Mandurah, named one of the world’s most liveable cities, is located 72 km south of Perth and is one of Australia’s fastest growing cities. It’s currently home to more than 85,000 people, and it’s estimated that the population will increase by the year 2036 to 124,000 people. Mandurah offers its residents a unique work-play lifestyle, as it sits between the extensive waterways of the Peel-Harvey estuary and the lower reaches of the Serpentine River.

Mandurah: Part of the Peel Region

Mandurah forms part of the Peel region, lying between the Perth metropolitan area and the South West region, and it’s arguably the most beautiful and diverse region of Western Australia.  The Peel region is made up of the regions of Mandurah, Murray, Serpentine/Jarrahdale, Waroona, and Boddington.

Early Settlement

The name Mandurah comes from the aboriginal word “Mandjar”, which means trading place or meeting place. Thomas Peel, who was the first European to settle in the local area, was British Prime Minister Robert Peel’s cousin and, with a grant of 1 million acres from the British government he developed a plan to bring 10,000 people to the Mandurah-Pinjarra area. Because Peel arrived in Western Australia later than Secretary of State for the Colonies, Sir George Murray, had planned, his grant was cut to 250,000 acres.

The Settlers Arrived

And so, on 15 December 1829, 169 settlers arrived at Cockburn Sound, north of Mandurah. Unfortunately, Peel’s proposal wasn’t well planned and most eventually moved to the Swan River colony. But, eventually Peel’s plan was successful, and he can certainly take credit for the early development of the area. He surveyed roads, sold land, and imported stock; but still the tiny settlement struggled.

Mandurah was connected to Perth in 1850 by a coastal road, then an inland road was completed in 1876. In 1893, a railway passed through inland pastures, which saw the area decline in importance: new settlers to the area preferred the inland areas to the poor coastal soils. Deprived of its role as a port, Mandurah declined for the next 50 years, and by the 1950s it was simply a tiny fishing village.

The Day-Trippers Started Arriving!

Then, with a combination of an increase in tourism and the development of Kwinana as a major industrial centre, Mandurah began to grow. This was further assisted in the 1970s by the establishment of the alumina refinery at Pinjarra.

Licensed Land Surveyor Greg Cole

Licensed land surveyor Greg Cole moved to the Peel region in 1977 and purchased Surveyor Max Hall’s surveying practice in 1979. For almost forty years G I Cole & Associates Pty Ltd operated in Mandurah and surrounding areas under the leadership of Licensed Surveyor Greg Cole.

Today, Greg Cole is still offering his professional services in the Mandurah area, working with RM Surveys in Willeton. If you need advice on any surveying project, large or small, please don’t hesitate to contact Greg Cole on 0439 999 479 or email at gregorycole@bigpond.com. He is always happy to offer free surveying advice and provide an obligation-free quotation, so you’ve got nothing to lose!