Guildford – 1900s
In 1901, when the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York visited WA, 110 Aboriginal people from the south-west were brought to West Guildford and camped on Old Guildford Road. They held corroborees and went sightseeing, which included a visit to the zoo.[xi]
At the end of 1903, the Chief Protector, Henry Prinsep decided to make Welshpool Reserve a ration depot. The reserve had been developed in 1899 as a small scale agricultural settlement for local Noongars. Prinsep insisted all Noongar people in the metropolitan area should be moved to the reserve, along with a European caretaker. Despite protests from the residents, Noongars from Guildford, Perth, Helena Valley, Gingin, Northam, York, Beverley, Busselton and Pinjarra were moved there. However, most only stayed a few years, and by 1908 the reserve was deserted.[xii]
In 1908, Welshpool Reserve closed and some of the former Noongar residents went to an old camping ground in West Guildford but they were soon moved by police to Success Hill.[xiii]
In 1910, Noongars camping at Success Hill were moved to the newly created reserve in South Guildford, which later became Allawah Grove.[xiv]
Noongar people also camped on farms along the Swan River. They chose sites, as had always been the practice, near good water supplies, such as springs (jump-ups) and streams.[xv]
