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45-473: The Swan River Mechanics' Institute was the Swan River Colony 's first cultural centre, established on 21 January 1851. In time it was to house an extensive and well-used subscription library and a natural history collection, including botanical, zoological and mineral specimens. A new building replaced the old in 1899, and in 1909 the institute was renamed Perth Literary Institute . In 1957

90-536: A cutter and gig with parties continuing on foot from 13 March. In late March, Success moved to Sydney , arriving there on 15 April. Stirling arrived back in England in July 1828, promoting in glowing terms the agricultural potential of the area. His lobbying was for the establishment of a free settlement – unlike penal colonies at New South Wales , Port Arthur and Norfolk Island  – in

135-402: A few settlers arrived and additional stores were dispatched. By 1832 the population of the colony had reached about 1,500. Aboriginal people were not counted at that time, but in the south west have been estimated to number 15,000. The difficulty of clearing land to grow crops was so great that by 1850 the population of settlers had increased only to 5,886. This population had settled mainly around

180-671: A number of alternative working men's associations arose in the 1860s to cater for working classes. Membership was by subscription, and required no qualification other than that the applicant be a respectable member of the community. Early meetings took place at the Court House and at a temporary reading room at the Boys' School in Murray Street. A site for a Mechanics Institute building in Howick Street (later Hay Street)

225-530: A privately run settlement were also started with a consortium of four gentlemen headed by Potter McQueen , a member of Parliament who had already acquired a large tract of land in New South Wales . The consortium withdrew after the Colonial Office refused to give it preference over independent settlers in selecting land, but one member, Thomas Peel , accepted the terms and proceeded alone. Peel

270-412: A recreational facility for that group. Hay describes the activities: "the educated gentry 'improved' the workers through the medium of occasional lectures, discussion classes which emerged from literary meetings, the establishment of a reading room and a project to build a scientific museum". Institute rules prevented discussion of current political issues; in 1856 a carpenter by the name of Joseph Chester

315-462: A subsequent search party found none of the survivors. The wreck was rediscovered in 1963. In 1658, three Dutch Republic ships, also partially searching for Vergulde Draeck visited the area. Waekende Boey under Captain S. Volckertszoon, Elburg under Captain J. Peereboom and Emeloort under Captain A. Joncke sighted Rottnest but did not proceed any closer to the mainland because of the many reefs. They then travelled north and subsequently found

360-467: Is twinned with: The official Flag of Perth represents the city of Perth , Western Australia. It features the Saint George's Cross overlaid with the coat of arms of Perth in the centre. Though the designer of the flag is unknown, it is thought to have been designed prior to 1872. In the 1920s, the black swan was removed from the top left quadrant of the flag and replaced with the coat of arms in

405-475: Is approximately at Warnbro Sound . He did not land because of heavy surf, and so proceeded northwards without much investigation. On 28 April 1656, Vergulde Draeck en route to Batavia (now Jakarta ) was shipwrecked 107 km (66 mi) north of the Swan River near Ledge Point. Of the 193 on board, only 75 made it to shore. A small boat that survived the wreckage then sailed to Batavia for help, but

450-647: Is commonly known as Perth City Council . The City covers the Perth city centre and surrounding suburbs. The City covers an area of 20.01 square kilometres (8 sq mi) and had an estimated population of 21,092 as at 30 June 2015. On 1 July 2016 the City expanded, absorbing 1,247 residents from the City of Subiaco . In 1829, Captain James Stirling founded Perth as part of the Swan River Colony . A Perth Town Trust

495-543: The City of Vincent . These localities are only partially contained within the City of Perth boundary. ** The parts of these localities were transferred from the City of Subiaco in 2016. These localities are only partially contained within the City of Perth boundary. The 1991 population has been broken down by the Australian Bureau of Statistics as follows: Perth (C) 7,604; Cambridge (T) 22,740; Victoria Park (T) 24,313; Vincent (T) 24,765. The City of Perth

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540-623: The Council House in 1963 and remained there until 1995. The Perth Literary Institute building was demolished sometime in the 1970s and the site now includes the Perth Law Chambers. 31°57′19″S 115°51′43″E  /  31.9554°S 115.8620°E  / -31.9554; 115.8620 Swan River Colony The Swan River Colony , also known as the Swan River Settlement , or just Swan River ,

585-488: The Whadjuk Noongar people as the traditional owners of Noongar Country, the land on which the "City of Perth (Boorloo)" is located, signing the agreement "Yacker Danjoo Ngala Bidi" with Whadjuk elders on 10 August. The suburbs of the City of Perth with population and size figures based on the most recent Australian census : * The parts of these suburbs north of Newcastle and Summers Streets fall within

630-555: The greater Perth movement , the City absorbed the Municipality of North Perth (1901) and the Municipality of Leederville (1895), and on 1 November 1917, the Municipality of Victoria Park was also absorbed. A year later, it absorbed territory from Perth Road Board (including the Belmont Park Racecourse ) and purchased the 526 hectares (1,300 acres) Limekilns Estate in the western suburbs. The City developed

675-560: The City's boundaries to include a number of landmarks including Kings Park , University of Western Australia , Perth Children's Hospital and the Queen Elizabeth II Medical Centre . The boundary changes took effect on 1 July 2016. Approximately 1,247 residents from Nedlands and Subiaco in the City of Subiaco were transferred to the City of Perth, and the City expanded to a total area of 20.01 square kilometres (8 sq mi). The Perth City Council

720-471: The French ships Géographe captained by Nicolas Baudin and Naturaliste captained by Emmanuel Hamelin visited the area from the south. While Géographe continued northwards, Naturaliste remained for a few weeks. A small expedition dragged longboats over the sand bar and explored the Swan River. They also gave unfavourable descriptions regarding any potential settlement due to many mud flats upstream and

765-571: The Swan River Colony for Britain on 2 May. Parmelia arrived in Cockburn Sound on 2 June carrying Stirling and his party, and HMS  Sulphur arrived on 8 June carrying members of the 63rd Regiment and families. Three merchant ships arrived shortly after: Calista on 5 August, St Leonard on 6 August and Marquis of Anglesea on 23 August. A series of accidents followed the arrivals which probably nearly caused

810-614: The Swan River area with himself as its governor. As a result of these reports, and a rumour in London that the French were about to establish a penal colony in the western part of Australia, possibly at Shark Bay , the Colonial Office assented to the proposal in mid-October 1828. In December 1828, a Secretary of State for Colonies despatch reserved land for the Crown, as well as for the clergy, and for education, and specified that water frontage

855-415: The abandonment of the expedition. Challenger and Sulphur both struck rocks while entering Cockburn Sound and were fortunate to escape with only minor damage. Parmelia however, under Stirling's "over confident pilotage", also ran aground, lost her rudder and damaged her keel, which necessitated extensive repairs. With winter now set in, the settlers were obliged to land on Garden Island . Bad weather and

900-538: The building. The edifice is in the Italian style of architecture, and the main entrance to the institute is from Hay Street. There are six shops in the building facing the same street, and a block of offices in Pier-street for letting purposes. The room in which the lending library is to be situated is 40ft. x 25ft., and faces Pier street, and the reading room measures 40ft. x 24ft. At the time of its opening in 1899,

945-482: The drama, 199; serial and miscellaneous, 333; statistical and works of reference, 398; and fiction, 6,274, and a grand total of 9,443 volumes. In 1951 it celebrated its centenary. In 1957 the institute was taken over by the Perth City Council and became the City of Perth Library . Soon after, its subscription library was replaced by a free lending library. The City of Perth Library was established in

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990-545: The foundations of what became the Western Australian Museum . In 1899 the original building was replaced by spacious two storey premises on the same site, which included a concert hall with seating for 400 people and a lodge room with accommodation for another 200. The building's architect was William G. Wolf, who also designed His Majesty's Theatre and Hotel in Hay Street. The foundation stone for

1035-515: The grounds that the development of the western suburbs had led to the neglect of health and building administration in the central city area. By 1962, the council had 27 members representing nine wards. In 1963 the Metropolitan Region Town Planning Scheme Act required the City to establish a town planning department—which they did by appointing architect Paul Ritter in 1965. Ritter’s two year tenure

1080-563: The institute became the City of Perth Library , which moved to another building in 1963. The original building, which was located on the south-west corner of Pier and Hay Streets in Perth , was demolished sometime in the 1970s. The Swan River Mechanics' Institute was established on 21 January 1851. Its founding president was Surveyor-General John Septimus Roe , who held the position until his death in 1878. Other officers included Joseph Hamblin (chairman), Bernard Smith (treasurer) and Harry Hughes (secretary). Roe's botanical collection, which

1125-462: The library contained 6,000 volumes and membership was 389. The cost of the building was £10,721. Its name was changed to Perth Literary Institute in December 1909, and at about the same time its inventory showed the library to contain 564 books related to history; biography, 359; essays, 382; travel and geography, 421; general science, 275; social science, philosophy, and theology, 238; poetry and

1170-560: The name Swan River Colony remained in informal use for many years. The first recorded Europeans to sight land where the city of Perth is now located were Dutch sailors. Most likely the first visitor to the Swan River area was Frederick de Houtman on 19 July 1619, travelling on the ships Dordrecht and Amsterdam . His records indicate he first reached the Western Australian coast at latitude 32°20', which

1215-477: The new building was laid by the Premier Sir John Forrest on 20 June 1898. The premier was a former Institute president. The West Australian described the building: [The hall] is a magnificent apartment, 70 feet x 31 feet, with platform, dressing rooms, and so forth. This and all the rooms on the same floor facing the street have French casements opening on to the balcony which surrounds

1260-509: The new colony arrived back in England in late January 1830. They described the poor conditions and the starving state of the colonists, deemed the land totally unfit for agriculture, and reported (incorrectly) that the settlers had abandoned the colony. As a result of these reports, many people cancelled their migration plans or diverted to Cape Town in South Africa, or to the more well-established New South Wales colony. Nevertheless,

1305-446: The passage of the City of Perth Restructuring Act (1993) , the City of Perth was broken up and a significantly reduced City of Perth constituted. The Town of Shepperton , Town of Cambridge and Town of Vincent were created from the former boundaries of the City. The first elections were held on 6 May 1995, with eight councillors and a mayor. The City of Perth Act 2016 defined Perth as the capital of Western Australia, and expanded

1350-438: The required repairs meant that Stirling did not manage to reach the mainland until 18 June, and the remaining settlers on Parmelia finally arrived in early August. In early September a major disaster occurred: Marquis of Anglesea was driven ashore during a gale and wrecked beyond repair. The ship did not break up, as had been expected, but instead survived to become Western Australia's first prison hulk . The first reports of

1395-411: The river because of a sand bar at its mouth, so he sent out a sloop which even then required some dragging over the sand bar. They sailed until reaching mud flats probably near Heirisson Island . They saw some Aboriginal people but were not able to meet any close up. Vlamingh was also not impressed with the area, and this was probably the reason for a lack of Dutch exploration from then on. In 1801,

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1440-464: The sand bar (the sand bar wasn't removed until the 1890s when C. Y. O'Connor built Fremantle harbour). Later in March 1803, Géographe , with another ship Casuarina , passed by Rottnest on their way eventually back to France, but did not stop longer than a day or two. The next visit to the area was the first Australian-born maritime explorer, Phillip Parker King in 1822 on Bathurst . King

1485-488: The southwestern coastline at Bunbury , Augusta and Albany . Karl Marx , in Das Kapital , used the Swan River Colony to illustrate a point about the necessity of a dependent workforce for capitalist production and colonisation. Perth City Council The City of Perth is a local government area and body, within the Perth metropolitan area, which is the capital of Western Australia. The local government

1530-535: The suburbs of Floreat Park, Wembley Park and City Beach on these lands. In 1925, a new City of Perth Act gave the City additional powers over building control and regulation, including the power to declare new streets. In 1930 the first town planning committee was established. Criticism of the City’s governance by the David Davidson , the state's Town Planning Commissioner, led to a Royal Commission in 1938 on

1575-472: The wreck of Vergulde Draeck (but still no survivors). They gave an unfavourable opinion of the area partly due to the dangerous reefs. The Dutch captain Willem de Vlamingh was the next European in the area. Commanding three ships, Geelvinck , Nijptangh and Weseltje , he arrived at and named Rottnest on 29 December 1696, and on 10 January 1697 visited and named the Swan River. His ships could not sail up

1620-652: Was a British colony established in 1829 on the Swan River , in Western Australia . This initial settlement place on the Swan River was soon named Perth , and it became the capital city of Western Australia. The name was a pars pro toto for Western Australia. On 6 February 1832, the colony was renamed the Colony of Western Australia , when the colony's founding lieutenant-governor , Captain James Stirling , belatedly received his commission. However,

1665-580: Was allocated 200,000 hectares (500,000 acres), conditional on his arrival at the settlement before 1 November 1829 with 400 settlers. Peel arrived after this date with only 300 settlers, but was still granted 100,000 hectares (250,000 acres). The first ship to reach the Swan River was HMS  Challenger . After she anchored off Garden Island on 25 April 1829 and then in Cockburn Sound on 27 April, Captain Charles Fremantle declared

1710-511: Was also the son of former Governor Philip Gidley King of New South Wales . However, King also was not impressed with the area. The founding father of Western Australia was Captain James Stirling who, in 1827, explored the Swan River area in HMS ; Success which first anchored off Rottnest , and later in Cockburn Sound. He was accompanied by Charles Fraser , the New South Wales botanist. Their initial exploration began on 8 March in

1755-804: Was expelled from the Institute for criticising government policies. The Swan River Mechanics' Institute was the first such organisation formed in the colony, followed closely by the Fremantle Mechanics Institute on 8 August 1851. Other mechanics' institutes were formed in Albany in 1853, Busselton and York in 1861, Guildford (as a branch of the Swan River Mechanics' Institute) in 1862, Greenough in 1865, Northam and Toodyay in 1866, and Bunbury in 1867. Ex-convicts were not accepted as Mechanics' Institute members and hence

1800-404: Was formed in 1838, but remained largely non-functional for many years due to lack of finance and administrative capacity leading to its dissolution in 1858. The City of Perth was officially declared on 23 September 1856 with Council meeting for the first time in December 1858. In 1871, the City of Perth was reconstituted as a Municipal Corporation. In 1915, following the efforts of WE Bold and

1845-480: Was gifted by the government and surveyed in August 1851. The land was vested in trustees, and managed by a committee appointed by its members. The corner stone for the new building was laid by Governor Fitzgerald on 25 May 1852. Moves to establish a permanent museum in the city during the 1880s saw the institute's specimen collections move to premises at the recently closed Perth Gaol in 1892. These collections laid

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1890-621: Was kept at the institute, won him membership of the Linnean Society of London . The second president was Luke Leake , who held the position until his death in 1886. Although ostensibly formed for the educational benefit of the working classes, the Mechanics' Institute , like many in the Australian colonies , was mostly dominated and sponsored by men of the middle class and tended to pursue mostly literary goals as well as providing

1935-566: Was short and turbulent, leading to public conflict with councillors and his termination in 1967. The City’s first town planning scheme was submitted to the Town Planning Board in 1973, but not formally adopted until 1985. The reason for the delay was a state government desire to take discretionary powers out of the hands of the Council. Council was felt to be too easily influenced by powerful developers. On 1 July 1994, following

1980-430: Was suspended on 2 March 2018, pending the establishment of a public inquiry into the council, by Local Government Minister David Templeman . The council was administered by three Commissioners until 18 October 2020. The two-year Inquiry carried out up until that point, conducted at a cost of nearly A$ 8.0m made many findings, none of which resulted in criminal conviction. In July 2021, the City of Perth formally recognised

2025-476: Was to be rationed. The most cursory exploration had preceded the British decision to found a settlement at the Swan River; the most makeshift arrangements were to govern its initial establishment and the granting of land; and the most sketchy surveys were to be made before the grants were actually occupied. A set of regulations were worked out for distributing land to settlers based on land grants . Negotiations for

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