Claremont Showground Explained

Location:Claremont, Western Australia
Mapframe-Marker:slaughterhouse
Mapframe-Marker-Colour:
  1. BE1596
Mapframe-Stroke-Colour:
  1. C60C30
Mapframe-Zoom:12
Owner:Royal Agricultural Society of Western Australia[1]
Operator:Royal Agricultural Society of Western Australia
Tenants:Big Day Out (2002-2011, 2013)
Perth Royal Show
Claremont-Cottesloe Football Club (1926)
Claremont Speedway (1927-2000)
Supanova Pop Culture Expo (2008–2013)
Claremont Football Club (2014–2016)
Seating Capacity:40,000 (Big Day Out 2011)[2]
10,000 (WAFL matches)[3]
Publictransit: Showgrounds
Claremont

The Claremont Showground near Perth, Western Australia is home to the annual Perth Royal Show. In 1902, 32acres of land were reserved in the Perth suburb of Claremont for a new showground to replace the Guildford Showgrounds. The Royal Agricultural Show, of three days, was first held there in October and November 1905.[4]

History

During World War I and World War II, the showgrounds were used to house and train Australian troops.[5]

In 1929, a pavilion and other features were built for the Western Australia Centenary.[6]

The Claremont Showground is serviced by a special events railway station on the Fremantle line. Opened on 20 September 1995, it has direct connection with the showgrounds.[7] The original Showgrounds Station, opened in 1954, was located further east with platforms on either side of the line, and required negotiating road crossings to access the showgrounds.

Bruce Campbell Arena

The Bruce Campbell Arena, an enclosed grass field forms the focal point of events at the Showgrounds.[8]

Speedway

See main article: Claremont Speedway. From 1927 until 2000, the 586adj=onNaNadj=on Claremont Speedway operated on a track around the edge of the arena. Its size made it the largest speedway in weekly operation in a state capital in Australia.[9]

With the closure of Claremont, speedway in Perth moved to the 500adj=onNaNadj=on Perth Motorplex Speedway in Kwinana Beach.

Australian rules football

The arena has in the past been used for Australian rules football matches. In the West Australian Football League (WAFL), Perth won its first premiership against East Fremantle there in 1907.[10] They were the original home of Claremont-Cottesloe Football Club in its first year in the WAFL before moving to Claremont Oval in 1927. On 19 March 2005, the venue was used to host a one-off WAFL match between Claremont and West Perth, with Claremont winning in front of 7,812 spectators. Due to redevelopment of Claremont Oval, Claremont used the Showgrounds as its home ground between 2014 and 2016.[11]

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. http://www.perthroyalshow.com.au/raswa/about/history/ RAS history
  2. Web site: Annual Report 2011 . 2012-07-05 . The Royal Agricultural Society of Western Australia . 31 Mar 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121018152125/http://www.raswa.org.au/libraries/forms-applications/2011-annual-report.pdf . 18 October 2012 . dead .
  3. Web site: Claremont Showground. Austadiums.com. Austadiums. 11 July 2015.
  4. News: Vigilans et Audax . The West Australian . 3 Nov 1905 . 4 . 2012-07-05.
  5. Web site: 2023-07-19. Timeline. RASWA.
  6. http://henrietta.liswa.wa.gov.au/search~S1?/Xclaremont+showgrounds&searchscope=1&Da=&Db=&p=&SORT=D/Xclaremont+showgrounds&searchscope=1&Da=&Db=&p=&SORT=D&SUBKEY=claremont%20showgrounds/1%2C91%2C91%2CB/frameset&FF=Xclaremont+showgrounds&searchscope=1&Da=&Db=&p=&SORT=D&27%2C27%2C State reference library images of exhibits at the 1929 royal show
  7. News: Eric . Charlton . Claremont Showgrounds Railway Station opened . 20 Sep 1995 . Government of Western Australia . Ministerial Media Statements . 2012-07-23 .
  8. Web site: Bruce Campbell Arena . Claremont Showground . 28 April 2017.
  9. Web site: Claremont.
  10. News: Wing . Australian Rules Football - Further facts about early days . 23 Aug 1945 . The Western Mail . 47 . 2012-07-05.
  11. Web site: Tigers and Lions go hunting in neutral territory . West Australian Football Commission . Football Budget . 5 April 2014 . 21 April 2014 . Lewis, Tracey . 4–5.