Denmark, Western Australia
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Denmark Western Australia
Denmark River
Population:	2,732 (2006 census)
Established:	1896N1
Postcode:	6333
Area:	1834 km² (708.1 sq mi)
Time zone:  • Summer (DST)	+8 (UTC) +9 (UTC)
LGA:	Shire of Denmark
State District:	Blackwood-Stirling
Federal Division:	O'Connor
Mean Max Temp Mean Min Temp Rainfall 20.5 °C 69 °F 9.8 °C 50 °F 998.4 mm 39.3 in

Coordinates: 34°57′36″S 117°21′11″E / -34.96, 117.353

Berridge Park on the Denmark River

Australia Day in the Berridge Park on the Denmark River bank

The Denmark River and the old wooden bridge

The Bert Bolle Barometer in the Barometer Tower of the Denmark Visitor Centre

Denmark is a town located on the south coast of Western Australia 423 km south-southeast of the capital city, Perth, and about 50 km west of the regional city of Albany. The urban area is located on the banks of the Denmark River, which flows into the Wilson Inlet, seasonally connected to the Southern Ocean. Denmark has a Mediterranean climate with relatively dry summers and wet winters. The average annual rainfall is about 1,000 mm. The average day temperature in summer is 25 °C, in winter 16 °C. Denmark was named after the Denmark River in 1896.^N1 The inhabitants are sometimes called Denmarkians.

Population

For many years Denmark was a typical rural town with mainly timber milling, orcharding, beef cattle and dairy farming. A suitable combination of soil and climate later attracted wine growers, which resulted in an important wine industry, although tourism has become the fastest growing business in Denmark. Apart from blue gum plantations for wood chips supply to Japan, Denmark has no heavy industry. There is some commercial fishing, but Denmark has no harbour. The town is home to the Denmark College of Agriculture.^N2

According to the 2006 census,^[1] 1.4% were Indigenous, 70% were Australian-born, 14.6% were born in Britain, 2.1% were born in New Zealand, 1.0% were born in Germany and 1.0% were born in the Netherlands. The population is diverse and retains characteristics of the several waves of settlement to the district – including “old Denmarkians”, Group Settlers, Soldier Settlers and the alternative (hippie) movement. The environmental awareness of certain groups put its stamp on the town in the last decades of the 20th century and helped Denmark to preserve its pristine nature.

Much attention is given to cultural activities and Denmark Arts organizes festivals, art markets, exhibitions, gigs and workshops for the local community. Protecting native flora and fauna and environmental care in general are important items for many Denmarkians. Denmark was awarded the title of "Australia’s Tidiest Town" in 1998.

History

The coast line of the Denmark area was observed for the first time in 1627 by the Dutchman François Thijssen, captain of the ship 't Gulden Seepaert (The Golden Seahorse). Captain Thijssen had discovered the south coast of Australia and charted about 1,800 km of it between Cape Leeuwin and Nuyts Archipelago. Thijssen named the discovered land after Pieter Nuyts, a high employee of the Dutch East India Company, who was aboard ship as a passenger. His name lives on in the Nuytsia floribunda, the Western Australian Christmas tree.

Two centuries later, when the first white people entered the land around the present Denmark River, the area was inhabited by the Noongar. These aborigines called the river and the inlet Koorabup, which means 'place of the black swan'. The Noongar disappeared out of the Denmark region in the beginning of the 20th century.^N3

Although the 'South Land' was discovered by the Dutch and a major western part of the continent was called Nieuw Holland (New Holland), the Dutch did not colonise the land, although the name New Holland was officially in use until 1824 and could be found on Dutch maps towards the end of the 19th century. The British were more dynamic than the Dutch, who were mainly interested in the Indonesian Archipelago and when the French showed their interest in the western part of Australia, Britain decided to colonise the whole continent around 1825.^N4 Dutch names of areas, e.g. Nuyts Land, Eendrachtsland and De Wit's Land disappeared or were Anglicised, e.g. Swaene-revier became Swan River. Sometimes Dutch names survived in e.g. Arnhem Land and Cape Leeuwin. Leeuwin Land was the old Dutch name of the area, in which the present Denmark River can be found. The river was discovered in 1829 by the naval doctor Thomas Braidwood Wilson, the first white man who explored the area. Wilson, who was assisted on his exploring trip by the Noongar man, Mokare, reported about the soil and the enormous trees ^N5 and named the river after his colleague and friend, the English doctor Alexander Denmark.^N7 The name of Denmark has nothing to do with Denmark in Europe, although many workmen in the wood trade migrated from Scandinavia to the region when milling became a booming business.

Around 1885 timber leases were taken out in the Denmark River area and 15 years later milling was at its peak, with Denmark having a population figure of about 2,000. A railway track from Denmark to Albany was built to transport the karri, which was a wanted article all over the world. Lots of houses in Britain were built with Denmark timber and roads in London were paved with karri blocks from Denmark.^N8 However, resource depletion soon resulted in a total collapse of the timber industry. The population declined dramatically and only started to revive with the introduction of the Group Settlement Scheme in the 1920s. Small farms of 40 ha (100 acres) were developed to create pasture for cattle, dairying and orcharding, mainly apples. Conditions were often poor and some of the small farmers could hardly survive. They worked in one of the timber mills operating around the middle of the 20th century. By the 1960s the population had increased to 1,500 and was becoming attractive to alternative life-stylers, early retirees and intensive agriculture e.g. grapes. Wine growers discovered the value of the rich karri loam for their vineyards.^N9 Riesling and Chardonnay were the first grapes grown on Denmark soil, soon followed by other varieties. Within 50 years the area became a wine region of importance. In 2008 nearly 25 vineyards had been established around Denmark.

Tourism started when American soldiers stationed in Albany during World War II made outings to Denmark and asked for souvenirs and a place for a cuppa. After the war Denmark became a popular holiday destination for Western Australians.

Flora and fauna

Denmark is surrounded by native woodland with trees in a large variety, especially gum trees like the marri, the karri, the jarrah and the red tingle, of which the latter can reach a height of 60 metres. The presence of all these trees, in an environment for the greater part still untouched, is unique. A rare natural wonder is the red flowering gum with its cheerful scarlet blossom.

In spring thousands of different wildflower species can be seen, many of which are unique to the Denmark area.

There is a rich bird life with splendid blue wrens, emus, ibises, magpies and parrots. Many sorts of reptiles can be found and marsupials like the grey kangaroo, the quokka, the bandicoot and the possum. The abundance of fish attracts dolphins and seals and every year whales pay a visit to the Denmark waters for a rest during their long trip up north.

Location

Denmark is situated along the South Coast Highway and is serviced by the TransWA public transport system. The town has an airstrip for small planes.

The location on the Denmark River with its old wooden bridge and the ample presence of native vegetation in and around the urban area gives the town a picturesque appearance. Some old buildings date from the pioneering era like the wooden Anglican Church, the oldest still existing building on Strickland Street, the shopping street in the centre of town. The Denmark Historical Museum is a rich source of information about the town and its past.

Near the Denmark River mouth is the authentic wooden Railway Bridge, where several walking trails ^N10 come together, like the Denmark-Nornalup Heritage Trail and the well-known Bibbulmun Track, which runs from the Perth region to Albany.

Notes

1. ^  Quotation: "Unless further information emerges, no precise date can be established for the foundation of the town of Denmark. It must be assumed, however, that some site preparation would have been carried out during the Spring of 1895, while actual construction of the town would not have commenced until the first sawmill was definitely operating. Thus it can only be assumed that construction began in January, 1896" ^[2]
2. ^  During World War II the Narrogin Farm School pupils needed to be shifted to the State Farm in Denmark. After the war the school in Narrogin was reopened, but the agricultural education facilities in Denmark were maintained by the Government. In 1947 the Agricultural School was built, nowadays called Denmark College of Agriculture.
3. ^  Around the time of the British colonization, the Netherlands had become a rather poor country. Belgium rebelled for independence, which eventually happened in 1830. The Netherlands lacked the power to maintain their two centuries old claim that New Holland was a Dutch colony and did not protest when Britain took it over. No records were found that Britain even informed the Dutch government.
4. ^  Quotations: "... we must sadly assume that, by then (i.e. 1914), the Noongars who were actively present when the mill town of Denmark was established no longer remained in the district..." "...it must be acknowledged that 40,000 years of continuous Aboriginal culture and land ownership in the Denmark area was brought to a tragic end within less than 20 years of white occupation..." ^[3]
5. ^  Quotation: "...the surrounding hills are of very fine soil and may be easily turned to good account. The timber principally blue gum ^N6 is the finest I ever saw... " ^[4]
6. ^  Most likely Wilson meant Karri.
7. ^  Dr Alexander Denmark never came to Australia. Quotations:"...he was a surgeon in the Royal Navy, had been a tutor at the Haslar Naval Medical College at Gosport, near Portsmouth and helped Wilson in his career..." "...Denmark had reached the position of Third medical officer to the British Mediterranean Fleet before he retired..." ^[5]
8. ^  Quotation: "World markets for timber were booming in the late 1890s and seemed ever-increasing as orders came in from England, France, Switzerland, South Africa, Natal, India, China, the U.S.A. and South America as well as from Australian states. By 1900 the three mills, with an average workforce of 450, but peaking to 750, were producing over 90,000 super feet of timber per day, necessitating two daily trains to Albany." ^[6]
9. ^ Tinglewood Wines was the first commercial vineyard in Denmark in 1976 and was planted by Bob & Judy Wood.
10. ^  Denmark has more Heritage Trails, e.g. the Mokare Heritage Trail, the Denmark Timber Heritage Trail and the Wilson Inlet Heritage Trail. ^[7]

References

Other resources

• R.W. Mumford, Denmark Western Australia - A History to 1905.
• G. Sheriff, The History of Denmark, 1951.
• R. McGuinness, A look at Millars and the influence of the railway and tramways on the settlement of the district, Past and Present Intersect and Converge - Denmark through the 1900s.
• P. Clarke, A Colonial Woman, Allen & Unwin, 1986.

External links

• Shire of Denmark
• Denmark Tourist Bureau
• Denmark Visitor Centre
• The Bert Bolle Barometer