Madora Bay: Residents’ memories captured by Mandurah Baptist College media students

MADORA Bay residents old and new remembered the early years of their suburb this week with their memories captured on film by Mandurah Baptist College media students.

Madora Bay Hall turns 40 this year and next year it will be 60 years since Madora Bay was subdivided.

The Mandurah Community Association and Mandurah Baptist College are working with students to create a short film from the interviews that will be entered in the Mandurah Short Film Festival.

Other possibilities include featured the interviews in a photographic calendar next year.

Mayor Rhys Williams said Madora Bay was more than just about subdivision and growth but thousands of stories.

“I love the spirit of Madora Bay; it’s a bit like Falcon,’’ he said.

“We can reconnect to small pockets of communities and Madora Bay is a beautiful example of reminding us what we should never forget.”

He said few groups were as proactive or as willing to help celebrate communities as the Madora Bay Community Association.

“Keep on being role models,” he said.

Resident Michelle Evans recalled the 1960s and the freedom to roam and be safe.

“You always knew where your friends were,” she said. “We had no bus service but the community association helped us get one.”

Community Association president Andrew Ward appealed for old photos to help grow their collection.

First named in 1960 as Madora Beach Estate, the name was derived from the Kimberley pastoral station of Madora and a former railway siding near Dwellingup known as Chadora.

The suburb was gazetted in 1990 as Madora but later amended to its current name in 2003.

After Madora Beach Road was built in 1959, only four roads connected to the area: Sabina Drive and Challenger, Albion and Madora Beach roads.

Back then, lot prices were between £250 and £525 for the best lots that were on Sabina Drive facing the beach.

Buyers were able to pay just £5 to secure a lot and then up to 84 monthly payments.

They also had to secure their own water via rain tanks and wells.

Sewage was disposed of through septic tanks and it was not until two years later that the State Electricity Commission supplied power.

Over the years, the estate changed in various ways, with the biggest being the change of name from Madora Beach to Madora Bay in 1970 because the name seemed more appealing to tourists.