Launch of South Perth Stories

Take the opportunity to discover the rich history of the City of South Perth through South Perth Stories. An online collection of interviews, South Perth Stories that captures and preserves the history of our dynamic City through the experiences of residents and visitors, past and present. 

Stories include memories of a changing South Perth, the river and environment, childhood, local businesses, community, schooling, the depression years, the impact of World War II, the Chinese market gardens, trams, ferries, our changing suburbs, and many more.

The website brings together this extensive oral history collection with interviews captured over the past 30 years including during The Bench Talk Project, an initiative that ran at the start of 2016 and recorded the stories of our community through a simple invitation to sit on our bench and tell a story about our local area. A written collection of storycards penned by community members across a broad range of age groups are also available to read on the website, providing a window into our past.

“This is a wonderful, innovative resource and fantastic record of the City which has such a fascinating history and it's important that we preserve it for future generations,” Mayor Sue Doherty said.

“The stories that we’ve captured really give us a glimpse into what life was like and how our City has changed and evolved over the years.”

“I urge everyone to visit the website, take time to browse and enjoy the tales that tell the unique stories of our City. You’ll discover and get to know the everyday people who have helped to shape our community.”

South Perth Stories compliments Picture South Perth, the City’s online collection of local historic images that date back to the 1870s.

If you have a story to tell about living or working in the City of South Perth, contact South Perth Libraries on 9474 0800 or localhistory@southperth.wa.gov.au to arrange for your story to be recorded.

stories.southperth.wa.gov.au