Spearwood is a southern suburb of

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

, Western Australia, located within the

City of Cockburn The City of Cockburn ( ) is a local government area in the southern suburbs of the Western Australian capital city of Perth about south of Fremantle and about south of Perth's central business district. The City covers an area of and had a po ...

. This suburb derives its name from the Spearwood bush which is a common shrub in the area.

History

Settlement appears to have begun in Spearwood in the 1850s when Alfred Hooker took up Cockburn Sound Location 97, although several adjoining blocks were taken up during the same period by Charles Manning.''Cockburn: The Making of a Community'' Michael Berson, 1978, Town of Cockburn, When Cockburn Sound Location 264 was offered for subdivision by real estate entrepreneur James Morrison in 1883 he used the name ''The Spearwood Estate'', the first time the name was used. The Spearwood area soon became one of Perth's major market gardening areas.

Geography

It is bounded by Phoenix Road to the north, Stock Road to the east, Barrington Street and Troode Street to the south and Hamilton Road to the west. Phoenix Road was named by John Healy after Phoenix Park

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, where the British

Chief Secretary for Ireland The Chief Secretary for Ireland was a key political office in the British Dublin Castle administration, administration in Ireland. Nominally subordinate to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Lord Lieutenant, and officially the "Chief Secretar ...

was assassinated by

Fenian The word ''Fenian'' () served as an umbrella term for the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and their affiliate in the United States, the Fenian Brotherhood. They were secret political organisations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries ...

s in 1882, although an alternative suggestion is that it was named by Steve Dobra, the first settler on Phoenix Road, who worked in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

before coming to

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

in 1912. Barrington Street is named after Barrington C. Wood, the first Mayor of

Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia located at the mouth of the Swan River (Western Australia), Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australi ...

(1883–1885). Troode Street is named after Edward Thomas Troode, the original owner of the ''Woodlands'' Estate from 1860. The suburb is approximately 85% shrubland.

Facilities

Commercial

The main shopping area is Phoenix Shopping Centre, a thriving commercial centre located along Rockingham Road, with a smaller centre, Stargate Spearwood located further south, also on Rockingham Road.

Cultural

The

's main administrative offices and library are located on Coleville Crescent immediately to the south of the Phoenix Shopping Centre. The Spearwood Library and Cockburn Seniors Centre are both located next to the council buildings.

Educational

There are four primary schools located within the suburb: Spearwood Primary School, Newton Primary School, Phoenix Primary school and Spearwood Alternative School.

Aged Care Facilities

There are 2 main aged care facilities in Spearwood. The first being Aegis Amberley Aged Care, belonging to the Aegis Aged Care Group and the second one is Villa Dalmacia Aged Care.

Recreational

Dalmatinac Park is home to the Spearwood Dalmatinac Amateur Soccer Club and the Dalmatinac Netball Club. Watsons Oval is home to the Southern Spirit Soccer Club. Beale Park is home to Cockburn City Soccer Club which plays in the Premier league of the State's Football (Soccer) Association and also the Cockburn City Teeball and Baseball Club. Manning Park is a picturesque park located around Manning Lake. There are a number of walking trails around the park. It is home to the Spearwood Walking Racers Association, where walkers can be seen around the park on weekends holding time trials. Spearwood is also home to many Croatian sporting clubs and community centres. There is a significant Croatian cultural history in the Spearwood area.

Transport

Bus * 512

Fremantle railway station Fremantle railway station is the terminus of Transperth's Fremantle line in Western Australia. History The original Fremantle station opened in Cliff Street on 1 March 1881 as the terminus of the Eastern Railway to Guildford via Perth. As ...

Murdoch railway station Murdoch railway station is a railway and bus station on the Transperth Trains, Transperth network. It is located on the Mandurah railway line, Mandurah line, from Perth railway station, Perth station inside the median strip of the Kwinana Free ...

serves - Spearwood Ave, Rockingham Rd & Phoenix Rd. * 530

Cockburn Central railway station Cockburn Central station ( ) is a bus and railway station on the Transperth Trains, Transperth network. It is located at the juncture of the Mandurah railway line, Mandurah and Thornlie–Cockburn line, Thornlie–Cockburn lines, from Perth ra ...

serves - Rockingham Rd * 531

serves - Doolette St, Spearwood Ave, Coleville Cres & Rockingham Rd * 532

serves - Rockingham Rd

References

External links

{{City of Cockburn suburbs Suburbs of Perth, Western Australia Suburbs in the City of Cockburn