History of Perth

Perth's early history

Perth, Australia, history dates back 60,000 years when the indigenous Nyoongar people inhabited the southwestern area of Western Australia.

The area of Perth was first visited by the Dutch in the early to mid 17th Century and second by the French in 1801. Perth was then discovered again in 1827 by Captain James Stirling in 1827.

Initially declared the Swan River Colony by Captain Charles Fremantle, Perth was made official with the felling of a tree in the region in 1829.

Perth's later history

The colony then became known as Perth - named by Captain Stirling, after the town of Perth in Scotland to honour Sir George Murray, Secretary of State for War and the Colonies, who was born and held a seat there, and believed the area was great for agriculture.

Perth, originally a free settlement colony, had slow growth until 1850. From 1848-50, Perth's population was only around 1,400. This grew when convicts arrived to ease its labour shortage.

As a consequence of bringing convicts into Perth, much of Perth's infrastructure - including Perth's Government House, the Perth Town Hall and the Fremantle Prison - were built using convicts' labour.

The city significantly flourished when gold was discovered in the 1890s. By 1901, Perth's population nearly quadrupled from 8,447 in 1891 to 27,553, which encouraged Perth's infrastructure to significantly grow.

During this time, railways were constructed out to Perth's farming areas, electricity was introduced into Perth city, the Fremantle Harbour opened and by 1899, the Perth Mint opened.

More recently, Perth's mining industry has grown, as well as its natural gas resources.

It's now referred to as the City of Lights, after every light in Perth was turned on to celebrate American astronaut, John Glenn, when he flew over Perth, Australia.