Boundary Tree, Swan Locations 4 and 5, Baskerville

Statement of Significance

The place is a rare remnant of the early British exploration and survey of the Swan River Valley, marking the boundary of Swan Locations 4 and 5 which were amongst the earliest land grants in the Swan River Colony;

The place was used to establish land boundaries by James Stirling, who explored the Swan River in 1827 and returned in 1829 as the first Governor of Western Australia; and by Surveyor General John Septimus Roe, who was responsible for surveying many of the earliest land grants in the colony;

The place is rare as a known extant example of a tree used as a boundary marker that still serves its original purpose;
the place demonstrates the early methods of surveying boundaries used by the British settlers; and

The place continues to perform the function as a boundary tree, marking the extent of current lots in the area.

Physical Description

The Boundary Tree consists of a single Flooded Gum (Eucalyptus rudis), growing on the south side of the Swan River where it flows along an east-west axis through Baskerville. The tree itself is approximately 20 metres high with a diameter of 2.0 metres to 2.5 metres.

The Boundary Tree is living but has sustained a great deal of damage including burn scars, termite holes and is now missing a number of the uppermost limbs. In particular, a section of the bark on the southern face of the tree is no longer extant, and is considered to have been burnt off in a lightning strike. The tree surface is also covered in numerous nodules. Despite this, the tree is putting forth fresh green branches.

No signs of artificial modification such as deliberate scarring or the carving of symbols are apparent. If such marks existed, they may have been obscured or removed by burning.

History

In September 1829, Captain Stirling and Surveyor General, John Septimus Roe, travelled to the head of the Swan River above Guildford with a group of settlers to whom permission had been given to select land. These were among the first rural land grants in the Colony. An extract of a letter from a settler who was present at this survey states:

After walking some distance... we arrived at the source of the river, called Ellen’s Brook. Here the river is very narrow. The Governor next declared the land from this point for four miles down the river, to be appropriated to Mr L-, one of our party, who had a preference... The Governor made other grants, distinguishing each by marking the trees.

As the survey of the grant locations were performed by a group of government surveyors marking out boundaries using a compass, disputes over boundary locations were inevitable. Captain William Shaw and his neighbour to the north, Peter Brown of ‘Coulston,’ could not agree on a boundary between their properties and even asked Henry Bull, William Tanner and George Fletcher Moore to mark an independent boundary line.

The trees marked by Stirling in 1829 were re-used by J W Gregory as part of a government contract survey of the Swan in 1842, where the tree is described as ‘Tanner’s Northern Boundary Tree.

An intriguing detail of this map is a tree symbol marking the location of the ‘Success Tree (dead)’, west and downstream from Boundary Tree, Swan Locations 4 and 5, Baskerville. This may represent the site of Stirling’s furthest point upstream in his 1827 exploration, and the location generally corresponds to Stirling’s map of this journey.

Captain Shaw continued to live at Swan Location 4 until his death in 1862, the estate managed by his wife Eliza Shaw and their son George Shaw until it was sold in 1876 to W T Loton. A more substantial homestead was eventually built at the place by the Loton family c.1887. The Loton family continued to live at the place until 1962.

Boundary Tree, Swan Locations 4 and 5, Baskerville continued to mark the boundary of Locations 4 & 5 as the area developed, and by 1936 the Locations had become subdivided. The new lots 67 and 68 (formerly part of Location 5) were divided by Amiens Crescent, the Boundary Tree, Swan Locations 4 and 5, Baskerville intersection of Locations 4 & 5 becoming the western boundary of the road reserve where it meets the Swan River.

In 2004, the Eucalypt at the end of Amiens Crescent was identified by Dr. Shane Burke as the tree marked by Stirling in 1829. A description of the tree at this time indicated that bark had been removed from the tree’s south side.

A photo of the tree taken by Dr. Burke shows a large section of the tree’s surface as missing, presumed damaged in a bushfire.

In 2017 substantial flooding overwhelmed the tree and it was further damaged.

Integrity/Authenticity

High

Condition

Good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Last Update

Disclaimer

This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.