Bayswater (Western Australia)

Bayswater is an inner city suburb, located 6 kilometers north-east of the central business district of Perth, the capital of Western Australia. It is located north of the Swan River, within the City of Bayswater local government area. It is a mixed use suburb, with mostly residential zoning, with a light industrial area in the east.HistoryAboriginal people of the Noongar language group originally inhabited the Bayswater area, the occupants of the north bank of the Swan being among Yellagonga’s people, who ranged systematically over a wide area of the coastal plain. The population was rich and complex in culture, sparse in number and nomadic in habit. Its movements were governed by the seasonal availability of food. The Aborigines were hunters and gatherers, who regularly burnt the bush to assist them in both pursuits. They concentrated their activities in the most fertile areas, including the peninsula in nearby Maylands. A large Aboriginal base camp, at least 4,500 years old lies under the Tonkin Highway, just to the north of Guildford Road.When Europeans founded the Swan River Colony in 1829, the Swan River was a big focus, and land along the river was divided into narrow strips called ribbon grants, but most of the area remained undeveloped until the 20th century because the land was very poor quality and waterlogged. The only obvious sign of colonisation in the area was a track that goes between Perth and Guildford, which will become the present day Guildford Road.