West Leederville history: William Leeder, Galup and the gold-boom school

West Leederville shares its name and much of its early story with Leederville, but it has its own heritage streets and one of Perth’s oldest working schools.

How West Leederville got its name

The name comes from William Leeder, one of the first European settlers in the area, who arrived in 1830 and was granted land around Galup.

Before the suburb

Galup, now Lake Monger, means place of fires in Whadjuk Noongar. The City of Vincent records that it was used for camping, food and ceremony and was within Yellagonga’s domain.

How it grew

The Leeder estate was subdivided from the 1890s. The Leederville Roads Board was formed in 1895 and the municipality in 1896, and a tram ran from the city from 1900. The local railway station opened as Leederville in 1897.

inHerit records that most of the 91 pupils at the school’s opening in 1898 had been born outside Western Australia, a sign of how many gold-boom families were arriving. By 1912 Leederville had about 1,400 houses, about four in five of them owner-occupied.

Places that tell the story

West Leederville Primary School, on the corner of Northwood and Woolwich Streets, dates from 1898 and is on the State Register.

The Leederville Town Hall and recreation complex on Cambridge Street was built between 1904 and 1924 and is on the State Register.

The Holyrood Street Conservation Area was declared in 2002.

West Leederville today

West Leederville is now part of the Town of Cambridge, a quiet suburb of character houses and heritage streets.

More about West Leederville

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

Sources

• inHerit: West Leederville Primary School assessment
• City of Vincent: Leederville history
• inHerit: Leederville Town Hall and Recreation Complex
• Town of Cambridge: heritage and character

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