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History of Rockingham


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It got its name from the sailing ship Rockingham one of the three vessels bought by Thomas Peel to carry settlers to Western Australia (the others being the Gilmore and the Hooghly), arriving in May 1830. The Rockingham was blown ashore and eventually abandoned after failed attempts to refloat her. She eventually broke up, having sunk in shallow waters. Settlers supposedly camped near the wreck used the name "Rockingham Town" as their address.

The region had been inhabited for several thousand years by tribes of the Noongar people whose leader at that time was Galyute.

Rockingham was first surveyed and lots offered for sale in 1847. However, few lots were sold until the development of a railway and jetty in 1872 to transport jarrah timber and sandalwood from Jarrahdale overseas. Rockingham prospered until the construction of the Inner Harbour of Fremantle in 1897, which caused Rockingham as a timber port to steadily decline.

Now, as a satellite city in Perth's southwest, together with Mandurah, it is among Australia's fastest-growing residential districts. The maritime tradition has been strengthened by steady growth of the Royal Australian Navy's main fleet base HMAS Stirling and by the development of major shipbuilding and marine support services at nearby Henderson.

Since the nineteenth century, abundant sightseeing and recreational attributes have been the basis of a tourism industry. Visitors can launch small boats or board ferries to view dolphins, seals, pelicans and penguins in the adjacent Marine Park. The coast at nearby Safety Bay is ideal for windsurfing and kitesurfing. Generous free barbecues and picnic facilities are provided on the seafront, supplementing a choice of hotels and restaurants. Rockingham Shopping Centre is the regional centre which attracts significant non-local business, having a licence to trade on Sundays during public and school holidays.

On 7 May 2009, a boundary realignment of Cooloongup and
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