Port Melbourne, Victoria

Port Melbourne Melbourne, Victoria
The beach at Beacon Cove
Port Melbourne
Coordinates	37°49′26″S 144°54′40″E / 37.82389°S 144.91111°E / -37.82389; 144.91111Coordinates: 37°49′26″S 144°54′40″E / 37.82389°S 144.91111°E / -37.82389; 144.91111
Population	14,521 (2011 census)
• Density	1,497/km2 (3,877/sq mi)
Established	1860
Postcode(s)	3207
Area	9.7 km2 (3.7 sq mi)
Location	5 km (3 mi) from Melbourne
LGA(s)	City of Melbourne City of Port Phillip
State electorate(s)	Albert Park
Federal Division(s)	Melbourne Ports
Suburbs around Port Melbourne: Yarraville West Melbourne Docklands Newport Port Melbourne Southbank Hobsons Bay Hobsons Bay Albert Park

Port Melbourne is an inner suburb of Melbourne, Australia, 5 km south-west from Melbourne's Central Business District. It is split between the local government areas of Melbourne and Port Phillip. The area to the north of the West Gate Freeway is in the City of Melbourne. The area to the south is in the City of Port Phillip. At the 2011 Census, Port Melbourne had a population of 14,521.

The suburb is bordered by the shores of Hobsons Bay and the lower reaches of the Yarra River. Port Melbourne covers a large area, which includes the distinct localities of Fishermans Bend, Garden City and Beacon Cove.

Historically it was known as Sandridge and developed as the City's second port, linked to the nearby Melbourne CBD.

The formerly industrial Port Melbourne has been subject to intense urban renewal over the past decade. As a result, Port Melbourne is a diverse and historic area, featuring industrial and port areas along the Yarra, to open parklands, bayside beaches, exclusive apartments and Bay Street's restaurants and cafes. The suburb also forms a major transport link from east to west, home to one end of the West Gate Bridge.

The most prominent early resident of the area, now known as Port Melbourne, was Captain Wilbraham Frederick Evelyn Liardet, who arrived in 1839, and established a hotel, jetty, and mail service. Liardet later stated that before his arrival the surveyor William Wedge Darke and his family had camped on the beach in their two roomed, carpeted wooden caravan known as 'Darke's Ark'. Liardet credited Wedge with cutting the first track to the beach through the tea tree scrub and hoisting a barrel on a pole, on a high section of ground, to point the way back to the Melbourne settlement. From this signpost its first official name, 'Sandridge', was said to have originated. The area also became commonly known as 'Liardet's Beach' but Liardet himself was said to have preferred 'Brighton'. It became Port Melbourne in 1884.