Located about 200km from northern Perth, the town was named after The Cervantes, an American whaling ship which was wrecked north of the island in 1844.
The ship’s captain, Sylvanus Gibson, and survivors walked 160km along the coast to Fremantle, and the town was established more than a century later, in 1963.
Pioneers of the town in those early days, the Harolds, Ron and Grace Rogers, Max and Jan Beissel, and Jim and Iris Mitchell had the first known shacks.
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READ NOWThey then built houses where their families would holiday for the next few decades, a trend followed by younger generations.
Jim Mitchell, who travelled to Cervantes for a conference with his company in 1963, decided this town was ideal to purchase property to build a beach house for his family. Within a decade, Corunna Road, which faces Ronsard Bay, and surrounding areas filled up with about 15 families ” all but three of those families still live there, either retired or fishing.
Resident Maria Mitchell said the long weekend celebrations would culminate with the Cervantes Tigersharks Football Club’s reunion on June 2. ‘The club where it all began for West Coast Eagles star forward, Mark LeCras,’ she said.
‘The Cervantes Historical Society and the Cervantes CWA have organised a host of activities, starting around 9am (on June 1) with the CWA’s Biggest Morning Tea.
‘There will be displays by CWA and Historical Society, saxophonist Frank Morgan will entertain the guests, lunch and sausage sizzles will be available, along with various activities around town and on the beach.’ Ms Mitchell said the afternoon would showcase the cultural side of Cervantes, with the WA Shipwrecks Gallery assistant curator giving a short talk about artefacts from the local wrecks on display.
There will also be a rock ‘n’ roll event at the Cervantes Country Club on the Saturday evening, and an ecumenical service in the ambulance rooms on Sunday morning.
Following that, there will be a market on the recreation oval and a football game from lunch time, before a netball competition becomes the centre of action.