Churchlands Police Stables - A Local History
The area just north of the current Churchlands Green site was home to Police Horse Stables from 1953 to 1976. These stables were part of a long and esteemed history of mounted policing in Western Australia, a legacy that dates back almost 150 years.
Origins of the Western Australian Mounted Police
The origins of the Western Australian Police Mounted Section are found in the earliest pages of Western Australia’s history. Because of the vastness of the colony and the limited transport options, it was clear that a police force on horseback would provide the greatest mobility across the state.
In the early colonial years, policing duties were carried out by members of the 63rd Regiment of the British Army, and later the 21st Regiment. However, the army viewed law enforcement as outside its remit, forcing local settlers to assume responsibility for policing without infrastructure or funding. Growing tensions between settlers and Aboriginal people, combined with the spread of new settlements, created an urgent need for a formal mounted police unit.
An initial proposal for mounted police was raised in 1831, but it was rejected due to cost. By 1834, the Western Australian Mounted Police was formally established with funding of £432, enough to create a 30-man force led by a principal superintendent. On July 14, 1834, Captain Theophilus Ellis was appointed the first principal superintendent of mounted police. Tragically, Captain Ellis was killed only months later after being struck by a spear during a conflict at Pinjarra in November 1834.
Despite this early tragedy, the Mounted Section became a vital presence in the expanding colony. Mounted constables patrolled vast regions, often spending months at a time in the outback with a string of horses and mules known as “the plant.” They lived on simple rations of flour, sugar, tea, and salted beef, carrying a .44 calibre rifle and sidearm for protection.
Their work helped shape policing across Western Australia and built the foundation for the mounted units that followed.
Perth's First Police Stables
The first known police stables in Perth were known as the Waterside Stables, established along the Swan River foreshore near the present site of the Supreme Court of Western Australia. At that time, the river extended to the building’s edge, and the stables also served as a base for the Water Police.
By the early 1900s, as Perth grew, the main police stables moved to the Old Central Police Station on Roe Street, between Beaufort and William Streets. There were fourteen stables on site, along with a government breaking yard at the corner of Hay and Plain Streets in East Perth.
This site remained the operational hub of Perth’s Mounted Section until the early 1950s, when the stables and horses were moved to new facilities on Herdsman Parade (now Pearson Street) in Wembley - today part of Churchlands.
Wembley Police Stables
The Wembley Police Stables (commonly referred to as the Churchlands Police Stables) were established on land along Herdsman Parade - now Pearson Street - just over the northern border of today's Churchlands Green estate. The stables and associated paddocks appear to have extended across land now occupied by Abbey Brook Estate.
The buildings themselves though had an earlier origin. In the 1940s, they were transported from Shenton Park by the Government to be used as the Government Heavy Horse Stables, accommodating horses used for road building and other public works. These became the foundation for the later Police Mounted Section facilities.
Before the Mounted Section occupied the site full-time, two constables were stationed there in 1946: Harry Street (Regimental No. 1190) and Charlie Jones (Regimental No. 1558). Charlie Jones lived on-site in the quarters, while Harry Street rode his horse daily from Leederville. Their duties were to break in, educate, and agist horses for the Roe Street stables.
During World War II (1939–45), an additional stable complex was built on Cromarty Road in Wembley, on a five-acre block close to where Churchlands Primary School stands today. These were constructed as an emergency backup facility in case the Roe Street stables were bombed.
By 1953, the entire Mounted Section relocated from Roe Street to the new Churchlands facility, which offered spacious open land and proximity to Herdsman Lake - ideal for training and grazing horses. The new site became the central hub for mounted police operations in Perth. As noted earlier, these Police Stables would operate at the Churchlands site from 1953 to 1976.
The 1950s still saw the current Churchlands Green site mapped out with a number of proposed lots. These lots were part of a subdivision of Herdsman Lake in the 1920s called the Soldier Settlement Scheme. These lots would have become redundant by the 1970s when the Churchlands Teachers College was opened.
A map of Herdsman Lake from 1952 shows where the main Police Stables were located, as well as the additional stables on Cromarty Road.
In contrast, the road network in and around Churchlands Green looks much different today.
The Stephenson Highway Reservation
An interesting aspect of the Churchlands Police Stables story is its connection to Perth's 1955 Stephenson-Hepburn Plan.
The plan proposed a future regional road corridor, known as the Stephenson Highway reservation, through parts of Churchlands, Woodlands and surrounding areas. Historical maps indicate that the proposed alignment would have passed directly through the area occupied by the Police Horse Stables and associated paddocks along Pearson Street.
Importantly, the Police Horse Stables were already operating in Churchlands when the plan was released, meaning the planners would have been aware of the existing mounted police facilities and surrounding land uses.
Despite the reservation remaining in place for decades, no road was ever constructed through this section of Churchlands. The continued operation of the Police Horse Stables until 1976 highlights the long-term nature of many metropolitan planning reservations, which often remained undeveloped for many years while serving other government or community purposes. Life at the Churchlands Stables
The Churchlands Police Stables were a fully operational mounted police facility for over two decades. Horses were trained, housed, and cared for on-site, and officers undertook both urban patrols and ceremonial duties.
Daily life at the stables involved early starts, feed preparation, horse exercise, and regular patrols throughout the Perth metropolitan area. The open fields and natural surrounds provided ideal space for horsemanship training and community demonstrations, and the facility became a distinctive local landmark for residents in the area.
Closure & Relocation (1975–1976)
By the early 1970s, Perth’s rapid suburban growth began to encroach on the area. The establishment of the Churchlands Teachers College in 1972 and the planned widening of Pearson Street made it impractical for the stables to remain. Interestingly, available historical records suggest the relocation was driven primarily by suburban development pressures and the planned widening of Pearson Street, rather than any proposal to proceed with the Stephenson Highway reservation itself.
Although the horse stables departed in 1976, much of the surrounding land associated with the Stephenson Highway reserve remained undeveloped and largely unchanged for decades thereafter. The last officers to serve at the Churchlands Stables were:
Senior Sergeant Albert Hutchings
First Class Constable lan Calderwood
First Class Constable Graham Maddison
Police Constable Sydney Sinclaire
Police Constable Rodger Donnagen
Police Constable Michael Deephouse
Police Constable Ross Wilson
Police Constable Richard Kemp
Police Constable John Sterrett
In 1975, the Mounted Section was temporarily moved to the Belmont Racecourse, while a new permanent facility was being constructed at Maylands, on the site of the former Maylands aerodrome. The Maylands Police Stables were officially opened on November 19, 1976 by the Honourable Ray O’Connor.
At the same time, the Churchlands (Wembley) stables were carefully dismantled for relocation to Murdoch University. Through negotiations between the Public Works Department and Murdoch University Vice-Chancellor Professor Steven Griew, it was agreed that the stables would be preserved due to their historical value and repurposed as part of the university’s Veterinary Science School.
Architects, builders, engineers, and carpenters contributed their labour voluntarily, reducing the relocation cost from $25,000 to $10,000. The relocation plan proved highly successful, and the stables were reassembled at Murdoch, where they remain in use today.
Today, much of the former Churchlands Police Stables site along Pearson Street remains undeveloped, with only a few visible remnants of the original facilities.
Life After the Churchlands Stables
Following the closure and relocation of the Churchlands Stables in 1976, the surrounding area entered a new phase of development. Land that had previously been associated with horse paddocks, training areas and open reserve space gradually became surrounded by educational institutions and residential neighbourhoods.
Interestingly, although the Police Horse Stables were removed, much of the surrounding land associated with the Stephenson Highway reservation remained largely undeveloped. The bushland and reserve areas between Pearson Street and Empire Avenue continued to exist in planning limbo for decades, while the surrounding Churchlands and Woodlands suburbs continued to expand around them.
The former stables site itself would eventually become part of a significantly changed landscape, with the establishment of Churchlands Primary School, Churchlands Teachers College, Edith Cowan University and, later, the Churchlands Green residential estate.
In 1965, Churchlands Primary School began within the college buildings that were initially an expansion of the Claremont Teachers College. Churchlands Primary relocated to its current site in 1972. Also established in 1972 was the Churchlands Teachers College (1972-1980) which eventually became part of the the Western Australian College of Advanced Education or WACAE (1981-1990).
WACAE then changed its name to Edith Cowan University (1991-2008) in honour of Edith Dircksey Cowan - Australia's first woman to be elected to Parliament.
A staff member that worked at the Edith Cowan University Churchlands Campus, discussed the area towards the boundary of the campus and how it was previously home to sections of the WA Police, including the mounted horse and licensing division.
The staff member recalled that "during earthworks (of new university buildings), many old vehicle registration plates, horse shoes, and bottles were uncovered". This written recollection can be found on a plaque on one of several academic sculptures, located around Churchlands Green.
The Edith Cowan University Churchlands Campus was demolished in 2008 to make way for the Churchlands Green residential estate. Churchlands Green has a rich academic history, but one must not forget the significance of the Wembley (Churchlands) Police Stables. These stables form an important historical piece of Churchlands Green and the Western Australian Mounted Police Section.
Visiting and Further Reading
The Western Australian Police Historical Society Museum, located at 57 Lincoln Street, Highgate, offers a comprehensive collection of photographs, documents, and artefacts relating to the WA Mounted Police. The museum is open on Tuesdays (9am–3pm) and Fridays (9am–3pm).
The editor would like to sincerely thank Carol Vernon and Don Hawkins from the Western Australian Police Historical Society Inc. for their assistance in compiling this article. Primary sources include Police Mounted Section & Wembley Police Stables Information Sheets and archival material provided by the WA Police Historical Society.
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