The Esplanade Reserve in

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 is ...

, Western Australia was a heritage listed public space between

Perth Water Perth Water is a section of the Swan River on the southern edge of the central business district of Perth, Western Australia. It is between the Causeway to the east, and Narrows Bridge to the west – a large wide but shallow section of river, ...

and the Perth central business district. It formed part of, and was occasionally referred to incorrectly as, the Perth foreshore and the Perth waterfront. The public space was resumed by the Western Australian state government in April 2012 as part of the

Elizabeth Quay Elizabeth Quay is a mixed-use development project in the Perth#cbd, Perth central business district. Focusing on an area located on the north shore of Perth Water near the landmark Swan Bells, the precinct being developed by the project was nam ...

redevelopment of the Perth waterfront area. Established in 1880 on land reclaimed from the Perth Water northern shore between the William Street and

Barrack Street Barrack Street is one of two major cross-streets in the Perth central business district, central business district of Perth, Western Australia. Together with St Georges Terrace, Wellington Street, Perth, Wellington Street and William Street, Pe ...

jetties, adjacent hotels, railway stations and other features have used the term ''Esplanade'' to show their link to the space. The road along the northern boundary of that space is still, , called The Esplanade.

History

The Perth Water northern edge from Mount Eliza in Kings Park to

The Causeway The Causeway is an arterial traffic crossing in Perth, Western Australia, linking the inner-city suburbs of East Perth and Victoria Park. It is carried over the Swan River at the eastern end of Perth Water by two bridges on either side of He ...

has been extensively modified by landfill along the original pre-European river shore. Many projects and constructions on the Esplanade area and adjacent areas have significantly reflected the changing identity of Perth. The Esplanade was developed in the 1870s to provide a site of active recreation for the inhabitants of the city. The idea of a site closer to the administrative and residential heart of the city had been a matter of concern since at least 1864, when a fund for the establishment of a new recreation ground was established. A recreation ground, now

Wellington Square Wellington Square may refer to: * A neighbourhood in Burlington, Ontario, Canada * Wellington Square, Chelsea, a garden square in Chelsea, London * A square in Hastings, on the south coast of England * A square in Kolkata, India, renamed Subodh ...

, was included in the original town plan, but was considered too far for most people to walk to and was largely undeveloped. Around 1867–1868 stones were placed in the river to mark out the edge of the reclamation but little other work was undertaken until 1870. Between 1870 and 1878 reclamation was undertaken using mud dredged up from the river bottom (dredging was used to provide crushed oyster shell for marking out roads and pathways) and street sweepings. It was handed to the

City of Perth A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

in 1880 as a Crown Grant in Trust "for the inhabitants of Perth for recreation purposes forever". Since its handover to the City of Perth, it has been the site of many celebrations, protests and national commemorations. The first major event held on the Esplanade was the 1881 Intercolonial Exhibition, organised by Richard Twopenny and Jules Joubert. Joubert, who spent several months in the city to develop and oversee the exhibition, recommended a city baths, and in 1885 the first

Perth City Baths Perth City Baths was a public swimming facility, located on the north shore of Perth Water on the Swan River, in Perth, Western Australia. During his 1881 sojourn in Perth, exhibition impresario, Jules Joubert, had recommended that the City ...

were established at the end of the Esplanade Reserve. The Perth Bowling Club green was established directly across from the Esplanade Hotel in 1895, and the green and players appear regularly in the images created to promote the hotel in later years. At various stages in its history, the Esplanade was a suggested site of various ideas, even a new town hall.

Adjoining features

Notes

References

{{coord , region:AU-WA_type:landmark_dim:250 , name={{wikidata , property , P1448 , display=title , format=dms Parks in Perth, Western Australia Barrack Street, Perth Elizabeth Quay The Esplanade (Perth) State Register of Heritage Places in the City of Perth