Wilsons Prom Region Local History
The Wilsons Promontory National Park is a vast, diversified national park located 157 km southeast of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia. The park covers about 50,500 hectares and is accessible via the South Gippsland Highway. Though it covers a massive expanse of land along the coast, the park's history begins well before the designation as a national park.
The Aboriginal people of the Kurnai, Bunurong, and Wurundjeri Tribes have lived in the Wilsons Promontory for over 8,000 years. The local communities sustainably gathered food, water, and shelter from the land. This connection with the land and each other continued even after Europeans started to arrive in the region.
The first visitors to the Wilsons Promontory were sailors and sealers who arrived in the area in the early 1800s. They used the Promontory as a base, harvesting seals for their fur and oil. Shortly after the sailors and sealers arrived, whalers also began to operate from the area.
By the 1850s, pastoralists had moved into Wilsons Promontory's hinterland, and inland coal-mining increased around the same time. The mining and pastoral industry were critical economic activities in the region until the early 1900s. However, tourism became the region's major economic contributor of income after the Australian government turned Wilsons Promontory into a national park in 1908.
In 1898, the first formal reconnaissance of the Promontory was conducted by the government geologist and his party. The geologist noted the area's aesthetic and scenic appeal that year, prompting the establishment of the Wilsons Promontory National Park by the state government in 1905, making it the second national park in Victoria behind Royal National Park, which was created in 1879. The formation of the park happened primarily to conserve the unique flora and fauna of the region, which the government deemed to have exceptional scientific value.
The park's formation prompted a change in the region's land use, from mining and pastoralists to conservation. The first appointed ranger of the Wilsons Promontory National Park, EJ Semmens, started in 1908. Semmens had the task of protecting the Promontory Park and its natural environment. In his early years, Semmens was primarily focused on removing feral predators, such as foxes and rabbits, and destroying invasive plant life, such as gorse and bracken.
During the first few decades of the park's operations, the area's boundaries were sometimes redrawn, but the park's maintenance remained an integral part of the regions' history. In the 1930s and 1940s, a road was constructed in the park, which opened the region's attractions to more people. However, before this road's construction, travel within the park was primarily by foot or horseback.
During the 1950s and 60s, park management shifted focus to emergency services and visitor facilities. Although mining and pastoralism had ceased, some logging persisted in the area. In the 1970s, the parks administration condemned logging in the area, which resulted in its permanent cessation.
Today, Wilsons Promontory National Park is a vibrant and robust reserve that is protected history for future generations. Its pristine beaches, native wildlife, and walking tracks continue to attract diverse visitors from across Australia and around the world. The formidable efforts of the first rangers and administrators undoubtedly have much to do with the success of the park today.