Fremantle, Western Australia
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Fremantle () is a city located within the Perth metropolitan area on Australia's western coast, at the mouth of the Swan River, 19 kilometres southwest of Perth's Central Business District. It was established by British settlers as part of the Swan River Colony in 1829. It was declared a city in 1929, and has a population of approximately 25,000.
The city is named after Charles Howe Fremantle, and the name is almost universally pronounced as "FREE-mantle", not "Fre-MAN-tel" as one might erroneously assume. There are some consistent exceptions to this, however; notably the suburbs and football clubs South Fremantle and East Fremantle. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for Fremantle is "Freo" (FREE-oh).
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[edit] Geography
Fremantle lies on a series of limestone hills known by the Nyungar people as Booyeembara; the sandplain to the east is Gardoo.[1][2] The original vegetation of the area was mainly Xanthorrhoea and eucalyptus trees, being fired annually (in late spring or summer) by the traditional owners.
[edit] History
- See also: Swan River Colony
On 25 April 1829, the ship HMS Challenger under the guidance of Captain Fremantle had arrived in the waters off the Fremantle coast to make preparations for the Swan River Colony.
On 2 May 1829, Captain Fremantle formally took possession on behalf of King George IV the entire west coast of New Holland just near the south head of the Swan River. A few days later a camp was set up in a bay just south of the head, and Fremantle has been occupied ever since.
A month later, on 1 June Captain James Stirling on the Parmelia arrived to officially set up the Swan River Colony. Perth itself was not settled until 12 August that year.
Captain Fremantle left the colony on 25 August after providing much assistance to Stirling in setting up the colony. It is then when Stirling decided that the port settlement would be called 'Fremantle'.[3]
In 1897, Irish-born engineer C. Y. O'Connor deepened Fremantle harbour and removed the limestone bar and sand shoals across the entrance to the Swan River, thus rendering Fremantle a serviceable port for commercial shipping. Fremantle still serves as the chief seaport of Western Australia.
During World War II, Fremantle was the 2nd largest base for Allied submarines operating in the Pacific Theater. There were up to 125 US, 31 British and 11 Free Dutch Submarines operating out of Fremantle, until the Americans moved forward to the Philippines. The movements and presence of USS Sturgeon (SS-187) is a good example of such activity.
Fremantle has produced two significant Australian political figures, John Curtin and Dr Carmen Lawrence. Dr Lawrence served as Premier of Western Australia in the early 1990s and is now the member for Fremantle in the Federal House of Representatives. John Curtin served as Prime Minister of Australia during World War II, and is often described as one of the nation's greatest political leaders. The state's largest university and a major secondary school in Fremantle are named for him, and his statue stands in King's Square near the Fremantle Town Hall.
Both figures belong to the Australian Labor Party. Fremantle has been a safe seat for the ALP since the 1930s. However, its long-time Mayor, Sir Frank Gibson (1919-23 and 1926-52) was also a Liberal politician and sat in Parliament from 1942 to 1956 on a personal vote. Gibson, a pharmacist with a shop in the High Street, was admired by all sides of politics for his civic leadership and his tireless work for the City, especially during World War II, when he is said to have visited every ship that called at the port. He was a leading figure in many civic organisations and his stepson, Dr Roger Dunkley, was medical officer with the 2nd/2nd Independent Company during the Timor campaign in World War II.
[edit] Heritage and Buildings
Fremantle has convict-built colonial era buildings, the old jetty and port, the maritime museum, and many other historical buildings.
One of these is the Round House, the oldest remaining building in Western Australia, built as a gaol in 1830 - 1831.[4] The Round House had eight cells and a gaoler's residence, which all opened up into a central courtyard. In the 1800s, bay whaling was carried out from Bathers Beach below the Round House. As part of the whaling operations, a tunnel was constructed under the Round House to provide whalers with access to the town from the jetty and beach. When the first 75 convicts arrived from Britain in 1850 to support the colony's dwindling population, it became apparent that the Round House was inadequate to house them. The convicts built a new gaol, which was completed in the 1850s and continued to be used as Fremantle's prison until 1991.
Fremantle Prison was once one of the most notorious prisons in the British Empire.[citation needed] It housed British convicts, local prisoners, military prisoners, enemy aliens and prisoners of war. It is now one of the state's heritage sites. Fremantle Prison was featured on an episode of The Amazing Race.
The Round House is located in what is now known as Fremantle's West End: a collection of streets containing colonial buildings at the tip of the southern end of the port, which is vaguely reminiscent of Stockholm. A process of gentrification in the early 1990s was accelerated by the establishment of the University of Notre Dame Australia, which occupies, and has restored, many of the buildings in the West End.
The majestic Fremantle History Museum is another building constructed in the 1860s by convicts from indigenous limestone: it is a former asylum building on Ord Street, and is one of Fremantle's most significant landmarks. This building was the land base of the U.S. Navy during WWII. It now also houses the Fremantle Arts Centre and the Immigration Museum, which aims to preserve the history and stories of all immigrants who arrived in Western Australia.
The Fremantle Markets are a tourist attraction, located in the centre of Fremantle on its "Cappuccino Strip" (so named because of the abundance of restaurants and cafes). The Premier of Western Australia, Sir John Forrest, laid the foundation stone for the markets on Saturday 6 November 1897. Over 150 stalls are housed in its old Victorian-era building, which was listed by the National Trust and Heritage Council in 1980.
The National Hotel one of the towns more prominent historic buildings was destroyed by fire on the night of Sunday 11 March 2007.
 The National Hotel before the 2007 fire |
 Fremantle Markets |
 Arts Centre |
[edit] Demographics
For a town of smaller size Fremantle is very diverse. Only 64% of the population was born in Australia. The largest overseas-born population groups come from the United Kingdom, Italy, New Zealand, Ireland and Germany. There are also sizeable Madeiran, Portuguese and Croatian communities.
Some 57% of the population is Christian, largely Roman Catholic.[1].
[edit] Leisure and Recreation
The city is popular with diners, catering for all tastes and budgets. Italian and Asian cuisine is abundant as well as a vast variety of seafood restaurants. There are numerous cafes and coffee shops situated around Fremantle, particularly on its famous 'Cappuccino Strip,'(a small section of South Terrace, down towards Market St.)
Fremantle is a popular place for its nightlife, second only to Northbridge in Perth's CBD. It attracts people from all over the metropolitan region for its pubs, bars and nightclubs.
Fremantle is home to Bathers Beach, South Beach and Leighton Beach with several of Western Australia's other beautiful beaches nearby on Transperth's Fremantle Train Line, most notably Cottesloe, less than ten minutes away by rail.
The cooling breeze blowing from Fremantle to Perth during the hot summer is colloquially known as the "Fremantle Doctor".
[edit] Sport
Fremantle was the host city for the America's Cup yachting race in 1987. The unsuccessful cup defense was conducted on the waters in Gage Roads, off Fremantle.
Fremantle is the home to an AFL team, the Fremantle Football Club (colloquially known as The Dockers). It has a fierce yet lighthearted rivalry with the West Coast Eagles, the only other West Australian AFL team. This rivalry is put on display twice a year when the two teams play each other in a match known as the Western Derby. The city also has two teams in the state football league (WAFL), East Fremantle and South Fremantle.
[edit] Suburbs
- Beaconsfield
- East Fremantle
- Fremantle
- Hilton*
- North Fremantle
- O'Connor
- Samson
- South Fremantle
- White Gum Valley
( * indicates suburb partially located within City)
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Lyon, R. M., A Glance at the Manners and Languages of the Aboriginal Inhabitants of Western Australia, 1833; published in Green 1979 (below).
- ^ Green, N. (ed.) Nyungar: The People, Creative Research Publishing, Mt Lawley College, Perth, 1979
- ^ Appleyard, R. T. and Manford, Toby (1979). The Beginning: European Discovery and Early Settlement of Swan River Western Australia, University of Western Australia Press. ISBN 0-85564-146-0. (for early history)
- ^ Fremantle Focus, History and Heritage.
[edit] External links
- Fremantle historical time-line
- Tourist Information on Fremantle
- City of Fremantle
- Satellite image from Google Maps
