Waterford, Western Australia

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Waterford is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Its Local Government Area is the City of South Perth.

1 History
2 Geographical Location
3 Education
4 References

[edit] History

The land where the suburb of Waterford now stands was originally occupied by local Aboriginal hunter gatherers who were attracted by the abundance of easily accessible food in the local area; ironically, not far from where the present-day KFC and Chinese restaurant are located.

White settlement of Western Australia took place in 1829 and land previously occupied by indigenous Australians was taken by the Crown and distributed to new settlers. The area around Waterford was no exception. New settlers in Perth were often allocated land gratis provided they agreed to raise crops or extract timber from the land. Much of present day Waterford was covered with virgin Jarrah forest. That other people may have occupied the land previously was generally not considered important. The fledgling Colony needed exports and timber was once such export. Indeed, some of the timber used to construct the London underground rail system was sourced from Western Australia.

The Christian Brothers, a religious order, were allocated land that is now part of Waterford. Local Aboriginal people were unable to object to the encroachment on their land as they lacked the language, legal or martial skills to take on the full force of the Crown. Little is known of the Aboriginal communities that habited the local Waterford area. What is known is that most died of disease or were driven away well over a century ago. Skeletons found in the area when Curtin University was constructed in the 1960s suggest that a tuberculosis epidemic may have killed many local Aborigines. Those that survived left the area and may have headed inland where food may not have been so abundant due to the lack of a river system. To them Waterford was a paradise lost.

To the Christian Brothers, Waterford was a tranquil haven and a valuable economic asset. Ironically, in the 1980s, many generations after they were awarded the land surrounding Waterford,, the Christian Brothers were involved in a legal dispute with the state government when part of the land was needed for roadworks. The state resumed the land and offered pennies for it. The Christian Brothers went to court and were awarded a just financial settlement for land that they originally got for nothing almost a century before. In the following years, the Christian Brothers were forced to admit the shortcomings of the orphanages that they had operated for so long when it became known that many of the people under their protection were abused.

To their credit, the Christian Brothers have turned Clontarf in Waterford into a leading centre for Aboriginal health education.

Originally part of the suburb of Karawara, the area south of Manning Road was renamed Waterford in the 1980s. The area is named after the birthplace in Ireland of Edmund Rice, a founder of the Christian Brothers. They owned land south of Manning Road and along the shores of the Canning River. On 2 square kilometres of land, they built and operated the Clontarf Boys Home, school and farm for orphaned and disadvantaged boys. It operated from 1901. Starting in 1981, portions of the land were progressively sold and subdivided for housing. All streets within Waterford reflect the Irish theme, and are named after places in Ireland.

Suburbs of the City of South Perth
Como \| Karawara \| Kensington \| Manning \| Salter Point \| South Perth \| Waterford

[edit] Geographical Location

Waterford is situated by the riverside of the Canning River. North of Waterford is the suburb of Bentley. The suburb of Karawarra is located on the western border of Waterford and the suburb of Wilson is located on the eastern border of Waterford.

[edit] Education

Waterford suburb is just opposite Curtin University on Manning Road. Many foreign students rent places in Waterford because of its vicinity to the university and to the Village Green Shopping Centre.