Dalkeith is an affluent suburb of

Perth, Western Australia Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

within the

City of Nedlands The City of Nedlands is a local government area in the inner western suburbs of the Western Australian capital city of Perth, about west of Perth's central business district. The City is situated within the western suburbs of the metropolit ...

. The suburb is surrounded on three sides by the Swan River.

History

The suburb takes its name from a cottage built in 1833 by Captain Adam Armstrong and his sons, early settlers of the area who arrived aboard '' Gilmore''. Armstrong, previously the manager of the Earl of Dalkeith's estate in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, named the house "Dalkeith Cottage". The cottage was on a farm bought by James Gallop, who built a two-storey house c. 1872, now known as Gallop House. In 1897 the farm was sold off in lots for residential use. The house was bought by the state government in 1911, and was neglected for several decades before being restored in 1963-4. It is the oldest extant private residence in Dalkeith and the City of Nedlands. As at 2021, Dalkeith was the most expensive suburb for houses in Western Australia, with a median price of $2.9 million. Jutland Parade is the most expensive street in Dalkeith and considered one of the most expensive streets in Perth. At the riverside lies Sunset Hospital, built in 1904 and closed in 1995. Several of the buildings are heritage listed. In 2005 the

University of Western Australia The University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Perth, the state capital, with a secondary campus in Albany, Western Australia, Albany an ...

entered into an agreement with the state government to redevelop the site, including a museum, aged care and residential apartments. In September 2007 UWA withdrew from the agreement, citing delays and restrictions caused by the heritage status of the site.

Secession

In early 2009, residents of Dalkeith formed a movement to

secede Secession is the withdrawal of a group from a larger entity, especially a political entity, but also from any organization, union or military alliance. Some of the most famous and significant secessions have been: the former Soviet republics l ...

from the

and form their own local government area, ostensibly the Shire of Dalkeith. The residents suggested secession as economically viable - the

Shire of Peppermint Grove The Shire of Peppermint Grove is a local government area in Perth, Western Australia, southwest of the Perth central business district. At , it is the smallest local government area in Australia; it contains only the eponymous suburb, Pepp ...

, the smallest

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a State (administrative division), state, province, divi ...

in Australia, was established in 1895 and currently has about 1,600 residents, whereas Dalkeith currently has over 4,000.

References

{{Authority control Suburbs of Perth, Western Australia Suburbs in the City of Nedlands