Museum of Perth in Perth, Western Australia | Non-profit organisation

Museum of Perth

Locality: Perth, Western Australia

Phone: +61 8 9339 9370

Address: 8-10 The Esplanade 6000 Perth, WA, Australia

Website: http://www.museumofperth.com.au

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25.01.2022 Booryulup The name for the western stretch of land along the South Perth peninsula located between Richardson Park and Mill Point. The area was once a traditional camping, hunting, and fishing area for the local Noongar people, as evident by a traditional fish trap found in the Canning River along Milyu Nature Reserve. Milyu is an Aboriginal, not Noongar, word for samphire - the low, salt-tolerant succulent vegetation found along this area of foreshore. Samphire, also known a...s sea asparagus, would have served as bush tucker for the local Noongar people with its young, crunchy shoots tasting similar to salty asparagus. The riverine foreshore provides a habitat for wading and shore birds when other points and coves along the river are at high tide, which the Noongar people would have traditionally hunted. The Noongar interpretation for this site is debated, with the root words boorn (chin), boorna (tree), booyal (south), and boolya/booryl (magic man) each considered a potential interpretation. However, the site has often been described as a place of magic men. Today, Booryulup is mostly covered by the Kwinana Freeway, but a small, though reclaimed, portion of it remains along the Milyu Nature Reserve. See more at our exhibition Gnarla Boodja Mili Mili. 8-10 The Esplanade Perth Monday - Saturday 10am - 4pm https://www.museumofperth.com.au/booryulup

23.01.2022 103 years of women in the WA police force. This very interesting 2017 centenary video covers the fascinating history of women serving in the WA Police Force. True trailblazers and well worth a watch!

23.01.2022 Great work City of South Perth!

22.01.2022 LONDON COURT - your help required! As you can see, our flat in London Court is in a sorry state. We need your help to bring it back to its former 1937 glory! Task list:... - Fundraising - Volunteer management - Research appropriate antiques for furnishing - Source crockery, appliances, linen and soft furnishings of the era. - Remove horrid carpet - Scrape and clean all walls and skirtings / picture rails ready for painting - Paint - Remove modern excess telephone cabling - Remove filing cabinet, modern office cabinets and other pieces of furniture - Lift modern Lino in kitchen ready for installation of sympathetic replacement - Clean clean clean! Does anyone knows an electrician who would be prepared to work for free or very cheap to remove modern office light fittings and replace with sympathetic new pendant fittings? Does anyone know a timer who would be able to gently repair some tile work which looks precarious? To learn more about our London Court Project, to volunteer or to donate head to: www.museumofperth.com.au/london-court-flats We will arrange for all of our volunteers to meet onsite next week to prepare a plan of attack!

21.01.2022 We’ve been waiting for it for months (COVID delivery issues) but our new overhead book scanner has finally arrived! It flattens the image of curved books, and transcribes the text automatically. A lifesaver!

21.01.2022 What a story!!

20.01.2022 Weitch-Rutta Weitch-Rutta is varyingly said to have been both a traditional ‘fighting ground’ and a place where ‘corroborees were held’ prior to the area being reclaimed as Wellington Square. The northern portion of today’s parkland overlays a section of a previously resource rich swamp. This swamp was part of a chain of freshwater lakes, swamps, and wetlands that extended north of Perth beyond the bilya (Swan River). Together, this biome provided a variety of food sources to... Noongar people who lived off the water birds, kooya (frogs), gilgies (freshwater crayfish), yakan (turtles) and plant foods, such as bulrushes, that flourished in the swamps. The site may well have been associated with the presence of emus, weitch or waj being the Noongar word for the bird. There is also speculation that the square and near vicinity was at one time a Noongar burial ground, after the skeleton of an adult male was unearthed during excavation activities in the early 1940s. Today, both the Noongar and the wider Aboriginal community maintain strong connections to this area, as a focus for family and social gatherings, as well as a venue for sporting and celebratory events. See more at our exhibition Gnarla Boodja Mili Mili. 8-10 The Esplanade Perth Monday - Saturday 10am - 4pm https://www.museumofperth.com.au/weitchrutta

20.01.2022 We’re at the Spring Farm Fair at the Claremont Showgrounds today and saw something we thought you’d find interesting; a 1904 Steam Engine! The engine was manufactured in Lincoln, England in 1904 and was shipped to Greenough, WA that year. In 1908 the engine was purchased by the O’Brian family and towed to Devil’s Creek near Mullewa, 120kms east of Geraldton by a team of horses. The engine worked until the 1950s driving a chaffcutter on the O’Brian properties. The engine we...nt into restoration in 1997, most of the work being done at Toodyay by Peter Dymond and Peter Ognorne. Royal Agricultural Society of Western Australia

18.01.2022 Joorolup Joorolup is the name given to the shoreline south of Matta Gerup, extending from the Causeway Bridge in a westerly direction towards the present-day South Perth Boatshed. Joorolup was known as the ‘place of the jarrahs’, extending from the Noongar root word for the jarrah tree, djaraly. This indicates that the area may have been part of a jarrah forest along the Swan River coast.... The jarrah tree offered Noongar people an array of items from its various parts. Noongar people traditionally used branches and roots from the jarrah tree to make tools, such as boorndoorn (spears) and wanna (digging sticks). They also used jarrah leaves for bedding and jarrah wood as roofing for shelters, as it was, and still is, renowned for its durability and resistance to rot. This jarrah area would have been maintained by Noongar firing regimes that cycled nutrients for the trees, killed leaf miners and burned off scrub. The resulting site would have resulted in a tidy, green-carpeted forest of jarrahs, similar to a well-manicured landscape garden. See more at our exhibition Gnarla Boodja Mili Mili. 8-10 The Esplanade Perth Monday - Saturday 10am - 4pm https://www.museumofperth.com.au/joorolup

15.01.2022 PRESERVING OUR HERITAGE If you’re familiar with Surrey Street in Bassendean, you might know of a small, white render cottage that’s been standing there for over 150 years. Built between 1856 and 1857, the Pensioner Guard Cottage is the oldest building in Bassendean and is on the National Trust Register of WA.... Over the past few years, the town of Bassendean has been looking at what to do with the site. It’s not being demolished, but the sites future is unclear with the local government possibly looking to pass it’s maintenance onto a not for profit organisation. So what’s the history of this cottage and how is it tied to WA’s convict heritage? Bassendean historical societies’ Mark Johnston and Museum of Perth’s Reece Harley joined Monika Kos in studio to discuss the old cottage. Bassendean Historical Society Bassendean Memorial Library Town of Bassendean

14.01.2022 Watch this space!

14.01.2022 Warndulier This is the name for a section of the bilya (Swan River), upstream from Buneenboro (Perth Water) that flows around the Burswood Peninsula. It may also include Walter’s Brook, which feeds into the river directly north of Banks Reserve. Walter’s Brook is reported to have originated much further inland in the past and would have provided fresh water for those camping inland. The path of the river is said to have been created by the giant rainbow snake of Noongar Dream...ing, the Waugyl, as it meandered its way towards the ocean, the twists and bends of Warndulier being one of the most prominent aspects of its journey. Warndulier wraps around the Burswood Peninsula, which was mostly low lying and ascending into a ridge as it turns south, developing into a steep sandy hill as the peninsula edged into the area now known as Victoria Park. There is evidence to indicate that Noongar people occupied this low, sandy peninsula for many thousands of years. The eastern edge of the peninsula was once a traditional ceremonial site, as evident by artefacts scattered in the area. The western side of the peninsula, where the freeway passes over, was utilised by local Noongar people as well as more northern Aboriginal groups for housing up until the 1920s. Munday, a prominent Noongar Elder and leader, would have travelled through the peninsula to visit the people of the South Perth district. The people of Munday’s tribe totalled 32 in 1837, with only five members being children, a significant decrease exposing the effects of colonisation on the Noongar people. The land across the river opposite to the Burswood Peninsula was a Noongar camping ground up until the twentieth century. Known today as Bardon Park, this protected camping area was called Malgamongup by Noongar people and translated to on the shoulder, the place of the spearwood camp on the hill. Further upstream from Warndulier is the Noongar site of Wu-rut, also known today as Maylands Peninsula. See more at our exhibition Gnarla Boodja Mili Mili. 8-10 The Esplanade Perth Monday - Saturday 10am - 4pm https://www.museumofperth.com.au/warndulier

14.01.2022 Kambarang... and isn’t it just beautiful!

13.01.2022 Dyeedyallalup The name given to the lowlands along the Buneenboro (Perth Water), in the general location of Langley Park. Dyeedyallalup derives its name from the large clay deposits that distinguished the area. Clay and ochre (clay pigment) on Noongar country comes in shades of djardak (white), mirda (red) and yoont (yellow). An important resource and wellbeing tool for Noongar people, clay and ochre traditionally had many physical, spiritual and social uses. Djardak and mir...da were used for decorating the body for ceremonial dances while yoont was a tint in paint for rock art. A topical mixture of clay and animal fat called wilgi was used to protect against the sun’s ultraviolet rays, insects and adverse weather conditions. Wilgi also masked human scent, which allowed Noongar men to hunt yonga (kangaroo) and wedtj (emu) more easily. Dyeedyallalup may also refer to a camping ground which included springs or a water hole. In 1835, a unique reconciliation meeting occurred at Government House involving Governor Stirling, a Swan River tribe and a Murray River tribe to try and keep peace amongst the three. A corroboree sealed the Swan and Murray River groups’ agreement, with the Murray River group withdrawing to this water hole at Dyeedyallalup at the end of the night whilst the Mooro group of the Swan River tribe retired to a spring at Goodinup. More than a century after European contact, an early resident writing to the West Australian recalled the presence of ‘beautiful clear springs’ that once flowed in the gardens of residential houses built in the Dyeedyallalup area. Most of the Dyeedyallalup area now lies beneath present-day Langley Park along the Perth Foreshore. See more at our exhibition Gnarla Boodja Mili Mili. 8-10 The Esplanade Perth Monday - Saturday 10am - 4pm https://www.museumofperth.com.au/dyeedyallalup

13.01.2022 Here's your chance to farewell Princess Margaret Hospital. Western Australians at home and all around the globe are being offered an opportunity to farewell Princess Margaret Hospital prior to demolition by submitting their memories and experiences into a unique digital time capsule. The time capsule will be buried in a reflection area at the Subi East PMH neighbourhood and opened in 109 years. The hospital closed its doors to patients for the final time in June 2018, after 1...09 years of caring for WA children and families. While that vital work and support continues at the new Perth Children’s Hospital, the legacy of PMH will continue on. Click the link to submit your story: https://bit.ly/34sfggr Image: DevelopmentWA

13.01.2022 A boy soldier from St Ildephonsus College, New Norcia (now Newman College), just 19 years old when he enlisted... Lest We Forget.

11.01.2022 Today we hosted our inaugural volunteers meeting for our London Court Flat restoration project. Another meeting is scheduled for this Saturday at 2.30pm. If you’d like to be involved head to our website for more information and to register as a volunteer: www.museumofperth.com.au/london-court-flats Volunteers have already undertaken detailed research into the residents, businesses and construction companies and trades that helped to build London Court. ... Over the coming months we’ll be refurbishing the flat to its 1937 appearance - and creating a detailed history of the building and its occupants. Watch this space!

11.01.2022 Gabbee Kalga The name of a large hollow jarrah tree which held drinkable rain water, and its surrounds where grass trees grew in abundance. The tree is said to have been located about 200 metres north-west of the present-day Queen Victoria Statue in Kings Park. In the Noongar language Gabbee means water, and Kalga (commonly spelt Balga) means grass tree. The gum of the jarrah tree was used by Noongar people as a mild anesthetic or was mixed with water to settle an upset stoma...ch. The bark of the jarrah tree was also used for creating shelters. The balga was an extremely important plant for Noongar people owing to the dietary, medicinal and tool-making properties that it held. The resin of the balga could also be used for a wide range of purposes including as a glue, for tanning kangaroo (yongka) hides to make bookas and to start fires. Gabbee Kalga is known for its closeness to the burial site of one of the grandmothers of Fanny Balbuk, a well-known Noongar historical figure who passed away in 1907 at the age of 64. See more at our exhibition Gnarla Boodja Mili Mili. 8-10 The Esplanade Perth Monday - Saturday 10am - 4pm https://www.museumofperth.com.au/gabbee-kalga

10.01.2022 Goonininup The name of a campsite and permanent spring covering a large extent of land that once existed at the base of Mount Eliza, downstream of where the Swan Brewery now stands. The boundary separating Goonininup and Karrgatup (camping ground on the slopes below Mount Eliza) was marked by a large tuart tree located below the point of Kata Moor (Point Lewis or One Tree Point). This permanent water source is regarded as sacred in Noongar culture due to its strong associatio...n with the Waugyl. When the Waugyl, the great rainbow snake of Noongar Dreaming, journeyed towards the ocean, it meandered through what is now called the Swan River and emerged at the base of Mt. Eliza at a freshwater spring (now Kennedy’s Fountain). Sites such as Goonininup that are associated with the Rainbow Serpent Dreaming, called Waugyl places, traditionally required Aboriginal visitors to provide customary introductions or offerings. Aboriginal visitors who breached this law were punished by illness. Surrounded by bulrushes, Goonininup’s proximity to the estuary shore made this location a favoured camping place. Goonininup’s camp layout was well-positioned for both public gathering centring around the freshwater spring and a private area nestled amongst the slopes of Mount Eliza. Gilgie (freshwater crayfish) abounded when in season, providing a rich source of nourishment. The Noongar clan Elder Yellagonga who was living at the time of European contact favoured this camp site and would have partaken in its important rituals and ceremonies. Goonininup’s place along both an ochre trade route and a track for young male initiates cements its status as a key site. Yellagonga traded his high grade red ochre from this site to camps across Western Australia and even South Australia. Also on this route, Noongar boys undergoing initiation, known as moolyeet, travelled throughout the country of their kin learning from Elders on the way. The final initiation ceremony of the moolyeet coincided with a seasonal kangaroo hunt at Goonininup, called yongar-a-kabbin, that was accompanied with feasts, ritual gifting, and the making of booka (kangaroo skin cloaks). The name Goonininup is said to derive from the Noongar word for faeces, goona, acknowledging the limestone cliffs above present-day Mounts Bay Road that were created by the Waugyl. Limestone in Noongar country is traditionally associated with the Waugyl’s excrement. Adjacent to Goonininup is the site of Kooyamulyup, which means place of kooya (frogs). See more at our exhibition Gnarla Boodja Mili Mili. 8-10 The Esplanade Perth Monday - Saturday 10am - 4pm https://www.museumofperth.com.au/goonininup

09.01.2022 Hidden within the WA Museum complex; the colony’s most feared building. Built in 1854 with convict labour, the Perth Gaol was constructed from limestone excavated from the cliffs of Rocky Bay, and sent up the river by barge. More than 60 prisoners were executed here; the first a woman who was convicted of conspiring to murder her husband. At one point 150 prisoners were crammed into this rather small complex. West Australians will wonder at the beautifully restored exterior as they pass through the inner courtyard of the WA Museum complex. #cityofperth

09.01.2022 Kakaroomup The name for the goorda (middle island) located between Yoondoorup and Goonagar islands and associated with the mud flats of Matta Gerup. The name derives from the Noongar word kakar (slippery) and may indicate the challenge found in crossing the mud flats. Fanny Balbuk, a well-known Noongar historical figure who passed away in 1907 at the age of 64, worked with the ethnographer Daisy Bates, who recorded that Balbuk’s mother was born on the island. Balbuk’s wealth ...of knowledge on the geography of the Perth region informed much of Bates’ research in the area. The island and its immediate surrounds provided fertile hunting and fishing grounds for Noongar people. The swamps and shallow lakes in the islands of Goonagar, Kakaroomup and Yoondoorup were home to water birds, kooya (frogs), yanjidee (edible interior of bulrushes), gilgies (freshwater crayfish), and yakan (turtles) that would have supported large numbers of Noongars. Plant bush tucker, such as the edible interior rhizome root of bulrushes, or yanjidee, filled the waterways of the Swan Coastal Plain and was collected by Noongar women using wanna (digging sticks) during the Noongar season of Djeran (April-May). Today, it is difficult to ascertain where Kakaroomup, Goonagar and Matta Gerup end, and reclamation begins due to the progressive works and filling that resulted in a single piece of land named Heirisson Island. However, portions of the original island of Kakaroomup still exist north of the Causeway bridge. See more at our exhibition Gnarla Boodja Mili Mili. 8-10 The Esplanade Perth Monday - Saturday 10am - 4pm https://www.museumofperth.com.au/kakaroomup

08.01.2022 Byererup The highland adjoining Goloogulup that followed the course of Hay Street, from around the Hay Street bridge on Mitchell freeway towards East Perth. The high ground would have provided a commanding view of the surrounding lands, both north and south. Byererup is known in Noongar culture as the place of macrozamia palms and nuts. The outer coats of the seeds of the macrozamia palm, bayoo, were a nutritionally-rich source of food high in oils, vitamin A, and protein. H...owever, the macrozamia seed was toxic, and required soaking or burying underground for a couple of weeks for detoxification. Traditionally in Noongar culture, the macrozamia fruit was fully ripened and gathered towards the end of the Bunuru season (late March) by older women and carried in their kangaroo skin bags, or goto. Young women were not allowed to collect the fruit as its toxicity was believed to interfere with fertility. If there was water nearby, processing was done by soaking the bayoo in shallow brooks or at the sea beach in sacks that were staked on the shore. When water supplies were low, bayoo were buried for processing for a few weeks in anaerobic pits deep enough that marsupials could not find. After detoxification, the skin of the bayoo was removed and roasted for eating, while the seed kernels were discarded. Noongars were the only recorded Aboriginal group to eat the red sarcotesta, or rich, oily outer coating of the macrozamia seed kernels. See more at our exhibition Gnarla Boodja Mili Mili. 8-10 The Esplanade Perth Monday - Saturday 10am - 4pm https://www.museumofperth.com.au/byererup

08.01.2022 LONDON COURT BOOKS - Can you help? We’re so excited to share with you our latest initiative - London Court Books ~ new, second-hand and antiquarian books as well as gifts and greeting cards. We think we’ll be open by Monday but there is plenty to do before then! More than 30 volunteers have been working diligently over recent weeks to restore our little shop and source furniture, products to sell, and design a magical experience for visitors. ... We need your help! Do you have any old books that you no longer wish to adorn your shelves? We would be very grateful for any donations of books! Books can be brought to our Museum Gallery at 8-10 the Esplanade, or to the bookshop (shop 52, London Court, the St George’s Tce end) from 10am - 4pm Monday to Friday. Our exact opening hours are yet to be finalised as we are a little short on regular volunteers to staff the shop. Would you like to get some experience in retail? Just three hours a week would be a great help. If you’d like to volunteer head to: www.museumofperth.com.au/volunteering Thanks also to UWAP for providing us with a wonderful consignment of new books and to Rob & Janet at Muir Books for providing a fascinating collection of antique and collectable volumes. We can’t wait to welcome you to our little slice of 1937 in the heart of the city. A tiny respite from the bustle of the Terrace. A place to sit, read, browse relax and dream about far away places For more information, or to arrange a time to deliver books to us, please contact [email protected] Watch this space for updates!

08.01.2022 Matta Gerup Matta Gerup, literally translating to shin-deep (matta-ger), was a shallow crossing point through the Swan River where the Causeway is now located. The site is an important part in the creation journey of the Waugyl, the giant rainbow snake of Noongar Dreaming. When the Waugyl tunnelled east towards the ocean, creating the bilya (Swan River), it became stuck in the mud flats of Matta Gerup and had to shake its scales off to get through to Buneenboro (Perth Water).... Noongar storytelling reveals that the nearby island of Goonagar may have been created through the shedding of the Waugyl’s scales. Matta Gerup was the only major crossing point for people making their way to the other side of the Swan River. The local Noongar people held access to the ford and granted rite of passage for other groups to make their way through the river. For this reason, the ford of Matta Gerup was significant for trade, religious ceremony, economic activity and social interaction. Europeans later referred to this area as ‘The Flats’ as it was made up of multiple small islands and mud flats. The original islands around the mud flats associated with Matta Gerup include Goonagar, Kakaroomup, and Yoondoorup. Today, Matta Gerup is most likely encompassed by the site of Goonagar. See more at our exhibition Gnarla Boodja Mili Mili. 8-10 The Esplanade Perth Monday - Saturday 10am - 4pm https://www.museumofperth.com.au/matta-gerup

07.01.2022 We’ve spent the morning in the Town of Bassendean - and what a lovely part of the world! We were lucky enough to meet with the Town’s CEO Peta, Community Planning Director Luke and Local Studies Librarian Janet to discuss the history of the Town. They’re all so passionate about the Town and it’s unique history. We were also privileged to visit the Pensioner Guard Cottage (1857), and tour some of the town’s historic residences, reserves and river bends. We were also allowed in...to the Town’s archives to pore over their incredible collection of photos, biographies and rates-books. Wonderful! It’s such a charming part of our City and deserves to be celebrated. Do you have any memories of Bassendean? Please share your photographs or stories of the Town in the comments below. More info: https://library.bassendean.wa.gov.au/local-studies.aspx Renée McLennan, Bassendean Mayor

05.01.2022 MOVING OUT Cue Shire is in talks with a South Australian company about moving a historic stone building from the edge of an open cut mine pit into the safety o...f the Murchison townsite. Shire CEO Rob Madson says expressions of interest were sought to move the former Great Fingall Mine office and the council has asked one company to provide more detailed costings. The business specialises in moving buildings in one piece or large sections. He says it will be a huge task but the community is keen to save the heritage listed building.

05.01.2022 We’re building a bookshop today! Watch this space. London Court Books

03.01.2022 Watch this space.

02.01.2022 A fascinating biography of William Forrest; most commonly known as the father of John and Alexander Forrest, but a truly interesting and accomplished man in his own time - a giant of the local community. Written by Museum of Perth Researcher and Australind resident Paige Taylor. Minderoo Foundation City of Bunbury Memories of Bunbury

01.01.2022 It's one of those beautiful Perth days where we wish we could be down at Cottesloe Beach like Harry Blenkinsop and Jean Snell in January 1950. We wonder what ever happened to Harry & Jean? We believe Harry (Henry) and Jean later married, living in Alfred Cove. We'd love to know more! Pic: State Library of Western Australia (221041PD).