How Were Perth Suburbs Named?

Due to the fact that too much red wine was consumed this evening, I find myself not totally able to create new and sensible content for this blog. The problem was that the function I attended allowed self-service wine, and it's possible that I filled up my glass to the top instead of to the point where the curve of the glass straightens, as is traditional. So due to these unfortunate circumstances,  I must steal content from elsewhere, and will describe how names of various Perth suburbs were derived, courtesy of Landgate -

FLOREAT

The Floreat area was known for many years as the Limekilns Estate. The name of Floreat was the choice of the city of Perth Town Clerk, Mr W E Bold. Floreat means "let it flourish" and is part of the City's coat of arms.

BICKLEY

In the 1890's a siding in this area was known as "Heidelburg" or "Heidelburg Grove" it being the name given to his property by George Henry Palmateer who held 300 acres in the area in 1893. In 1915, because of World War I, the Railway Department was asked to change the name to something not of German origin. The Under Secretary for Lands proposed the name "Bickley" after a pioneer in the area and a member of the first Legislative Assembly - Samuel Wallace Alexander Walsh Bickley or Wallace Bickley, as he was more commonly known, was the original owner of 640 acres on the Canning River in 1843 and the brook which entered the Canning River at the corner of the land was known as "Bickley's Brook".

WEMBLEY

Named after Wembley, England. Intensive subdivision of the Wembley area commenced in 1909, and originally the subdivision was regarded as part of Leederville. In 1924, the Perth City Council requested that it be renamed Wembley Park after the suburb of Greater London where the Empire Exhibition was being held at the time. The name was gazetted in 1924 and was later shortened to Wembley.


LEEDERVILLE

Leederville is named after William Leeder, the first landowner in the area. He arrived in the colony on the "Rockingham" in 1830, and in 1833 bought land near Lake Monger. Private subdivision began about 1890 and the expanding district was already known as Leederville in April 1895 when it was declared as a Roads Board District. It was gazetted as a municipality on the 3rd May 1896.

FREMANTLE

Named after Captain Charles Howe Fremantle who arrived at the Swan River Colony on May 2nd 1829, on the HMS "Challenger". Fremantle had been despatched from the Cape of Good Hope on the 20th March of that year, by Commodore Schomberg, of the Indian Squadron, and after anchoring off the mouth of the Swan River, hoisted the British flag on the South Head, and took formal possession in the name or His Majesty King George IV, of "all that part of New Holland which is not included within the territory of New South Wales. The name Fremantle has at times and in various records been incorrectly spelt as 'Freemantle'.


WOODLANDS

This suburb name was approved in 1961, and derives its name from Woodlands Estate. Many of the street names in the area are the names of trees, in keeping with the woodlands theme of the area.

PIARA WATERS

Named after the local folk, the Piara, the women of whom were notable for their tradition of throwing water (and other substances) forecefully over any menfolk who irritated them sufficiently. In Piara Waters Town Square, a statue depicting such an incident can be found.