This article is about the city of Albany.

For the
local government area, see City of Albany.
Albany
Kinjarling
Western Australia
York Street Albany.jpg
York Street in Albany
Albany is located in Western
AustraliaAlbanyAlbany
Coordinates 35°01′22″S
117°52′53″ECoordinates: 35°01′22″S
117°52′53″E Edit this at Wikidata
Population 29,373 (UCL 2016)[1]
Established 26 December 1826
Postcode(s) 6330
Area 297.2 km2 (114.7 sq mi)[2] (2011 urban)
Time zone AWST (UTC+8)
Location
408 km (254 mi) from Perth
482 km (300 mi) from Esperance
330 km (205 mi) from Bunbury
LGA(s) City of Albany
State electorate(s) Albany
Federal division(s) O'Connor
Mean max temp Mean min temp Annual
rainfall
19.5 °C
67 °F 11.7 °C
53 °F 929.6 mm
36.6 in

Albany Entertainment Centre, opened December

2010.

Port of Albany

Albany, 1874 by Sir Whately Eliot

York Street in the centre of Albany

Saint Joseph Catholic Church in Albany
Albany (/ˈælbəni/ AL-bən-ee; Nyungar:
Kinjarling) is a port city in the Great Southern
region in the Australian state of Western
Australia, 418 kilometres (260 mi) southeast of
Perth, the state capital. The city centre is at the
northern edge of Princess Royal Harbour, which
is a part of King George Sound. The central
business district is bounded by Mount Clarence
to the east and Mount Melville to the west. The
city is in the local government area of the City of
Albany. While it is the oldest colonial, although
not European,[a] settlement in Western
Australia[b] - predating Perth and Fremantle by
over two years - it was a semi-exclave of New
South Wales for over four years until it was made
part of the Swan River Colony.

The settlement was founded on 26 December

1826 as a military outpost of New South Wales
for the purpose of forestalling French ambitions
in the region.[3]: 61  To that end, on 21 January
1827, the commander of the outpost, Major
Edmund Lockyer, formally took possession for
the British Crown of the portion of New Holland
not yet claimed by the British Crown;[c] that is,
the portion west of the 129th meridian east, with
the portion east already being claimed
collectively by the British Crown as New South
Wales and Van Diemen's Land.[4] During the
last decade of the 19th century, the town served
as a gateway to the Eastern Goldfields. For many
years, it was the colony's only deep-water port,
having a place of eminence on shipping services
between Britain and its Australian colonies. The
opening of the Fremantle Inner Harbour in 1897,
[5]: 51–55  however, saw its importance as a port
decline, after which the town's industries turned
primarily to agriculture, timber and later,
whaling.

Contemporary Albany is the southern terminus

for tourism in the region, and the state's south
west,[6] which is known for its natural
environment and preservation of its heritage.
The town has a role in the ANZAC legend, being
the last port of call for troopships departing
Australia in the First World War. On 1 November
2014, the Australian and New Zealand Prime
Ministers opened the National Anzac Centre in
Mount Clarence, Albany, to commemorate 100
years since the first ANZAC troops departed
from King George Sound. Approximately 40,000
people attended the commemoration events held
between 30 October and 2 November 2014.[7]

An auxiliary submarine base for the US Navy's

7th Fleet was developed during the Second
World War in the event the submarine base at
Fremantle was lost. Also in the harbour was a
Royal Australian Navy naval installation which
provided for refuelling from four 5,100-tonne
(5,000-long-ton) fuel tanks.[8]: 26 

Contents
Etymology
Upon its establishment in 1826, the settlement
was named Frederick Town in honour of Prince
Frederick, Duke of York and Albany.[9][10][11]
In 1831, the settlement was transferred to the
control of the Swan River Colony and renamed
Albany by Lieutenant-Governor James Stirling.
[12]: 55–115 

The name of the area in the Nyungar language of

the Menang people is Kinjarling, which has been
said to mean "place of plenty" and "place of
rain".[13][14] In 2020, the City of Albany began,
as part of an official dual-naming project, to give
prominence to “Kinjarling” as the city's
Aboriginal name.[13]

Early history
Main article: History of Albany, Western
Australia
Kinjarling was home to Menang Noongar tribes
during the summer season.[15] Early British
explorers recorded evidence of fish traps located
on Emu Point and on the French, now the
Kalgan, River. Vancouver made attempts to find
the inhabitants of the area but only found bark
dwellings that were unoccupied. Later explorers
made contact and were told to leave, but were
accepted when they did not. Most of the British
exploration was undertaken to survey the land
and sea to assess the profitability of resources.
The explorers occasionally noted encounters
with Noongars. Native treatment laws and
programs have affected the tribes since
settlement.

Heritage buildings
There are a number of heritage buildings in
Albany; see List of heritage places in the City of
Albany and Category:Heritage places in Albany,
Western Australia. These include:

The Old Farm, Strawberry Hill was established in

1827 as a government farm to feed the colonial
soldiers stationed around King George's Sound.
It is the oldest farm in Western Australia. The
homestead, which became the home of the
Government Resident in 1833, is an example of a
colonial gentleman's residence. After a
chequered history, the property was vested in the
National Trust WA in 1964 and is now a house
museum.
Patrick Taylor Cottage (1832), Western
Australia's oldest surviving dwelling, built in
1832 by the Morley Brothers. It is now
maintained by the Albany Historical Society.
St John's Church (1841–1848) is a stone building
with shingled roofs in the Old Colonial Gothick
Picturesque style. Set among trees, it was
designed to be part of an overall contrived
picturesque scene in the manner of an English
garden landscape.[16]
Scots Uniting Church (1892) was designed in the
Victorian Academic Gothic style by Melbourne
architect Evander McIver and built with local
granite stonework.
The complex now known as The Residency
Museum was established in 1850 as a depot for
the Convict Establishment in Albany. It is an L
shaped, single-storied, masonry building with a
timber framed, timber shingled roof. In 1873 it
was converted into the Resident Magistrate's
home. It now serves as a museum.
The Victorian Free Classical Revival style Town
Hall (1888) is a two-storey stone building with a
prominent clock tower, which dominates York
Street, the main street of Albany. It has been put
to many uses apart from council meetings,
including public entertainment and public
meetings of all kinds and even as the venue for
the first regional meeting of the State
Parliament.
The Old Post Office was built in two stages, the
first was designed in 1869 by J Manning, the
second, including a prominent tower, was
designed in 1896 by George Temple-Poole. It
now houses the Albany campus of the University
of Western Australia.
The Court House, constructed of Albany brick
and granite with a tiled roof, was designed in the
Federation Romanesque style by the Public
Works Department under the supervision of
George Temple-Poole and Hillson Beasley in
1897.
Another example of the work of George Temple
Poole is the limestone and shingle Federation
Arts and Crafts style Cottage Hospital, designed
in 1886 and completed in 1897. It is one of the
oldest hospitals in the state and served as such
until 1962. It is now occupied by the Vancouver
Arts Centre (named after the explorer George
Vancouver).
Images of heritage buildings
Old Farm, Strawberry Hill
Old Farm, Strawberry Hill

Old Farm, drawing room

Old Farm, drawing room

St. John's Church

St. John's Church
St.John's Church tower
St.John's Church tower

Albany Courthouse
Albany Courthouse

Old Post Office, north front

Old Post Office, north front

Old Post Office, south front

Old Post Office, south front

Scots Uniting Church

Scots Uniting Church
Vancouver House, formerly the Cottage Hospital
Vancouver House, formerly the Cottage Hospital

Town Hall, Albany

Town Hall, Albany

Patrick Taylor Cottage, Duke Street

Patrick Taylor Cottage, Duke Street

Some of the above information is derived from

the State Heritage Register[17] where these
places are registered. The assessment criteria
contain more details.

Population
In June 2018, the urban population of Albany
was 34,205[18] making it the state's sixth-largest
population centre.[19]

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people

made up 3.5% of the population.
74.3% of people were born in Australia. The next
most common countries of birth were United
Kingdom 7.5%, New Zealand 1.7%, Philippines
1.6%, and South Africa 1.1%.
86.8% of people only spoke English at home.
Other languages spoken at home included
Filipino 0.7%, Italian 0.6%, Tagalog 0.6%,
Afrikaans 0.6% and German 0.4%.
The most common religious denominations were
Anglican 16.5% and Catholic 13.1%. 37.4% had
no religion and 10.4% did not respond.[20]
Geography

Ellen Cove, Middleton Beach, Albany

The city centre of Albany is located between the
hills of Mount Melville and Mount Clarence,
which look down into Princess Royal Harbour.
Many beaches surround Albany, with Middleton
Beach being the closest to the town centre. Other
popular beaches include Frenchman Bay and
Muttonbird Island.

Albany is 418 km (260 mi) SSE of the state

capital, Perth, to which it is linked by Albany
Highway.

Wine region
Albany is a sub-region of the Great Southern
region of Western Australia.[21]

Coastline

King George Sound, painted in 1803 by William

Westall
View of Lake Seppings from Mount Clarence

Emu Point Boat pens and ramp

The Albany coastline is notorious for deaths due
to king waves washing people off rocks. The
Torndirrup National Park features some of the
more rugged coastline in the area. However,
there are many beaches that are safe and usable.

Betty's Beach was named after Betty Jones, who

used to go camping there with her family, and
was initially called Betty's Bay.[22]

Frenchman Bay Beach is adjacent to the

Torndirrup National Park, and was originally
called Quarantine Bay, owing to the quarantine
station set up by the British in 1826 on Mistaken
Island at the northern end of Goode Beach[23]

Misery Beach, located 20 km (12 mi) south of

Albany, was so named owing to the location of
the whaling station at Albany that operated until
1978, causing offal to be washed ashore at Misery
Beach and its sand and waters to be stained red.
However, the beach was named Tourism
Australia Best Beach 2022 by Tourism Australia,
described a "[ticking] all the boxes of what the
typical beachgoer is looking for — uncrowded,
crystal-white sand, turquoise waters and a very
dramatic granite backdrop".[24]

Other beaches include:

Emu Point
Gull Rock Beach, also known as Boiler Beach
Middleton Beach
Nanarup Beach
Muttonbird Beach
Cosy Corner
Two Peoples Bay, including Little Beach and
Waterfall Beach
Climate
Albany has a warm-summer Mediterranean
climate (Köppen Csb) with dry, warm summers,
mild, wet winters, and pleasant springs and
autumns.[25]: 5  Summers have short spells of
very hot weather, but cool ocean breeze brings
relief, especially during evenings and nights. The
city is situated on what is promoted as the
"Rainbow Coast", an appropriate title given the
frequency of days with both sun and drizzle or
showers. Albany has 44.8 clear days annually.

July is the wettest month, with a long-term

average of 144.0 mm (5.67 in). Rain in excess of
0.2 mm (0.01 in) occurs on two days out of every
three during an average winter. The driest month
is February with a mean of 22.9 mm (0.90 in).

Albany received a record amount of rain on 20

November 2008 when violent storms swept
across the Great Southern region. The town was
flooded after 113.8 mm (4.48 in) of rain fell in a
24-hour period, the highest amount recorded
since rainfall records began in 1877.[26] The
wettest month on record was June 1920 when
292.8 mm (11.5 in) fell, while February 1877 and
February 1879 remain the only rainless months.

Climate data for Albany Airport

Month JanFebMar AprMay Jun Jul
Aug SepOct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 45.6
(114.1) 44.2
(111.6) 41.2
(106.2) 38.8
(101.8) 32.6
(90.7) 24.8
(76.6) 22.5
(72.5) 26.2
(79.2) 27.9
(82.2) 33.6
(92.5) 39.2
(102.6) 42.8
(109.0) 45.6
(114.1)
Average high °C (°F) 24.8
(76.6) 24.9
(76.8) 24.1
(75.4) 21.9
(71.4) 19.0
(66.2) 16.7
(62.1) 15.8
(60.4) 16.2
(61.2) 17.3
(63.1) 18.8
(65.8) 20.9
(69.6) 23.1
(73.6) 20.3
(68.5)
Average low °C (°F) 13.7
(56.7) 14.5
(58.1) 13.4
(56.1) 11.7
(53.1) 9.8
(49.6) 8.1
(46.6) 7.5
(45.5) 7.5
(45.5) 8.1
(46.6) 9.2
(48.6) 10.8
(51.4) 12.5
(54.5) 10.6
(51.1)
Record low °C (°F) 4.8
(40.6) 5.1
(41.2) 4.3
(39.7) 3.2
(37.8) 1.9
(35.4) 0.0
(32.0) −0.2
(31.6) 0.8
(33.4) 0.7
(33.3) 1.0
(33.8) 2.7
(36.9) 3.6
(38.5) −0.2
(31.6)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 23.6
(0.93) 22.3
(0.88) 33.6
(1.32) 61.3
(2.41) 89.8
(3.54) 108.0
(4.25) 119.3
(4.70) 106.8
(4.20) 88.5
(3.48) 70.8
(2.79) 47.0
(1.85) 27.8
(1.09) 798.1
(31.42)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1mm) 2.8 2.6 4.0
6.3 8.2 9.9 11.1 10.9 9.9 8.0 5.7 3.7 83.1
Average relative humidity (%) 69 69 71 76 78
79 79 77 75 75 73 70 74
Average dew point °C (°F) 13
(55) 13
(55) 12
(54) 12
(54) 10
(50) 8
(46) 8
(46) 8
(46) 8
(46) 10
(50) 11
(52) 12
(54) 10
(51)
Mean monthly sunshine hours 251.1 209.1
204.6 186.0 167.4 153.0 170.5 189.1
189.0 210.8 222.0 244.9 2,397.5
Source 1: Bureau of Meteorology[27]
Source 2: Time and Date (humidity and dew
point)[28]
Industry

Sperm whale remains at the Albany Whaling

Station in July 1977, the year before its closure

Wind farm at Albany

Dog Rock (2006)

Princess Royal Harbour panorama
Albany's main industries are tourism, fishing,
timber (wood chips) and agriculture. From 1952
to 1978 whaling was a major source of income
and employment for the local population.
The Whaling Station, which closed operations in
1978, has been converted to a museum of
whaling and features one of the 'Cheynes' whale
chasers that were used for whaling in Albany.
The station was the last operating whaling
station in the southern hemisphere and the
English-speaking world at the time of closure.
[29]

The Western Power Wind Farm is located at

Sand Patch, to the west of Albany. The wind
farm, originally commissioned in 2001 with 12
turbines, now has 18 turbines, driven by strong
southerly winds, and can generate up to 80%[30]
of the city's electricity usage.[31]

Albany has a number of historical sites including

the Museum, Albany Convict Gaol, The Princess
Royal Fortress (commonly known as The Forts)
and Patrick Taylor Cottage, one of the oldest
dwellings in Western Australia, c. 1832.[32]
Albany has a great deal of historical significance
to Western Australia.
Natural sights along the rugged coastline include
the 'Natural Bridge' and the 'Gap'. The beaches
have pristine white sand. The destroyer HMAS
Perth was sunk in King George Sound in 2001 as
a dive wreck.[33] Albany is also close to two low
mountain ranges, the Porongurups and Stirling
Ranges.

Albany is the southern terminus of the

Bibbulmun Track walking trail.[34]

Albany is the southern terminus of the Munda

Biddi Trail off-road cycling trail.[35]

Albany is home to HMAS Albany (based in

Darwin) and the adopted home port of the Royal
Australian Navy frigate HMAS Anzac. Albany is
frequently visited by other warships.

Transport
Albany has a city bus service run by Swan Transit
with five town routes. Albany is connected to
Perth with road-coach services via Walpole and
Bunbury; via Katanning and Northam; via
Kojonup and Williams. Transwa coaches also
serve Jerramungup, Ravensthorpe and
Hopetoun.[36]

Regional Express Airlines, a national

independent regional airline, provides 23
services a week between Perth and Albany
Airport using 34-passenger turboprop Saab 340
aircraft.[37][38]

Albany was served by the Albany Progress

passenger train from Perth until 1978. The
railway station reopened as a tourist information
centre in 1994.[39]

Media
Albany radio stations include 783 Triple M
(formerly 6VA and RadioWest), GOLD MX, Rete
Italia, Vision FM, Fly FM Albany, HitFM
(formerly HOT FM), ABC South Coast, ABC
News, ABC Radio National, ABC Classic FM,
Triple J, Racing Radio & Great Southern FM.

Below is a table showing the broadcast

frequencies on which these services can be
received.

Service Broadcast frequency

ABC Local Radio 630 kHz AM
783 Triple M 783 kHz AM
GOLD MX 1611 kHz AM
Rete Italia 1629 kHz AM
Vision FM (Local) 87.6 MHz FM
Fly FM 88.0 MHz FM
ABC News 92.1 MHz FM
Triple J 92.9 MHz FM
Vision FM 93.7 MHz FM
ABC Classic FM 94.5 MHz FM
HitFM 95.3 MHz FM