News Archive

UWA graduates and Historical Society stalwarts Joan Pope and Wendy Birman are on a mission to solve some mysteries.

They have researched the names of buildings, rooms, courtyards and walkways on the Crawley campus and are putting them into a small book that will be the ideal companion for a walk through the grounds.

What did Noel Bayliss do to deserve having the Chemistry and Biochemistry building named after him? Who was the Saw after whom Saw Promenade is named? And what do we know about May Tannock, who has a room honouring her in the Guild building?

Joan and Wendy are using their $3,000 Centenary Grant to publish the small book, with colour photographs of the locations taken by Ron Bodycoat, supplementing 70 short biographies, each illustrated with an original black and white photo.

"There are many places on UWA's other campuses which are named after people who are significant in the University's history, but for this first book, we are focusing on the Crawley campus," Joan said.

She was at UWA in the 1950s and Wendy was a student in the 1940s.

Personalities and Places on the Crawley Campus documents only places to which staff, students and visitors have free access.

The book begins at ‘the front door' of the campus, with Whitfeld Court, Winthrop Hall and the Hackett buildings. Buildings and avenues are then listed in order of a walk south towards Sport Science, Exercise and Health and the Business School.

"Then we come back along the river side to the Guild, Law and Arts, ending at the Somerville Auditorium, completing the loop."

They are not sure yet how many copies of Personalities and Places on the Crawley Campus will be printed or how they will be distributed. UWAnews will keep you informed.