Coordinates: 32°02′17″S 115°46′05″E / 32.038°S 115.768°E / -32.038; 115.768

East Fremantle is a southern suburb of Perth, Western Australia, 2 km north-east of Fremantle. Its Local Government Area is the Town of East Fremantle, which has the same borders as the suburb.

[edit] History

Prior to European settlement, the Noongar people obtained food and drinking water from the river edges and open grassy areas. Shortly after the establishment of the Swan River Colony, a track linking Perth to Fremantle was documented through the area.

Initially, the area was dominated by agricultural activity, but after the 1890s gold rush, it became increasingly residential and suburban in character. The first area to develop was Plympton, in the southwest of the suburb, where workers' cottages were established largely between 1890-1910. Next were Woodside and Richmond in the south and north, which today contain many brick and tile homes dating from 1900-1940. The Preston Point area developed in the 1950s.^[2]

[edit] Geography

East Fremantle is bounded by the Swan River to the north and west, East Street to the southwest, Marmion Street to the south and Petra Street to the east.^[3]

View from East Fremantle along Blackwall Reach towards Point Walter and Perth

[edit] Facilities

East Fremantle is a residential suburb, relying on neighbourhood shopping centres in the area for daily needs, and Fremantle for other commercial services. The suburb contains a community centre, two small private hospitals and two primary schools. Each year in December, the suburb hosts the East Fremantle Festival in George Street, located in the historic district of Plympton.

The suburb contains the home ground of the East Fremantle Football Club.

[edit] Transport

East Fremantle contains the crossroads between Canning Highway and Stirling Highway. The suburb is served by a range of buses from Fremantle train station, by which residents can link to the CircleRoute and to the Perth CBD. All services are operated by the Public Transport Authority.

[edit] Politics

East Fremantle is an established suburb with two quite different booths - the southern half (East Fremantle PS), nearer Fremantle, strongly supports the Australian Labor Party and the Greens (~20%) at both federal and state elections; while the northern half (Richmond PS), alongside the Swan River, supports the more conservative Liberal Party at both levels of government.

[edit] Schools

The suburb of East Fremantle contains two primary schools: East Fremantle Primary School, located on Marmion Streetin the south-west of the suburb opposite John Curtin College of the Arts in Fremantle, and Richmond Primary School, located on the site of the old Richmond Racecourse in the north-east of the suburb near Kaleeya Hospital. Richmond Primary's colours are navy and gold and East Fremantle Primary's are white and blue.

[edit] See also

• East Fremantle Football Club
• Town of East Fremantle

[edit] References