South West Australia: Spotlight on Historic Deanmill

At the turn of the 20th century, much of South West Australia remained little more than unexplored frontier. Although a budding settlement had been established near the coast at Perth in 1829, and numerous communities to the south had added to the burgeoning Swan River Colony, many settlers found the isolation and harsh conditions of frontier life too challenging, eventually deciding to go back home.  While several industrious individuals had recognized the potential for fortunes to be made from the region’s sprawling hardwood forests, most who attempted it failed miserably.  It wasn’t until the late 1870s when Maurice Coleman Davies succeeded almost single-handedly in creating a market and efficient lumber industry for karri and jarrah hardwoods, subsequently erecting sawmills at Coodardup, Karridale, Boranup, and Jarrahdene.  Read more . . .