The Claremont Showground near Perth, Western Australia is home to the annual Perth Royal Show. In 1902, 13 hectares (32 acres) of land were reserved in the Perth suburb of Claremont for a new showground to replace the Guildford Showgrounds. The Royal Agricultural Show, of three days, was first held there in October and November 1905.[4]
The Claremont Showground is serviced by a special events railway station on the Fremantle line. Opened on 20 September 1995, it has direct connection with the showgrounds.[7] The original Showgrounds Station, opened in 1954, was located 350 metres (1,150 ft) further east with platforms on either side of the line, and required negotiating road crossings to access the showgrounds.
Bruce Campbell Arena
The Bruce Campbell Arena, an enclosed grass field forms the focal point of events at the Showgrounds.[8]
From 1927 until 2000, the 586-metre (641-yard) Claremont Speedway operated on a track around the edge of the arena. Its size made it the largest speedway in weekly operation in a state capital in Australia.[9]
The arena has in the past been used for Australian rules football matches. In the West Australian Football League (WAFL), Perth won its first premiership against East Fremantle there in 1907.[10] They were the original home of Claremont-Cottesloe Football Club in its first year in the WAFL before moving to Claremont Oval in 1927. On 19 March 2005, the venue was used to host a one-off WAFL match between Claremont and West Perth, with Claremont winning in front of 7,812 spectators. Due to redevelopment of Claremont Oval, Claremont used the Showgrounds as its home ground between 2014 and 2016.[11]
^The Royal Agricultural Society of Western Australia (31 March 2011). "Annual Report 2011"(PDF). Archived from the original(PDF) on 18 October 2012. Retrieved 5 July 2012.
Cooper,William., Moore, Garrick and Michael White.(2004) Adversity and achievement : a history of the Royal Agricultural Society of Western Australia Claremont, W.A.: The Society. ISBN0-646-43969-3
