Fremantle

Fremantle, Western Australia

Fremantle, city and principal port of Western Australia. It lies on the Indian Ocean at the mouth of the Swan River, which forms an inner harbour. Now part of the Perth metropolitan area, Fremantle is one of Australia’s largest ports and an initial landfall for ships from Europe.

Fremantle, Western Australia

The city was laid out in 1829 and named for Captain Sir Charles Fremantle, a British naval officer who took possession of the area around the river mouth in order to prevent French or U.S. incursions there. Not subject to fog, storms, or strong tides, the port became a major whaling centre. It grew during the late 19th century by serving the Coolgardie-Kalgoorlie goldfield (320 miles [515 km] inland), and, in 1901, with harbour improvements, it surpassed the port of Albany, 230 miles (370 km) southeast, in importance. During World War II it served as the principal Allied submarine base in the Southern Hemisphere.

A city since 1929, Fremantle is now a major industrial centre that manufactures superphosphate fertilizer, furniture, refined sugar, scoured wool, leather, ships, steel, automobiles, cement, petroleum products, and aluminum. A terminus of the Trans-Australian Railway, Fremantle is also linked by rail to the state’s chief agricultural areas. Exports include petroleum, grains, flour, wool, mineral concentrates, and refrigerated meats. The large industrial complex of Kwinana is nearby. The outer harbour is 73 square miles (190 square km) in extent, while the inner harbour (in the mouth of the Swan River), opened in 1897, was expanded in 1969 with a container terminal employing one of the world’s largest container-lifting cranes. Fremantle became the base for the state’s largest commercial fishing fleet.

In the 1970s and ’80s the city began to change character. A declining port labour force, immigration from East and Southeast Asia, gentrification, and the economic benefits of an America’s Cup yacht race held offshore in 1987 transformed Fremantle into a vibrant cultural and tourist venue by the early 21st century. A campus of the University of Notre Dame Australia (1989) is in the city. Pop. (2006) local government area, 24,835; (2011) local government area, 26,582.