Cantonment Hill, Fremantle

Cantonment Hill
Dwerda Weelardinup, Walyarup
Cantonment Hill signal station
Location	Fremantle, Western Australia
Coordinates	32°2′37″S 115°45′19″E / 32.04361°S 115.75528°E / -32.04361; 115.75528
Elevation	33.9 metres (111 ft)32°2′37.05″S 115°45′18.89″E / 32.0436250°S 115.7552472°E / -32.0436250; 115.7552472
Area	2.31 hectares (5.7 acres)
Geology	Limestone
Operator	City of Fremantle

Cantonment Hill is a small rise overlooking the port city of Fremantle, Western Australia. Since the early 1900s the hill and the surrounding 4 hectares (9.9 acres) precinct has been mainly used for military purposes with extensive buildings now present. It has been under the control of the Department of Defence.

The area is known as Dwerda Weelardinup meaning 'place of the Dingo Spirit' and the peak is also referred to as Walyarup which means 'Sea-Eagle nest' by the indigenous Whadjuk people.

The site includes the last remaining stand of pre-European settlement Rottnest Island pine (Callitris preissii) on the mainland.

The Cantonment Hill site consists of a number of properties, lots 600, 601, 604 are owned by the Commonwealth Government lot 601 is the site of Army Museum of Western Australia, lot 603 is privately owned. Lot 602 which consists of two parts totaling 1.4675 hectares (3.626 acres), lot 50 is between these two parts covers an area 0.8432 hectares (2.084 acres). The approximately 4 hectares (9.9 acres) site is bounded by Canning Highway, Queen Victoria Street, Burt Street and Tuckfield Street. There are a number of buildings within the site besides those of the Army museum: there is the heritage listed former defense housing on Queen Victoria street, the heritage listed Naval Store(1935) on the Corner of Queen Victoria street and Canning Highway, and a signal station built for the Fremantle Harbour Trust in 1956.

In the mid 1990s a group of local residents formed the Cantonment Hill Residents Action Group for the return of site to the City of Fremantle as per the original gift of 1892. In this Lot 50 was set aside as a Bushland forever site previously identified in 1981 by the Environmental Protection Agency. In 1989 and again in 1996 surveys of the area identified 20 native plants and 27 weeds. Included in the native plants is the only remaining natural occurrence of Rottnest Island pine(Callitris preissii) on the mainland. The 1989 survey also identified 16 Bird species and 2 reptile species.

For many thousands of years before European settlement, Cantonment Hill was a place of significance to the local Whadjuk people who are part of the Noongar people. They told stories about the site, camped there the site was known as Dwerda Weelardinup whose meaning is place of Dingo spirit, other families also called the site Walyarup which means Sea Eagle nest. In 1829, Europeans established the Swan River Colony and the town of Fremantle, its from cantonment established nearby that its common name is taken. The site was a popular destination for picnics for the settlers due to the views over Fremantle, the river and ocean.