Mosman Park is a western suburb of Perth, Western Australia on the north bank of the Swan River in the local government area of the Town of Mosman Park. It was historically known as Buckland Hill, then Cottesloe Beach and again Buckland Hill. From 1937 it was named Mosman Park, derived from Mosman in Sydney, the birthplace of Richard Yeldon, a member of the Buckland Hill Road Board. Mosman Park is now considered an affluent suburb, but prior to the 1970s was one of Perth's major industrial centres.
Geography
Mosman Park is bounded by the Indian Ocean and the Fremantle railway line to the west, a line south of Johnston Street to the north, and the Swan River to the east and south with approximately 5 km of river frontage. To the west of the railway line Mosman Park includes a section of approximately 600 metres of ocean frontage, south of the extension of Boundary Road and north of the extension of McCabe Street.
History
Following the 1827 expedition by Captain James Stirling on HMS Success to assess the suitability of the Swan River district for a settlement, it was the original plan for the 1829 expedition to use the area around Buckland Hill as the site for a town for the proposed settlement. The expedition's botanist Charles Fraser wrote "These hills are admirably adapted for the site of a town, their elevated situation commanding a view of the whole of Canning Sound, with the adjacent coast, the interior for some distance, and the meanderings of the river. Their lying open to all breezes, too, is an additional advantage." This view, however, was later superseded by Captain Stirling on his arrival with the first immigrants in Parmelia in June 1829, by placing the capital, Perth, about from the port. Mosman Park was established with the first survey of town lots in 1889 as Buckland Hill, taking its name from the prominent local hill that was a major maritime navigation mark for shipping from the earliest days of colonization. Mosman Park was a major industrial centre for the state with a General Motors car and truck assembly plant, the Colonial Sugar Refinery, the Mt Lyell Farmers' Fertilisers superphosphate works, the W.A. Rope and Twine Works and the West Australian Brushware Co. factory. All were closed by the 1970s. Today, almost all of Mosman Park is residential, with significant parklands at Buckland Hill and along the river. In the, Mosman Park had a population of 8,757 people living in 4,064 private dwellings, 60.9% of which were detached houses on separate lots. The ABS identified health, hospitality and education as the main occupations of residents.
