South Beach Kiosk Cafe

Values

• The place represents the third iteration of permanent beach side facilities at this location, popular as a recreational area for Western Australians since the early twentieth century.
• The place is a representative example of the development of a ‘beach culture’ in the State.
• The place provides some evidence for the widespread influence of innovative architectural styles which gained popularity during the post war period and late twentieth century.

Physical Description

South Beach Kiosk Café is located on the west side of Ocean Drive and the railway line separated from the beach by light coastal scrub and dunes. The place is situated within the wider South Beach Recreation Reserve, in a flat grassed area with two large pine trees to the north and an avenue of pines to the south. To the south west there are basketball courts with a bitumen parking area and Wilson Park to the north east.
South Beach Kiosk Café is a rectangular rendered brick structure with a folded roof pattern of pre-stressed concrete units. The building is divided into two separate sections with a gap in the roofing.
There are two distinctive sections of the building, the café to the north and changing rooms to the south. There are free standing brick partitions for privacy, along the west and east sides of the building, five on each side. On the north section, a contemporary metal and corrugated metal sheeting verandah has been added, as well as shade sails to the east and west aspects. On the south end, a blue, sea themed mural is painted on the walls.

History

The Fremantle region (Walyalup) has always been a significant place for the Whadjuk Noongar people. This area is within the Aboriginal cultural region of Beeliar and was a reliable source of natural resources for the Noongar people until their way of life was disrupted in 1829, with the arrival of Colonists in Fremantle and the establishment of the Swan River Colony. The Fremantle area and the mouth of the Swan River are integral to the story of the Waugal, the rainbow serpent who is recognised by the Noongar people as the giver of life, maintaining all fresh water sources.
While the section of beach south of South Beach Kiosk Café was used for horse training and racing as early as 1833, it wasn’t until 1905 that the area began to be developed for more general recreation. In 1905, a tram service commenced along South Terrace to Douro Road, which paved the way for the development of a new area of South Beach, south of the area previously known by this name used by boat builders in the previous century. Under the direction of the South Beach Committee, the reserve was developed with various facilities including ‘a Luna Park style fairground’ and a concert hall, which was transferred there from the Long Jetty. Proposed to be ‘one of the finest seaside beaches in the Commonwealth’, the official opening of South Beach by the Governor, Sir Gerald Strickland, on 15 November 1909 was attended by 35,000 people. The crowd extended from the northern end of the beach as far as the Smelters Jetty.
In January 1910, South Beach was gazetted as a reserve for public recreation and it proved to be a popular bathing spot, with records of the Fremantle Council erecting bathing houses on the beach, however by July that year they had been damaged by storms. The first kiosk was established in the 1920s, but this also deteriorated being described as the ‘filthiest place ever’ in an article from 1921. Separate from the hygiene issues, the kiosk was not large enough to accommodate the numbers of visitors to South Beach.

Uses

Creation Date

Publish place record online (inHerit):

Last Update

Disclaimer

This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.