wolfram, Mareeba Shire, Queensland, Australia

Perth, WA: Between the Indian Ocean And The Darling Range

Perth is one of the most isolated cities in the world, with the closest city being Adelaide, which is more than 2,200 km away. However, Perth is constantly ranked as being one of the most liveable cities in the world.

When Captain James Stirling founded Perth, Western Australia, in 1829, he named after the town of Perth, Scotland.

The Whadjuk Noongar Aboriginal People 

The Whadjuk Noongar (meaning man or people) Aboriginal people have lived on the land around Perth (called Boorloo or boodjar [country]) for more than 35,000 years.

The Dreamtime, called Nyitting (cold time) by the Noongar people, was the time of creation when the Earth and all the living things came into being. 
 

The Swan River, a sacred place to the Noongar people, was created by Wagyl, a water-serpent, that created the river and other water sources around Perth. The Wagyl moved across the land, creating rivers and other landforms. 

The Swan River Derbal Yerrigan

Stories about the heroic spiritual beings and the time of creation are passed down by the old people (deman) to the children (koorlangka).

Noongar people belong to Totems which are believed to be the descendants of heroic creator beings. These Totems can be an animal, plant or other object.

The Totem that a person belongs to also determine a person's relationship to others,  and who one can marry, and rights and responsibilities. Totems are split between Moieties (everything is split in half). According to ethnographer, Daisy Bates, a person must not marry a member of the same skin group, meaning, "a Crow man could only marry a Cockatoo woman and vice versa".

Scholar, Patricia Baines wrote:
 

"To look at the land through Nyoongah eyes is to perceive personhood in all life forms. Old trees are parents and seedlings are children. Birds and animals, particularly when one of them behaves in an unusual manner or is distinguished in some way, may be a deceased ancestor. The land is seen as a huge body – most often it is recognized as the body of one’s mother. To put a trench through the ground is to scarify the mother’s back or dig into her guts." (1998) 

The main camp for the Noongar Aboriginal people was at Kings Park, but as they fished and hunted and gathered food, they moved about a large area. 
 

The Noongar people also came into contact with Dutch, English and French navigators, who visited explored and mapped the west coast of Australia, before the arrival of Captain James Stirling.

Aboriginal people generally appeared to believe that Europeans were the returned spirits of their dead, ancestors (Djanga). 

Noongar language wordlists and place names were recorded by Daisy Bates, in the 19th century. Bates, a now controversial figure, devoted 40 years of her life to studying Aboriginal life, history, culture, rites, beliefs and customs. More info and here

A Native Camp at Crawley in the very early days of Perth, WA. Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 - 1954), Thursday 4 July 1929

 Aboriginal people of Western Australia. Australian Town and Country Journal (Sydney, NSW : 1870 - 1919), Wednesday 14 August 1907

The British: 1820s

Captain James Stirling came to Perth with a small band of settlers to colonise the region for the British in 1829. One month after Stirling's arrival, Captain Fremantle annexed the area for the British crown. Overall, impressions of Perth before Stirling's favourable reports were that the Perth area was a barren and waterless place.

James Stirling, who had been appointed by the British Government as the first Western Australian governor, had explored the area around the Swan River in March 1827. Stirling favoured the settlement of the western half of Australia, which was still unclaimed until a military outpost was stationed at Albany in 1826.

James Stirling. 1st Governor of Western Australia. before 1866

The tall forests and woodlands around the Swan River suggested to Stirling and his companions during their 1827 explorations that the land around Perth was fertile. But in fact, most of the land was unsuitable for agriculture and farming of livestock.

On 2 May 1829, Captain Fremantle claimed the west coast of Australia for Britain. The Swan River Colony became the first free settlement in Australia when the first free settlers arrived in June 1829.

James Stirling was declared lieutenant governor on 18th June. Stirling decided that Fremantle would become an important port and Perth the capital.

On August 12, the official ceremony to mark the foundation of the City of Perth was held on a small hill overlooking the Swan River. 

"'The Foundation of Perth" by George Pitt Morison

Surveyor-General, John Roe surveyed the sites of Fremantle and Perth and their streets and parklands.

Within the first 6 months, 25 ships of settlers arrived in the Swan River Colony, many unprepared for the life of hardship to follow.

The establishment of Perth was slow and arduous as the inexperienced settlers tried to clear the dense forests and begin farming the sandy soil. Unsurprisingly, about half the original settlers left the colony and headed back east, and the British newspapers were reporting that the struggling colony was a failure.

1930s-40s

The Round House, Perth WA. The Round House was the first permanent building built in the Swan River Colony. Built in late 1830 and opened in 1831

Yagan

Relations between settlers and Aboriginal people had been amicable in the beginning, as the Aboriginal people welcomed the white settlers as Djanga, the returned spirits of their ancestors. However, as settlers fenced off land, the Noongar hunting and gathering way of life was severely impacted. 

The Aboriginal practice of burning the bush to flush out game and encourage the germination of undergrowth, also threatened crops and the houses of the settlers, which added to the conflict.

At the end of 1831, Noongar man, Yagan and his father, Midgegooroo, led the first significant Aboriginal resistance against the settlers, after one of Yagan's clan members was killed whilst raiding the potato patch of a farmer.

A few days later, Yagan, Midgegooroo and other Noongar warriors attacked the farmhouse, on the land where their clan member had been killed. They found the door locked, and began to break through the mud-brick walls. The servant Erin Entwhistle opened the door in order to engage in discussion, but he was killed by Yagan and Midgegooroo.

Aboriginal Customary Law (see here) involves retribution. The perpetrator and/or the perpetrator’s family must receive payback, by spearing or death (or other). However, to Europeans, this was unprovoked murder.

In June 1832 Yagan and Noongar warriors attacked two labourers sowing a field of wheat, with one labourer dying from the attack. 

Yagan was declared an outlaw and a reward of £20 was offered for his capture. 15 August 1833 Yagan was killed by two shepherds. 

Truth (Perth, WA : 1903 - 1931), Sunday 24 March 1929

Clashes

On 24 April 1834 aproximately twenty to thirty Murray men and women, led by an Aboriginal resistance leader named Calyute, besieged a flour mill near Perth, threatened the miller George Shenton, and stole a large quantity of flour. This led to increasing tension and violence between British settlers and Noongar people and the "Battle of Pinjarra". Calyute, however, reputedly survived into old age.

 "These are the people that the early settlers had to war with". Truth (Perth, WA : 1903 - 1931), Sunday 10 March 1929

The Old Court House was completed in 1836.

The Old Court House is the first court building constructed in Perth, Western Australia. Completed 1836 in classical Greek revival style

Charles Darwin

Charles Darwin, the naturalist, described the Noongar dancers that he saw in March 1836, on the south coast of Western Australia, as "a group of naked figures ... all moving in hideous harmony."

One of the early newspapers of the Western Australian colony was The Inquirer, established by Francis Lochee and William Tanner on 5 August 1840.

One of the first buildings of the Perth settlement, which was located on the corner of St Georges Terrace, and William Street, was known as the King's Head Hotel. The hotel was bought by William Leeder and it became known as Leeder's Hotel. Soon becoming one of the most popular hotels in Perth. ( In 1894 the Leader family sold the hotel and it was demolished)

Convicts
 

By the late 1840s, the population of the Perth settlement stood at about 4600 people, but there was a severe shortage of manpower. Suggestions began to be made, especially by influential landowners and merchants, that the lack of able-bodied men could be solved by the transportation of convict labour into the colony. The request for convict labour was submitted to the British government and accepted. 

Perth became a penal settlement in 1850. Over the next 16 years, more than 9000 convicts landed in Perth, and their labour transformed Perth with large-scale building and public works. Between 1850 and 1868, 9,721 convicts were transported to Western Australia on 43 convict ships.

James Wilson (Irish nationalist) transported to Western Australia. In October 1867

The book, The People of Perth: A Social History of Western Australia's Capital City, by C T Stannage,  says that during the convict era: "There were times indeed when Perth seemed to be a society under siege, with strengthened doors, fitted locks, restricted personal movement (especially for women and children), and over and above this nervousness and concern, the actual felt experience of personal violence, alienation, and degradation."

Convicts built hospitals, roads, bridges and even the town hall and government house.

The Perth Boys School was established in 1847.

1850s-60s

In 1856 Queen Victoria officially proclaimed Perth a city. However, despite complaints from the free Perth citizenry about "daily Plunderings", convict transportation to Western Australia did not stop until 1868.

In 1856, at the corner of Hay and Barrack streets, opposite the Town Hall, stood Masons, Devonshire Arms Hotel. Adjoining the hotel, you would find Mason's store (afterwards Monger's), then Thomas' Britnall's boot and shoe shop, then Triggs store, and after that, the old Shamrock Hotel, where the Savoy Hotel now stands. Nearby, was King's carpenters' shop and Isaac Wood's buildings, which were used by Miss Jane Wood as a drapery shop. 

1. Perth, George's Terrace in 1858. 2. Perth, George's Terrace, WA, in 1865

By 1868 the total population was 17,000, with convicts outnumbering settlers.

The ship, the Hougoumont, was the last ship to take convicts from the UK to Australia. 

Hougoumont in 1885 during the construction of the Forth Bridge in Scotland. Hougoumont was the last convict ship to transport convicts to Australia. Hougoumont docked at Fremantle, Western Australia on 10 January 1868.

The first telegraph line in Western Australia was connected from Perth to Fremantle in 1869. Perth was linked to Albany in 1872.

A VIEW OF ST. GEORGE'S-TERRACE,PERTH, LOOKING ACROSS THE WILLIAM-STREET INTERSECTION TOWARDS THE BARRACKS, TAKEN AT THE TIME OF THE VISIT OF THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH IN FEBRUARY, 1869. Western Mail

1870s

Perth still had a village-like atmosphere in 1870 and was described by a Melbourne journalist as: "...a quiet little town of some 3000 inhabitants spread out in straggling allotments down to the water's edge,....". 

The first railway in WA was privately built in 1871 and ran between Lockwill and Yoganup south of Perth. The Perth station opened on 1 March 1881 as part of the Eastern Railway from Fremantle to Guildford.

1880s

Three New AI Class Carriages of the WAGR No.1,2 and 3. Waiting at the platform of Perth Station, WA, on the 1st of March, 1881

Group of Noongar people at the Perth Zoo, WA, between 1885 and 1902

1890s

In the 1890s, gold was discovered in Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie, bringing an influx of new wealth and hopeful settlers. Perth began to transform, becoming a vibrant commercial city.

Perth’s first electric street light was erected at the corner of Lord and Wellington streets in 1892.

Perth Gas Company began to supply electric light and power in 1893.

Fremantle Harbour officially opened on 4 May 1897.

Following Perth Zoo's opening on 17 October 1898, fifty-three thousand visitors attended in nine months. 

The Perth Mint opened in 1899 after the discovery of rich gold deposits in Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie.

Perth Electric Tramways began laying tracks in January 1899 from Hay St, East Perth to Thomas Street, West Perth. 

Old convict prison, Perth, WA, circa 1890

Government House, Perth, WA, 1892

 The old mill, South Perth, WA, Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 - 1954), Friday 16 December 1898

Donkey rides at the Perth Zoo, WA, Australasian (Melbourne, Vic. : 1864 - 1946), Saturday 27 May 1899

Hay Street, Perth east from William Street, 1894-1899. State Library of WA

St Georges Terrace, Perth east form William Street, 1897-1903. State Library of WA

The first tramcar seen in the streets of Perth, WA,  Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 - 1954), Friday 7 July 1899

1900

The original Perth Observatory, WA, was constructed in 1896 and was officially opened in 1900, The National Archives UK

Hay Street, Perth, W.A. - circa 1900, Aussie~mobs

Hay Street, Perth - looking east - very early 1900s, Aussie~mobs

Palce Hotel, Perth, 1900-1910. See below for today's view

The University of WA was established in 1911, and began teaching students two years later. It is the sixth-oldest university in Australia.

The Female Home, or Poor House began in 1851, then named the "Servants' Home". From 1854, destitute or orphaned children under 10 years of age were admitted. It was first run by the Ladies' Friendly Society, but by the mid-1850s, was government-run. From 1902, children were instead admitted to the Government Industrial School and Receiving Depot. The Female Home (Women's Home) in Perth closed in November 1909 and moved to Fremantle. Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 - 1954), Saturday 5 December 1903

Passengers crowd a stagecoach in front of the Palace Hotel, Perth, c.1905. In 1894 the Leader family sold Leeder's Hotel and it was demolished. The Palace Hotel still survives on the spot of the original Leader Hotel, despite the Commonwealth Bank proposing the demolition of the building in the early 1970s. The local community fought hard to save the building. Even so, when Alan Bond's company bought the building, many of the heritage features were lost and an office block was erected behind the façade.

Guinea Pig Castle at Perth Zoo, 1905, Aussie~mobs

Causeway across Swan River, Perth, WA - 1907, Aussie~mobs

Noongar woman Fanny Balbuk Yooreel, who was born in 1842 and died in 1907, was described by anthropologist, Daisy Bates:
"One of her favourite annoyances was to stand at the gates of Government House, reviling all who dwelt within, in that the stone gates guarded by a sentry enclosed her grandmother’s burial ground.

To the end of her life she raged and stormed at the usurping of her beloved home ground. ..... Through fences and over them, Balbuk took the straight track to the end. When a house was built in the way, she broke its fence-palings with her digging stick and charged up the steps and through the rooms."

Group portrait of Noongar, women, and children, Fanny Balbuk seated on the right in the white dress. State Library of WA 253420PD

St. George's Terrace, Perth, Western Australia. From; Glimpses of Australia : Souvenir for the United States Navy, August-September, 1908.Sydney : Government Printer, 1908. Special Collections

Shop fronts in Perth, Western Australia - circa 1910, Aussie~mobs

W.A. Hunt Club's Meeting, Perth, WA, Mirror (Perth, WA : 1907 - 1910), Friday 7 October 1910

Frederick A. Crews (left), Parcel Express business in Perth, n.d. Aussie Mobs

THE PERTH CITY COUNCIL'S 5-TON LEYLANDT MOTOR LORRY. Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 - 1954), Friday 3 April 1914

WWI

The Esplanade in Perth, WA - WW1 era, Aussie~mobs

March through Perth, Western Australia by Naval Brigade - April 1917, Aussie~mobs

Anzac Day celebrations in. Perth, WA, Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 - 1954), Friday 4 May 1917

1920s

Photo from south of the Perth Railway Station, WA in the 1920s

Fremantle Railway Bridge collapsed in July 1926, after the Swan River flooded. 

Wills and Bateman shop in Murray Street in Perth, WA, circa 1920s

St George's Terrace, the northern side east from William Street. State Library of WA

Druids procession moving north along William Street, passing Hay Street, Perth, WA, circa 1924

James Noble (1876?-1941) was a missionary and the first Aboriginal clergyman in the Anglican Church of Australia. In 1914 James and Angelina Noble arrived at the newly reopened Forrest River Mission in Western Australia, where they worked for the next eighteen years. In September 1925, Noble became the first Aboriginal Anglican clergyman in Australia, when he was made deacon in a ceremony at St George's Cathedral, Perth. Sunday Times (Perth, WA : 1902 - 1954), Sunday 13 September 1925

Patients at Perth Children's Hospital, WA, Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 - 1954), Thursday 21 July 1927

A deputation of Aborigines waited yesterday on the Premier (Mr. P. Collier) and set out their case
for the redress of grievances under the Aborigines Act. West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954), Saturday 10 March 1928 (Philip Collier (21 April 1873 – 18 October 1948) was an Australian politician who served as the 14th Premier of Western Australia from 1924 to 1930 and from 1933 to 1936)

This is Mr. Ah Chong, a well-known young Chinese resident of Perth, entering one of Major Brearley's 'planes. He is the first Chinese in this State to learn flying. Mirror (Perth, WA : 1921 - 1956), Saturday 11 June 1927

Centenary

1929, Perth commemorates 100 years of British settlement.

Perth celebrates Cenetenary, WA. His Excellency Sir William Campion declaring Perth a Lord Mayoralty. Australasian (Melbourne, Vic. : 1864 - 1946), Saturday 24 August 1929

 Aboriginal people at Perth Centenary, WA, West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954), Thursday 3 October 1929

1930s

A phone line between Melbourne and Sydney was installed in 1907. And extended to include Adelaide in 1914, Brisbane in 1923, Perth in 1930 and Hobart in 1935.

These girls from Goode Durants ( Goode, Durrant and Co. Ltd. warehouse and offices) spend the best part of each lunch hour and many spare hours af home making garments for tbe families of the unemployed Mirror (Perth, WA : 1921 - 1956), Saturday 4 July 1931

Barrick street, Perth, Western Australia - 1930. A set of Australian stereoviews by Sunbeam Tours Ltd., London. 1930s, Aussie~mobs

A VIEW OF ST. GEORGE'S-TERRACE,PERTH, WA, Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 - 1954), Thursday 3 December 1931

Methodist Inland Mission, new ambulance, Perth, WA, 1930s, Aussie~mobs

Wellington Street, Perth, Western Australia -1936, Aussie~mobs

Samuel Speed, the last living Australian convict, died in 1938, remembered that: "Among those unfortunates transported … were men of every walk of life; doctors, lawyers, shirt-soiled gentlemen, and social outcasts tipped together in the hothouse of humanity that was the Swan River Colony."

Samuel Speed, last surviving WA convict, Mirror (Perth, WA : 1921 - 1956), Saturday 27 August 1938

1940s and WWII

10th Light Horse in Perth, WA, West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954), Saturday 11 March 1939

The RAAF in Perth, WA, Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 - 1954), Thursday 27 November 1941

West Perth Football Club, WA. Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 - 1954), Thursday 22 May 1941

WAAAF March through Perth, WA, Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 - 1954), Thursday 3 September 1942

A painting of Sheila McClemans in 1943, by Nora Heysen. Sheila Mary McClemans, CMG, OBE (1909 –1988), was born in the Perth suburb of Claremont. She attended the Perth Modern School during her youth, but after qualifying as a lawyer and barrister she was unable to find employment, so she set up the first all female law firm in Western Australia. Not only was Shelia McClemans one of the first law graduates at the University of Western Australia in 1930, but she was one of the earliest women law graduates in Western Australia. However, McClemans and her friend Molly Kingston could not obtain employment in a law firm after graduation, so they set up the first all woman law firm in Western Australia. McClemans was also the first woman barrister to appear before the Supreme Court of Western Australia. In 1943, during the Second World War, McClemans enlisted in the Women's Royal Australian Naval Service (WRANS). She attained the rank of chief officer and was appointed Director of the WRANS from 1944.

Sunday Times (Perth, WA : 1902 - 1954), Sunday 17 September 1944

Underground dungeon with barred windows unearthed in Barrack-street, Perth, WA. Sunday Times (Perth, WA : 1902 - 1954), Sunday 10 March 1946

1950s

Perth ladies' Cricket Team, WA. Albany Advertiser (WA : 1897 - 1954), Monday 8 May 1950

The Aboriginal way of life was severely impacted by European settlement and land use. From the earliest years of the colony, there were several missions in Perth, Fremantle and the Upper Swan. However, some Aboriginal people were living as Fringe Dwellers in shantytowns. The complexities of state intervention into Aboriginal people’s lives continues to resonate.

Lacking regular water supplies and sanitary services, natives are living under primitive, unhygienic conditions at camps in Swanbourne and Bassendean. Their homes range from a two-room asbestos house down to a few sheets of galvanised iron leant against a tree. Children and adults are herded together in one-room, windowless humpies of rusty corrugated iron and hessian. West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954), Saturday 14 April 1951

A PARTY of 25 Creek adult and child migrants passed through Parafield (S.A.) last week on their way to Perth in the specially chartered Royal Dutch Airlines Skymaster Flying Dutchman. The migrants are shown on the steps of the plane with some of the crew members.Barrier Miner (Broken Hill, NSW : 1888 - 1954), Tuesday 21 November 1950

Corner of Hay and William Sts. The old "Palladium", n.d. State Library of WA

Perth tram 38 on the Horseshoe Bridge, WA, 1950

In Perth, Jimmy Rankin, the son of a north-west native, is attached to the Police Department as a tracker. Jimmy is about 35 years of age and has worked with the police over the last four years on jobs ranging from murder cases to searches for lost children.West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954), Monday 14 April 1952

TRAM TRACK PULLED UP TO WIDEN HIGHWAY. Mr. E. Barrass (right), who helped to maintain the tram track to South Perth for nearly 30 years, was yesterday in charge of a gang of Italian migrants pulling it up. The gang, working in Canning-highway, is (left to right): Messrs. C. Mirable, N. Pascoi and C. Vita. The track is being dismantled so that Canning-highway can be widened to 40ft.West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954), Friday 27 June 1952

PICTURESQUE PERTH, WA. Brisbane Telegraph (Qld. : 1948 - 1954), Wednesday 22 October 1952

Gliding gracefully over the floor at Victoria League's Empire Ball at Govt. House-Monica Ingram and
Eric Stringer "The people were wonderful; I had the time of my life !" Sunday Times (Perth, WA : 1902 - 1954), Sunday 6 June 1954

Perth, WA,  looking across the Perth train station c. 1955

The last tram to operate in Perth, 19 July 1958.

1960s

The Perth Playhouse, WA, was constructed in 1933 and designed by the architect Alexander Cattanach Jr. It is notable for its distinctive Art Deco style. c1960s, phantom of the flicks

The 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Perth, from 22 November to 1 December 1962.

1970s

Hotel Parmelia in Perth, W.A. - 1970s, Aussie~mobs

1980s

Perth, WA, 1980, pszz

Wellington St. Forrest Place, Perth WA, 1980, pszz

Hay Street, Perth, 1980, pszz

1990s

Perth 1990 from Kings Park, Perth, Western Australia, Daniel Evans

Perth 1990, from Kings Park, Perth, Western Australia, Daniel Evans

2000s

Perth, WA, 2020

Around Perth

The Old Court House, Perth WA,  is the first court building constructed in Perth, Western Australia, is one of two remaining examples of the work of Henry Reveley, the colonial civil engineer

Protestant Hall (1901), Beaufort Street, Perth, WA, building in the Federation Free style. Protestant Hall (1901) which is located on Beaufort Street, Perth is decorated with a relief of William of Orange on horseback. This building was iused by the Protestant Alliance Friendly Society, which was established in Perth in 1892. The society declared that it was a “Society for Protestants and loyal subjects to the Protestant Crown of England”. The society operated as a friendly society for its members with medical services and financial assistance. The building now operates as a business premises.

Cnr 612 Hay & Barrack St, Perth, WA. The building above is located on the corner of Hay & Barrack Street's, Perth. On this site in 1830, there was a hotel called the Masons' Arms, run by John Mason. In 1844, the building became the Whalers Inn, for a time, leased to Martha Crisp. In 1846, the building described as a wattle & daub shanty was renamed the Devonshire Arms Hotel. In 1883, the former hotel was converted into coffee rooms by Matthew Burnett, who travelled to Australia in the 1860s, as part of the Temperance Movement. Burnett conducted flamboyant religious revivals, where the renunciation of alcohol was required for salvation. Mr and Mrs Woods ran the Burnett Coffee Rooms. In 1891, the building was demolished and in the following year, the Connor-Quinlan Building was erected.

The Chanel building, named Kelrod House, was once The Truth newspaper office, 39 King Street, Perth, WA

Chung Wah Hall, 128 James Street, Northbridge, Perth, WA, circa 1910

Lieutenant-Governor, Sir Edward Stone, laid the foundation stone for Chung Wah Association Hall, in 1910. The Chung Wah Association was established in 1909, for social, educational and political purposes.

Yagan statue. Heirisson Island, Perth, Western Australia. The statue was sculpted in 1984 by Robert Hitchcock. Yagan (1795 –1833) was a Noongar warrior and Aboriginal resistance leader, who fought against British settlement around Perth (Mooro or Goomap). Yagan killed a number of British settlers by spearing, which led to him being pursued as an outlaw by the British authorities.
After Yagan was killed, his head was cut off and sent to Liverpool, England, to be studied and displayed. In 1964, Yagan's head was buried at Everton cemetery and then, returned to Australia in 1997.

The Carlton Hotel - 248 Hay Street, Perth. Built in 1928

Parliament House, Perth, Western Australia, building commenced in 1902

Perth Modern School opened 1911, WA

Winthrop Hall at sunset, University of Western Australia, Crawley, circa 1932

The Atlas Building, 8-10 The Esplanade, Perth WA, Museum of Perth, finished 1931

Heritage listed Kiosk built in 1928 cost $11 million to dismantle and relocate to Perth's Elizabeth Quay, WA

Heritage listed Salvation Army, circa 1899 Congress Hall building, 69 Murray Street, Perth, WA

The Old Mill in South Perth, WA, circa 1835

Old Courthouse, Stirling Gardens, Perth, WA, opened 1837

Tranby House (also known as Peninsula Farm), circa 1839, Perth, WA

The Perth Boys School was established in 1847, WA

The Perth Gaol was built between 1854 and 1856, WA

The Cloisters, a two-storey brick Victorian building at 200 St. Georges Terrace, Perth WA,was built in 1858

Built in 1859 as a residence and office for the first Dean of Perth, WA

St Georges Terrace, the Barracks Arch was built in 1863 to house a special force of soldiers, Perth WA

Government House, Perth, WA, was built between 1859 and 1864, in the Jacobean Revival style

Perth Town Hall, WA, the only town hall built by convicts in Australia, opened 1870

Central Government Offices, Barrack St, Perth, WA, constructed from 1874 to 1904

237 Beaufort Street, Perth, WA, built, built in Federation Fliligree style, about 1897

His Majesty's Theatre is an Edwardian Baroque theatre in Perth, Western Australia. Constructed from 1902 to 190

King Street from Hay Street, Perth, WA

View of the Northern side (Roe Street) of the Horseshoe Bridge, William Street, Perth, Western Australia

Residence of Bishop Mathew Blagden Hale, built 1859, Perth, WA

The former Barracks were built to house the retired Pensioner Forces. The two wings on each side of the entrance were demolished in the 1960s to make way for the Mitchell Freeway, circa 1863, Perth WA

The Weld Club, 4 Barrack Street, Perth, WA, 1892

Perth Mint310 Hay Street, Perth, WA, Foundation stone was laid in 1896 and competed in 1899

The Old Perth Fire Station, Perth, WA, circa 1900

General Post Office, Perth, WA, 1923

Parliament House, Perth, WA, is located on Harvest Terrace, finished 1904

Greek Orthodox Church of Saints Constantine and Helen, Northbridge, WA

The Palace Hotel in Perth, WA, today

Things To Do and Places To Go

Heritage Walks Perth

This city is Wadjuk country, explores Wadjuk Noongar history before the arrival of white settlers in 1829. On this walk you will get a feel for the way Wadjuk people lived before white settlement. Hard copies of the maps are available from the WA Visitors Centre, iCity Kiosk in the Murray Street Mall and Council House or you can download them to the right.

Western Australian Museum

Museum of Perth

The Nostalgia Box: Australia's First Video Game Museum

WA Shipwrecks Museum | Western Australian Museum

WA Maritime Museum | Western Australian Museum

Army Museum of Western Australia

Aviation Heritage Museum - RAAFAWA

Berndt Museum : Cultural Precinct : The University of Western Australia

Old Court House Law Museum | Visit Perth City

HMAS Ovens | Western Australian Museum

WA Medical Museum

Motor Museum of W.A.

Heritage Centres | Institute of the Sisters of Mercy of Australia

Fremantle Roundhouse

Perth - Western Australian Museum and Old Perth Gaol tours, Western 

Museum of Natural History | Swan Valley

Bassendean Museum - Rail Heritage WA

Tractor Museum of WA | Whiteman Park

Welcome to the Town of Claremont Freshwater Bay Museum

Museum of Performing Arts | Perth Theatre Trust

Wireless Hill Park - City of Melville

DFES Education and Heritage Centre

Tranby House | Historical Places | Things to Do - Perth Walkabout

Old Mill - City of South Perth