Northbridge, Western Australia

Northbridge
Perth, Western Australia

James Street, Northbridge
Northbridge
Coordinates 31°56′46″S 115°51′14″E / 31.946°S 115.854°E / -31.946; 115.854Coordinates: 31°56′46″S 115°51′14″E / 31.946°S 115.854°E / -31.946; 115.854
Population 1,005 (2011)[1]
Postcode(s) 6003
Location 1 km (1 mi) N of Perth CBD
LGA(s) City of Perth
State electorate(s) Perth
Federal Division(s) Perth
Suburbs around Northbridge:
West Perth North Perth Highgate
West Perth Northbridge East Perth
West Perth Perth Perth

Northbridge is an inner city suburb of Perth, Western Australia, historically separated from Perth's central business district by the Fremantle and Joondalup railway lines.

It is part of the City of Perth local government area.

Location

Located immediately north of the CBD, Northbridge is officially bounded by William Street, Roe Street, Newcastle Street and the Mitchell Freeway.

The name Northbridge is often misapplied to areas and landmarks which are east of William Street and/or north of Newcastle Street — such as the Perth Cultural Centre — which are technically still part of the suburb of Perth.

The area is accessible by foot from Perth railway station and Wellington Street bus station. It is served by a free CAT bus and also has a significant number of public car parks, both open and high rise.

The area is largely a mix of commercial, public and residential properties.

History

The area now known as Northbridge originally hosted freshwater swamps where the current railway station and railway lines are.[2]

Draining of the swamps commenced in the 1860s, by convict labour, facilitating the construction of more permanent buildings.[2] The gold boom of the 1890s saw the construction of many hotels for the accommodation of prospectors, including the Brass Monkey (built 1896).[2] The 1890s saw the area house the attorney-general and many others from the elite classes.[2]

It was for that elite population that several private schools were established in the area, such as Scotch College (1897) and Presbyterian Ladies' College (1915).[2] These schools were subsequently relocated. Around the time of World War I, as the elite began to move out of the area, the area became a hub of European immigration, especially Greek and Macedonian[2]

In the 1950s, post-war European migration brought with it a culture of outdoor coffees and al-fresco lifestyle.[2]

The area was previously a part of the Perth CBD, and was known by informal names such as "North of the Bridge" and "North of the Line".

Northbridge was split from Perth and officially gazzetted as a suburb in 1982.[3]

Culture

Northbridge today is a predominantly ethnic precinct, and contains a wide array of cuisine, including Asian and Mediterranean cuisine, and contains Perth's main nightlife district, which is centred on James Street and Lake Street.

The area has a historical connection to the Greek and Italian communities, with Perth's first Orthodox Church located on Parker Street.[4][5]

The main public open space area in the suburb is at Russell Square.

Northbridge History Project

In the early 2000s the Northbridge History Project was supported by the Government of Western Australia, on the recommendation of a report to the Premier Richard Court. The project finished in 2010.

Northbridge History Study Days were conducted in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010.[6]

During the project duration publications were produced, and an archive of the project was made, with publications and reports available on the project website [7][8]

Papers from 2007

The book published in 2009 compiling the Study Days papers [9] had the following items from two years:

Papers from 2008

The former separation of the Perth CBD and Northbridge will be changed with the completion of the Perth City Link project - which will see the former railway yard that was just to the west of the Perth railway station changed to an urban development project.

References

  1. ↑ Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "State Suburbs: Northbridge". 2011 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 4 July 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Matthew Perkins (14 August 2008). "The swampy history of Northbridge".
  3. ↑ Western Australian Land Information Authority. "History of metropolitan suburb names – N". Retrieved 2008-08-31.
  4. ↑ Morel-EdnieBrown, Felicity (January 2011). "Community engagement, heritage and rediscovering a sense of place in Northbridge, Perth, Australia" (PDF). International Journal of Asia-Pacific Studies. 7 (1): 1–25. ISSN 1823-6243.
  5. ↑ Jordan, Kirrily; Collins, Jock (2009). "Cosmopolitan Northbridge: A changing inner-city ethnic landscape". Northbridge Studies Day Papers. Network Books: 249–275. ISBN 978-1-920845-51-3.
  6. ↑ http://www.northbridgehistory.wa.gov.au/Pages/NorthbridgeHistoryStudiesDay.aspx
  7. ↑ http://www.northbridgehistory.wa.gov.au/Pages/Publications.aspx
  8. ↑ Newport, Tanya; Morel-EdnieBrown, Felicity; Western Australia. Dept. of the Premier and Cabinet (2006), Northbridge : guide to sources 2006, Dept. of the Premier and Cabinet, retrieved 24 March 2013
  9. ↑ Yiannakis, John N; Morel-EdnieBrown, Felicity; Nile, Richard, 1958- (2009), Northbridge studies day papers, Network Books, ISBN 978-1-920845-51-3
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