Swan River Colony

Settlement

Period: Jan 1, 1829 to Dec 31, 1900

Parmelia arrives in Western Australia

May 31, 1829

Approximately four hundred people arrived on the HMS Sulphur and Parmelia, but the Parmelia arrived first, and due to Stirling's overconfident steering, ran aground on rocks.

Official Proclamation

Jun 18, 1829

Captain Stirling officially proclaimed Perth for England, after taking over two weeks to fix repairs after running aground.

First Reports

Jan 25, 1830

The first reports arrived in England, portraying the Swan River Colony to be a bad idea, as the land was unsuitable for crops, and had poor conditions. It mistakenly stated that this colony was being discontinued.

Perth Gazette

Jan 5, 1833

The first edition of the Perth Gazette was launched.

Battle of Pinjarra

Oct 28, 1834

This was a battle between around eighty Indigenous people and twenty-five British soldiers, led by Captain Stirling, after many other hostile actions before.

Convicts

Jan 1, 1850

Due to the struggling infrastructure, the Swan River Colony officially becomes a penal colony in 1850. Between now and 1868, over 9000 convicts are transported in forty-three voyages.

Telegraph

Dec 8, 1877

The telegraph line from Perth to Adelaide was completed, considerably increasing the communication from the Swan River Colony to the world.

First Gold Found

Dec 25, 1885

Prospector Charlie Hall found a huge 28-ounce (nearly 1 kilogram) gold nugget at a site that would eventually be named after him.

Self Governance

Jan 1, 1890

The Act granting self-government was passed by the House of Commons and Queen Victoria.

Kings Park

Aug 10, 1895

Kings Park was officially opened. It was originally called Perth Park and was renamed in 1901 to King's Park - the apostrophe was later dropped.