Point Belches

Point Belches is a small point on the south side of Swan River, Western Australia, about 250 metres east of The Narrows within the area known as Perth Water. The land is part of the South Perth Esplanade, and the water off the point is used as a commercial water skiing area.

Point Belches was discovered by Captain (later Admiral Sir) James Stirling during the Swan River expedition of 1827. He named it in honour of Peter Belches, a member of the exploring party who was Third Lieutenant on Stirling's ship, HMS Success.[1] Stirling almost certainly intended the name to refer to the entire peninsula, but it now refers to a smaller feature on the eastern side of the peninsula. The peninsula itself is now commonly referred to as Mill Point, although strictly speaking this name also refers to a smaller feature, on the western side.

The old mill on the peninsula is identified in early sources as being on Point Belches.[2][3]

Notes

  1. ↑ Stirling, James (1827). Wikisource link to An Account of the Expedition of H.M.S. "Success," Captain James Stirling, RN., from Sydney, to the Swan River, in 1827. Wikisource.
  2. ↑ Parsons, Alan (2006), Construction of Shenton's mills on Point Belches 1833-1837, A. Parsons, retrieved 3 June 2012
  3. ↑ "The Old Mill.". Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 - 1954) (Perth, WA: National Library of Australia). 4 July 1929. p. 32 Edition: The Western Mail CENTENARY NUMBER. Retrieved 3 June 2012.

Coordinates: 31°57′58″S 115°50′59″E / 31.96609°S 115.84979°E