Perth was an electoral district of the
Legislative Council of
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
from 1870 to 1890, during the period when the Legislative Council was the sole chamber of the
Parliament of Western Australia
The Parliament of Western Australia is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of Western Australia, forming the legislative branch of the Government of Western Australia. The parliament consists of a lower house, the Legislative ...
.
Perth was one of the original ten Legislative Council districts created by the ''Legislative Council Act 1870'' (33 Vict, No. 13). The district's southern boundary ran along the
Swan River, the
Canning River
The Canning River (Djarlgarra in Nyungar) is a major tributary of the Swan River in the South West Land Division of Western Australia. It is home to much wildlife including dolphins, pelicans, swans and many other bird species.
Source a ...
, and
Bull Creek (although
North Fremantle
North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography.
Etymology
The word ''north'' is ...
was assigned to the
district of Fremantle). It then ran south-east out to near present-day
Ashendon
Ashendon is a small village and civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England. It is about nine miles west of Aylesbury and seven miles north of Thame.
The toponym is derived from the Old English for "Hill overgrown with ash trees". The Domesday Bo ...
, before going north-east to
Mount Dale
Mount Dale is a mountain in Western Australia about east of Armadale in the Shire of Beverley. At high, it is one of the highest points in the Darling Scarp.
It is best known for its walk track, which forms part of the Bibbulmun Track. Th ...
, which was the easternmost point within the district. Perth's northern boundary ran north-west from Mount Dale to
Belmont (on the Swan River), then north by west to
Lake Gnangara
Lake Gnangara is the most southerly of the Wanneroo wetlands in metropolitan Perth, Western Australia.
The state government's ''Wetland Atlas'' defines the body of water as a lake. The surrounding terrain consists of low dunes and undulating sa ...
, and finally north to a due east line intersecting
Nowergup Lake. The district was bordered by the
district of Swan to the north and east, the
district of Murray and Williams to the south-east (after 1873), and the district of Fremantle to the south.
[.]
Along with Fremantle and the
North District (from 1883 only), Perth elected two members to the Legislative Council (unlike the other constituencies, which only elected one member each). In total, eight men represented the district between 1870 and 1890, the longest-serving of which was Sir
Luke Leake
Sir Luke Samuel Leake (1828–1886), M.L.C., was a Speaker of the Western Australian Legislative Council.
Biography
Early life
Luke Leake was born in 1828. He was the youngest son of Luke Leake, of Stoke Newington, Middlesex.
Career
He moved ...
(from 1870 to 1886). Several of the district's representatives went on to serve in the
Legislative Assembly after the advent of
responsible government in 1890.
''The Western Australian Parliamentary Handbook (Twenty-Third Edition)''
, p. 370.
Members
References
{{coord missing, Western Australia
Perth
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 i ...
1870 establishments in Australia
1890 disestablishments in Australia
Constituencies established in 1870
Constituencies disestablished in 1890