Located at the mouth of the Yarra River where it flows into Port Phillip, Williamstown is a suburb to the south-west of Melbourne’s CBD. It was established as the city’s first seaport and has transformed in recent years from a run-down industrial area into a trendy maritime centre.
Most of Williamstown’s commercial services are clustered around Ferguson Street and Douglas Parade, with nearby Nelson Place where the town centre was originally located. It’s lined with charismatic historic buildings which have been converted into restaurants, cafes and art galleries. It fronts onto Commonwealth Reserve where the historic Gem Pier is found and boasts impressive views of Melbourne’s city skyline. It is home to the HMAS Castlemaine museum ship, as well as being the launching point for cruises along the Yarra River. Point Gellibrand Coastal Heritage Park dominates the south-east, with the old Fort Gellibrand military site found here, together with the Timeball Tower which once assisted ships in navigation and timekeeping. The Esplanade Public Park stretches west towards the Williamstown Botanic Gardens and Williamstown Beach which offers sheltered swimming waters. The Jawbone Conservation Reserve and Marine Sanctuary lies further afield, with its rock pools and seagrass beds providing a habitat for colourful sea stars, urchins and crabs, as well as migratory bird species.
Williamstown is well connected to Melbourne by train, with stations at Williamstown North, Williamstown Beach and Williamstown. Public buses also serve the suburb’s main thoroughfares, with the Bay Trail hugging the waterfront for the use of both walkers and cyclists.
The Yalukit-willam clan of the Kulin nation were the original inhabitants of what is now Williamstown, long before Europeans arrived to survey the area in 1803. It was originally named Port Harwood after one of the ship’s captains and later changed to Williamstown in honour of the English monarch, King William IV.