Stirling is a suburb of
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 ...
, the capital city 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 ...
, about 10 km north of
Perth's central business district (CBD) along the
Mitchell Freeway
The Mitchell Freeway is a freeway in the northern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, linking central Perth with the city of Joondalup. It is the northern section of State Route 2, which continues south as Kwinana Freeway and Forrest ...
. Its
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 ...
is the
City of Stirling
The City of Stirling is a local government area in the northern suburbs of the Western Australian capital city of Perth about north of Perth's central business district. The City covers an area of and has a population of over 223,000, makin ...
, whose council offices and administration centre are located in the southwest of the mostly residential suburb.
History
Stirling is named after
James Stirling, the first Western Australian governor (1829–1838). The name was approved in April 1976 at the request of the
City of Stirling
The City of Stirling is a local government area in the northern suburbs of the Western Australian capital city of Perth about north of Perth's central business district. The City covers an area of and has a population of over 223,000, makin ...
, as the area contained the Council's headquarters. The suburb was part of
Balcatta until 1976.
Throughout the wetland regions,
Aboriginals hunted for kangaroo, emu, snakes, tortoise, mudfish, gilgies and water birds and their eggs, to name a few food sources. Aboriginal sites are known to have existed in a few locations in the Gwelup-Balcatta region.
Early European settlement (to 1960)
The area's first European settlement was as an extension of the Osborne Park market area. Its initial growth in importance as an agricultural area in the 1920s came from three major factors: retired Chinese miners from the Eastern Goldfields, the post-
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
Soldier Settlement Scheme (many of whom had no experience in intensive farming), and an influx of
Italians
, flag =
, flag_caption = The national flag of Italy
, population =
, regions = Italy 55,551,000
, region1 = Brazil
, pop1 = 25–33 million
, ref1 =
, region2 ...
prior to
Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...
's effective banning of emigration in 1927, who mostly started life in Western Australia as miners and woodcutters. Dino Gava noted: "The process of (Italian) chain migration was strong in Osborne Park and
Wanneroo
Wanneroo is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia, located within the City of Wanneroo.
Geography
As it is on the Swan Coastal Plain, the Wanneroo wetlands stretch parallel to the coastline and to the north and south of the suburb.
Education
...
. They arrived ill-prepared with regard to language and education but their youth and willingness to work made them desirable settlers." By 1935, the area was producing all sorts of fruit and vegetables, and a 1961 newspaper reported that "hundreds of acres are under cultivation, (and) nearly all types of vegetable are produced in the area. Part of the produce is exported to other countries."
Suburban development (1960-)
Major changes occurred in the 1960s and 1970s. The main access to the area from Perth was via
Wanneroo Road
Wanneroo Road is a arterial highway in the northern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia linking Joondanna and Yokine in the south with Wanneroo and Yanchep in the north. As part of State Route 60, it begins from Charles Street in the inner ...
and
Balcatta Beach Road, a road which roughly corresponded to Karrinyup Road but included modern-day North Beach Drive and Osborne Place. Hertha Road (now Civic Place and Telford Crescent) was the main road in the area, and the site of the present-day footbridge was the municipal rubbish tip until the early 1970s. The Osborne Park hospital was opened on 4 April 1962 and the civic centre and council chambers were opened in 1966, along with houses in the George Street area near the civic centre. The postal district was approved and gazetted in April 1976, and over the next eight years, most of the suburb was subdivided and built.
The building of the
Mitchell Freeway
The Mitchell Freeway is a freeway in the northern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, linking central Perth with the city of Joondalup. It is the northern section of State Route 2, which continues south as Kwinana Freeway and Forrest ...
to
Karrinyup Road
Karrinyup Road is a major east-west arterial road in the inner northern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, connecting the City of Stirling council offices, Osborne Park Hospital and Karrinyup Shopping Centre with residential estates in Inn ...
in 1983-84 facilitated the growth of Stirling as a regional hub, and the bus/train interchange (on the
Joondalup railway line
The Joondalup line is a commuter rail service in Western Australia, linking the Perth central business district (CBD) with the metropolitan area's north-western suburbs. The service is operated on the Northern Suburbs Railway by Transperth Trai ...
) was completed in 1992. As at 2006, some subdivisions in the Stirling region are still being developed.
Geography
Stirling is bounded by the
Mitchell Freeway
The Mitchell Freeway is a freeway in the northern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, linking central Perth with the city of Joondalup. It is the northern section of State Route 2, which continues south as Kwinana Freeway and Forrest ...
between
Erindale Road
Erindale Road is a connector road in the northern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, providing residents of the suburbs of Hamersley and Warwick with a connection to Reid Highway and Mitchell Freeway. The road is a dual carriageway with two ...
and Hutton Street on the west and south, Amelia and Poincaire Streets to the north, and an uneven line running roughly south from Jones Street's north-south section to the east. Lake estates and public parks, including the Stirling Civic Gardens, make up a moderate percentage of the suburb's area.
Demographics
At the
2001 Australian census
The Census in Australia, officially the Census of Population and Housing, is the national census in Australia that occurs every five years. The census collects key demographic, social and economic data from all people in Australia on census nig ...
, Stirling had a population of 5,752 people living in 2,159 dwellings, many of which are single detached dwellings, many of them two-storey brick on relatively large lots. The suburb is one of Perth's most ethnically diverse - in 2001, 23% were of Italian descent, 24% of
Macedonian, 6% Asian and 4% Greek,
and this reflects strongly in the architectural styles which have been adopted in the area.
Facilities
Stirling is host to the Osborne Park Hospital, a 205-bed community general hospital which offers some specialist services as well as radiology and pathology. There are no schools within the suburb, although Balcatta Senior High School is located on the northern boundary (Poincaire Street) and numerous primary schools are located in nearby Gwelup, Osborne Park and Balcatta.
Stirling relies on the Stirling Village shopping centre, containing an
IGA and specialty stores, in Cedric Street for basic commercial services, and Karrinyup Shopping Centre for other services. Numerous reserves and sports grounds are scattered throughout the area. The
Stirling Lions soccer club is based just outside the suburb.
[
]
Transport
Stirling is served by the Stirling train station, which is a 9-minute commute to the Perth CBD. Services through the suburb include the Transperth
Transperth is the brand name of the public transport system serving the city and suburban areas of Perth, the state capital of Western Australia. It is managed by the Public Transport Authority (PTA), a state government organisation. Train op ...
414 bus route running along Cedric Street between Stirling and Glendalough
Glendalough (; ) is a glacial valley in County Wicklow, Ireland, renowned for an Early Medieval monastic settlement founded in the 6th century by St Kevin. From 1825 to 1957, the head of the Glendalough Valley was the site of a galena lead mine. ...
, the 403/404 routes from Perth which services Hamilton Street in the suburb's southeast, and the CircleRoute
The CircleRoute is a pair of circular bus routes operated by Transperth through Perth's suburbs.
History
The CircleRoute was introduced in two stages. On 16 February 1998 the first stage of the CircleRoute commenced operating between Fremantl ...
along lower Cedric Street and Karrinyup Road.Northern 59 timetable
Transperth, effective 8 August 2005
Northern 56 timetable
Transperth, effective 10 December 2006. Accessed 17 January 2007. The
Public Transport Authority is responsible for these services.
Politics
Stirling is a mixed-wealth suburb with many "
mortgage belt" families. In 2001, 52% of the suburb's population were from Southern Europe, and the Balcatta Central and Osborne Park booths are among the northern suburbs' few genuinely marginal booths at federal level. However, they strongly support the
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms the f ...
at
state elections.
References
External links
City of StirlingOsborne Park Hospital
{{City of Stirling suburbs
Stirling
Stirling (; sco, Stirlin; gd, Sruighlea ) is a city in central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the royal citadel, the medieval old town with its me ...
Australian soldier settlements
Suburbs in the City of Stirling