South Perth history: the Old Mill, the ferries and the zoo

South Perth looks across the river at the city, and for most of its history the river has shaped how people reached it and how it grew.

Before the suburb

The City of South Perth describes the area as the country of the Beeloo Nyoongars, the river people. Gareenup and Booryulup, between Richardson Park and Mill Point, were an important camping and fishing area. The current foreshore reserve takes its name from Milyu, samphire.

How it grew

The peninsula was reserved for suburban expansion in 1829. William Shenton received the first land grant, at Mill Point, in 1833, and the first suburban lots were offered for sale in 1834. The name South Perth first appeared officially on a map in 1858.

Ferries ran privately from the 1830s and a regular daily service began in 1897. The Mends Street Jetty was built in 1894, and Perth Zoo opened in 1898. The South Perth Road Board was formed in 1892, South Perth became a municipality in 1902 and a City in 1959.

Trams ran between 1922 and 1950. The City records that the population rose from about 3,000 in 1921 to about 15,000 by 1945, as Californian bungalow and Old English style houses replaced Federation designs. The Narrows Bridge and Kwinana Freeway opened in 1959, and in the 1960s and 1970s apartment towers rose along Mill Point Road.

Places that tell the story

The Old Mill at Mill Point dates from the 1830s. In 1879 it was turned into the Alta Gardens Hotel.

The Mends Street Jetty was first built in 1894.

The South Perth historic village precinct includes the Windsor Hotel (1898), the Mechanics Institute Hall (1899), the Post Office (1900) and the Police Station (1908).

A restored 1899 tram, the Ferry Tram, is on public display beside Heritage House in Windsor Park.

South Perth today

South Perth now combines river-view apartments with character houses, the zoo and the foreshore.

More about South Perth

For what South Perth is like to live in now, read our South Perth suburb profile. If you own a property in South Perth and are thinking about selling, start with buyers for your property.

Sources

• City of South Perth: local history
• City of South Perth: Aboriginal history
• City of South Perth: historic thematic framework
• City of South Perth: the Old Mill
• City of South Perth: Ferry Tram
• inHerit: Mends Street Jetty
• inHerit: South Perth historic village precinct

Dates and names are drawn from the sources above. Where sources differ, we have said so or given an approximate date.

By Key Performance Real Estate, 338 Beaufort Street, Perth