Perth Town Hall and Perth Foundation Plaque, Perth

The Perth Town Hall is the only town hall in Australia built by convicts. Designed by Richard Roach Jewell and James Manning in the Victorian Free Gothic style, the hall, in fact, was built by both convicts and free men, between 1867 and 1870. Its decorations contain a number of convict motifs such as the windows presented in the shape of a broad arrow and decorations in the shape of a hangman's rope.

The foundation stone for Perth Town Hall was laid on 24 May 1867, by Governor Hampton, in a ceremony involving a lot of pomp and parade. Despite the torrential downpours occurred that day, the ceremony went on anyway with an official procession from Government House and a mock battle performed by the Volunteer Regiments, Enrolled Forces of Pensioners, and the WA Country Regiment.

The city of Perth itself was founded by Captain James Stirling in 1829. Its official foundation ceremony took place on 12 August 1829 with the chopping down of a tree by Mrs. Helen Dance, the only woman in the party. This event is commemorated by a plaque set in the footpath of Barrack Street, in front of the Town Hall, to mark its approximate location.

For most of the 20th century, the building's ground floor had housed various businesses, including a pharmacy, bank, lunch bar and different shops; the public lavatories accessible from Barrack Street were the only ones available in the area. All these businesses and the attendant structures were removed prior to the renovation of the hall in the early 2000s.

For many years, Perth Town Hall was the most prominent civic building within the city. Today, this grand edifice is still fit to charm many modern onlookers.