The hill originally formed part of a range of seven hills known as the Seven Sisters, much of which disappeared as a result of quarrying in the Rocky Bay and Mosman Park areas.
The first survey of town lots occurred in 1889 and the new area was named Buckland Hill after the prominent local hill. It became known as Cottesloe Beach in 1909.
In 1922 a competition was held to choose a new name for the district, with River Sea, Beachlia, Beachhole, Riverslea and Riverbeach considered.
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READ NOWNone of these were deemed suitable, however the name Cottesloe Beach was causing confusion with neighbouring Cottesloe and the name was changed back to Buckland Hill in 1930.
In 1932 a new list of names was considered, including Buckland, Mosman Park and Rivermont, and the area was renamed Mosman Park in 1937.
The name derived from Mosman in Sydney, the birthplace of Buckland Hill Road Board member Richard Yeldon.
While it is now an affluent residential area, it was once open bushland and the home of one of Perth’s major industrial centres, hosting a General Motors car and truck assembly plant, the Colonial Sugar Refinery, the Mt Lyell Farmer’s Fertilises superphosphate works, the WA Rope and Twine works and the West Australian Brushware Co. factory.
All were closed in the 1970s.
It also hosted the Harley Scramble, an annual motor cycle race.
Racing ceased in 1964; housing development in the area had increased and residents disliked the disturbance from the Scramble. n