History:
The Yawuru people have had traditional links with Roebuck Bay for many hundreds of years and there is evidence that Malays also visited in search of turtles, dugongs and pearls.
William Dampier was the first European to visit this shore in 1688, and Roebuck Bay was named after his ship, H.M.S. Roebuck. However, it wasn’t until the 21st November 1883, almost 200 years later, that Broome was gazetted as a town and named in honour of the then Governor of Western Australia, Sir Frederick Napier Broome.
The discovery of the ‘Pinctada maxima’, the largest pearl shell in the world, in the waters off Roebuck Bay, led to the establishment of Broome’s pearling industry.
In the first decade of the twentieth century, Broome produced 80% of the world’s Mother of Pearl shell. The lugger fleet peaked in 1913 with 403 registered vessels.
While pearling was prosperous for the pearling master, it was often fatal for the many divers who were subject to the ‘bends’, drowning, shark attack and cyclones.
A deep water jetty was built in 1897 and at this time, Broome also boasted a customs house, (present day museum) bond store, hospital, police station and gaol.
The development of the plastic button in the 1950s sealed the fate of the Mother of Pearl shell industry. The industry was revitalised however in the late 1950s with the advent of the cultured pearl and by the 1970s, Broome was producing 60 to 70% of the world’s large cultured pearls.
The 1980s brought a new industry to Broome - tourism, which saw the rebuilding of hotels and resorts and the sealing of the gravel road to the south to Port Hedland.
Today Broome has an influx of over 100,000 tourists a year.
General:
Broome is situated at the southernmost tip of the rugged Kimberley region of Western Australia, 18 degrees south of the equator. An ideal climate from April to September makes it an attractive holiday spot for visitors in search of the sun.
October through to March is the monsoon season with spectacular tropical storms and balmy nights. Some of the more remote areas may be inaccessible at this time of the year due to rain.
Broome boasts a multicultural population, made up of many people who flocked to the shores of Roebuck Bay in the hope of making their fortunes from the pearling industry.
Broome’s Cable Beach is one of the most famous beaches in the world, and the pindan cliffs, stark white sands and turquoise waters of the Indian Ocean are part of this exotic town’s appeal.
Chinatown boasts an unusual style of Colonial/Asian archit-ecture, developed from the early days, boasting a wonderful array of pearling outlets and other speciality shops.
Broome is renowned for being a fishing person’s paradise, whether fishing from the jetty or at one of the spectacular tidal creeks. King tides play an important part with Broome’s anglers, tide charts are available from the Broome Visitor Centre.
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