Cockburn History – Clarence Townsite: Have you ever wondered about the origins of WA Day?
Did you know that one of the earliest European settlements in Western Australia was right here in Cockburn?
Up until 2012, WA Day was known as Foundation Day. It commemorates the founding of the Swan River Colony, officially the day in 1829 when Lt-Governor Stirling and the passengers on his ship the Parmelia arrived in Cockburn Sound. Though they sighted the coast on 1st June, the weather was poor and and the sea dangerous. After nearly sinking the Parmelia, Stirling and the new settlers had to land on Garden Island and so the colony’s first true European settlement was born.
The foundation of Perth by George Pitt Morris / Settlement on Garden Island, early 1830. Courtesy ‘Settlement on the Swan’ by Ruth Marchant James / Heritage Perth.
Back in England, the British government was struggling to drum up interest for settlers to move to the colonies. Thomas Peel, employed in an attorney’s office, saw potential in the newly opened colony, and made arrangements to bring over 500 new settlers out if the government would grant him a large tract of land. This was agreed, with the condition that his preferred land would be available to him as long as he could arrive by 1st November 1829. Peel, on the Gilmore, missed the deadline by six weeks.
His first choice of prime land along the Swan River lost to him, Peel was instead allocated the land stretching from Woodman Point south to Mandurah. He and his settlers – many of them indentured labourers seeking a new life in the colonies at his expense – selected a site somewhere between the current Quarantine Station at Woodman Point and Mount Brown to be their townsite, and named it Clarence, after the Duke of Clarence who was next in line for the throne.
George Bayly’s drawing of Peel town – ships Hooghly & Gilmore – Feb-Mar 1830. Courtesy Maritime Heritage Association Journal, 2008.
The grand vision, in part, was to recreate the idyllic villages of rural England, with everyone farming the land and providing the artisanal supplies needed for a comfortable life. But Peel and his settlers had been led to believe that the Swan River colony was a pleasant, arable landscape with mild weather and abundant resources. The truth was rather different.
The settlement was not a happy one: stores and food promised by Peel’s partners didn’t arrive, and the settlers began to suffer from malnutrition. Their first year, entirely spent camped in temporary shelters on the beach at Woodman Point, was harsh both summer and winter, they could not farm the sandy and unforgiving land, and their doctor went mad.
Eventually, most of the settlers applied to Governor Stirling to be released from their indentured servitude, and as Peel was reclusive, argumentative, and disinclined or unable to help them in their need, this was granted. Settlers drifted away to other parts of the Swan River Colony, to other parts of Australia, or back to England. Peel was left almost entirely alone to contemplate the failure of his great vision.
Plan of boundaries proposed for townsite of Clarence, 1836. Courtesty State Records Office.
There are few remnants of the settlement at Clarence, and indeed researchers still argue about where exactly it was located – nearer Woodman Point, or nearer Mount Brown. Regardless, Cockburn still holds the somewhat dubious distinction of being one of the very earliest places where Europeans tried to settle in Western Australia.
Great story Leah and one that is gradually getting some credence in the wider community. While there are differing opinions on the exact location of the settlement on the mainland the conversation has started and this can only be a good thing. Getting people to talk about their understanding of the facts, indeed their interpretation of the facts, is one thing that adds colour and vitality to any story as it unfolds.
Thanks Logan!
I’ll admit, the battle over the true location of the original townsite is pretty divisive! Evidence for both sides gets compelling. For my part, I understand the drilling down into the nitty-gritty of history and how important it can be to pin down just exactly where a thing was located, but on the other hand it’s pretty great that the evidence is so strong for such a small area, regardless of the exact placement. The way I understand it, not many other ephemeral early settlements have anything like the documentary and physical evidence that Clarence has.
I have just recently found out that my 3 x great grandfather was one of those aboard the Hooghly and indentured to Thomas Peel. John Outridge was then released of his indenture and chose to leave the colony and head to Van Diemen’s Land where he ran pubs. Over the years the family was lured first to the goldfields of Ballarat, then Coolgardie and have mostly ended up in Perth… full circle! In fact, John Outridge’s great grandson, Tom Outridge, won the first Sandover Medal!
I just find it fascinating that all those years I’ve driven ‘down South’ through that part of the world and never knew that my direct ancestor was part of the original European history!
Hi Michelle,
I am also a direct descendant of John Alfred Outridge and I am hoping that there might still be some evidence left of the ships list, or any material that relates to Peel’s selection of individual settlers or their circumstances. We know that at the time he subsequently married in VDL that he was a widower. We would love to know if he arrived with a wife in WA or if his first wife had already died. Any additional information regarding JA Outridge would be fabulous. He was a blacksmith by trade- so it is easy to understand why he would have been an attractive proposition- but any remnants of Peel’s notes on applications or his selection criteria or particulars about the individual settlers exist? Or yet to be found? It was a significant venture. There MUST be records… ? Surely? We would love to know his place of origin in england as well.
Kind regards
Margaret
Hi Leah,
Some of my ancestors were part of this settlement. They supposedly arrived on the ship ‘Hooghly’ and I’d like to confirm that. Their names were Richard and Elizabeth Edwards plus children. Do you know where I can find a passenger list? There are a Mr & Mrs Edwards plus 4 children on the ‘Rockingham’ which may be them.
Any help appreciated.
Regards,
Kevan.
Hi Kevan,
There’s a list of passengers on the Hooghly, as well as the Rockingham and Gilmore, here: Thomas Peel’s Ships. The good news is there is a listing for “EDWARDS, Richard & Mrs and 5 children”, so it looks like your information is correct!
This resource doesn’t state where it gets its information from, but if you’re wanting to dig deeper I would get in touch with the genealogy specialists at the State Library of WA. They have a lot of passenger lists on microfilm and experts to help you navigate the choppy waters of family history research.
-Leah
Leah,
Thanks for the prompt response and the links. Awesome.
Regards,
Kevan.
I have recently discovered that my ancestors arrived on the Rockingham in 1830. They were William and Elizabeth Cato and their 5 children. They later worked at Cascade Female Factory in Hobart.
I visited Cascade Female Factory late last year and was absolutely blown away in relation to my personal history. I was also able to visit the grave of Elizabeth Cato who was buried in 1843 in Richmond Tasmania. Such an incredible experience.
I would love to discover any other information about the Rockingham. I only know, that she sunk on her very next voyage.
Great to hear you’ve discovered more about your family history Jan!
As for the Rockingham, I believe there’s some information in Alexandra Hasluck’s biography of Thomas Peel, which the library has copies you can borrow.
Other info I found on it is the passenger list, the WA Maritime Museum shipwreck database listing, and a historical booklet written in 1980 for the 150th anniversary of the landing. That one is available to view in the State Library, if you’re ever feeling like taking a trip into the city.
My Name is Susan D’Alessandro. Nee Ingram my mother’s name before she was married was AlexandraMary Armstrong My Great Grandfather x 4 Captain Adam Armstrong was the Captain who sailed on the Gilmore with Captain Stirling & his 6 Children his wife Margaret had passed away in 1824 Adam swam to shore with his youngest son on his shoulders when they arrived here at Clarence which is now known as Naval Base on the 15th of December 1829 etc
Hi Susan,
What a great story you’ve got from your family’s past! It puts the human element into all the facts and figures thinking of a ship’s captain swimming with his young son on his shoulders. I wonder what their early experiences of the colony were like?
Leah
Hi Leah,
Grand Dad ( Captain Adam Pearson Armstrong ).Arrived here on the boat Called The Gilmore . The Boat was filled with many169 passengers Women Men and Children and Convicts it was so cold & windy and raining the passengers were made to make some temperary shelters on the Beach at the southern end they breaking up beautiful peices of antique Furniture they had bought with them for there new homes they had to burn anything that was made of wood just to keep watm Grand dad was told he would be paid for his work but that never happened straight away. Many people died from the cold & Pneumonia some women died in child birth or babies were born still born Grand dad clearing the land In the feeezing cold He started to build on the Property for his family at Peel which still stands to this day Fish were plentiful in the sea but no one had the equipment to catch them Adam was a patient man he was waiting on the arrival of the last ship The Rockingham
Thanks for the update Susan.
-Leah
Adam Armstrong is mentioned in a newspaper article in connection with this, The Daily News, Tue 30 Dec, 1924, Page 5 Item: The First Cemeteries. This can be read at trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/82863823
Thanks for that Hans, what an evocative image of the jarrah gravestone slabs being tended quietly by an early settler. It seems ambiguous whether the writer means that Adam Armstrong himself kept up the gravestones, or if they were simply kept up ‘during his lifetime’, but it’s a great story nonetheless.
There’s also an interesting letter written to the West Australian in 1939 concerning Thomas Peel and Adam Armstrong, and the early days at Clarence. It draws heavily on the memories of Adam’s son, W.J. Armstrong, who still lived in the Clarence vicinity at the time of writing.
-Leah