| Pemberton Western Australia |
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Pemberton main street. |
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Pemberton
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| Population: | 757[1] | ||||||
| Postcode: | 6260 | ||||||
| Elevation: | 174 m (571 ft) [2] | ||||||
| Location: | |||||||
| LGA: | Shire of Manjimup | ||||||
| State District: | Blackwood-Stirling | ||||||
| Federal Division: | O'Connor | ||||||
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Pemberton is a town located in the South West region of Western Australia, named after the early settler Pemberton Walcott. It is the home of the karri tree, the largest tree in Western Australia and the third largest hardwood tree in the world. It is connected by public transport to Perth via Transwa coach services SW1 and SW2.
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The region was originally occupied by the Bibbulmun Australian Aborigines who knew the area as Wandergarup, which in their native tongue meant ‘plenty of water’.[3] The first European to settle in the area was Edward Brockman who arrived in 1861 and established a pastoral station on the Warren River, in the present day Pemberton district. This was a year before Pemberton Walcott, the man who the town would eventually be named after. The settlement, itself, was founded in 1911 and proclaimed a town the following year.[4] In 1913, the newly-established, government-owned State Saw Mills began construction on twin sawmills at the settlement, then known as Big Brook, for the purpose of helping supply half a million railway sleepers for the Trans-Australian Railway.[3] The mill site was located in a valley to ensure the mills had a regular supply of water and because it was easier to roll logs down hill to the mills. The name Pemberton first started being used in 1916[5] and by the early 1920s, the mill town was well established. During the 1920s and again following the Second World War, the government attempted to boost the area’s population through incentive schemes but was only moderately successful on both occasions. In October 1925, the town was officially renamed Pemberton.
During the 1980s, Pemberton began to grow as a tourist town and tourism, particularly domestic, continues to play a key role today.
Log sawmilling was still the most active industry in 2005, comprising 12.8% of the town's workforce,[1] despite the state government drastically reducing old growth logging in 2003. Rather than shut down, Pemberton's mill switched to plantation blue gum and pine in addition to karri.
Viticulture is now widely established with many investment schemes buying up large areas of pastureland and converting to vineyards.
The nearby Gloucester National Park contains three climbable karri trees, each in excess of 60 metres tall. The most famous is the Gloucester Tree, but there is also the Diamond Tree and the Dave Evans Bicentennial Tree, which is the tallest of the three and stands at around 71 metres. Each of these trees has been fitted with metal rungs which allow visitors to climb these trees and reach the constructed lookout at the top.
Other tourist attractions include the Pemberton Tramway Company and the Bibbulmun Track. Tours include river cruises, hiking, canoeing and four wheeled drive tours of the national parks surrounding the town.
The town's annual festival is the Marron and Wine Festival held on the Australia Day weekend in January until 2008, when it was moved to May.[6] Pemberton is recognised as one of the premier cool climate wine regions in Australia, and hosts many wineries in the region.
In July 2007, Pemberton was ranked #3 on a list of ugliest towns in Australia in an article featured in the Australian Traveller magazine.[7] This ranking was largely based on the author’s belief that Pemberton was reminiscent of the fictitious town Lumberton from the 1986 thriller movie Blue Velvet. This caused public outcry from Western Australians many of which choose Pemberton as their favourite tourist destination. Pemberton has been showcased on many travel shows as being a number 1 nature destination in Australia. It is surrounded by karri forest with five national parks within 20 minutes drive from town and has plenty of rivers, streams and dams for recreation.
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