Bayswater is a suburb 6 kilometres (4 mi) north-east of the central business district (CBD) of Perth, the capital of Western Australia.

[5]: 24–26  The oldest remaining piece of physical evidence of European settlement in the area is an olive tree on Slade Street, supposedly planted in the 1840s and used as a place for religious services.

[5]: 32  In July 1885, Rogers, along with his associate Feinberg, placed the land, now named the Bayswater Estate, on the property market again, this time subdivided into 2 ha (5-acre) lots.

As a result, Rogers and Feinberg sued The West Australian for defamation, alleging it had caused them a financial loss because of the poorly attended auctions.

The Bayswater Road Board was gazetted on 5 March 1897, becoming one of several new local government areas established in the 1890s along the railway.

After lobbying by the Western Australian Turf Club, the branch line was extended across the river to the Perth Race Course in 1897.

[5]: 53  Dairies, slaughterhouses and market gardens were interspersed between the houses, and more brickyards and an ironworks were established in the eastern part of Bayswater.

[4][5]: 58  The West Australian noted in March 1909 that "the days of the 'humpy' (temporary shelter) have passed away" and "very few houses in the town are now without a metalled road to connect them with the railway station".

Unusable for much else because of seasonal flooding and wetlands not being valued, the aim was to fill in any low-lying parts along the river and cover the area with grass to create a reserve.

[5]: 280  The name is a shortening of Merv Toms, who was chairman of the road board in the 1950s, and a local member of parliament who played a significant role in managing the Mertome Village project.

The village signifies the changing role of local government in Australia, from building roads to providing social services.

[21]: 311 [22] Tonkin Highway was extended southwards to connect over the river in 1988, creating a new interchange at Guildford Road and fully severing the two sides of Bayswater.

[27] DevelopmentWA said the purpose of the redevelopment area was to "maximise development opportunities arising from the station upgrades and help create a well-designed and connected community hub."

[34] In July 2021, draft design guidelines for the Bayswater section of the Metronet East Redevelopment Area were released to public comment.

Responses from the residents indicated that 54% were opposed to the renaming for various reasons, including criticism of the name, worries that property values would decrease and the association of Meltham with anti-social behaviour.

This resulted in a backlash from some residents and the community group Future Bayswater, who say that it may hamper development and protect buildings with little-to-no heritage value.

[42] Bayswater consists predominantly of low-density single-family detached homes, zoned as "urban" in the Metropolitan Region Scheme.

There is an industrial area in the eastern parts of the suburb and a small town centre around King William Street and Whatley Crescent.

The dunes form low-lying hills made of heavily leached white to grey sands, which are poor at retaining nutrients.

Businesses along Guildford Road include Muzz Buzz, Red Rooster, a Mazda dealer and a car rental.

Businesses and services in the industrial area in Bayswater's east include a Bunnings Warehouse and the Baywaste Transfer Station, run by Cleanaway.

Starting from the west, the 16.4-hectare (41-acre) Baigup Wetlands are one of the last remaining areas of natural bushland along the Swan River's estuary and an important habitat for birds.

Riverside Gardens is a popular park for dogs and picnics, and has a playground, boat ramp, café and a large open grassed area.

[60][61] Annual events held here include the Autumn River Festival and the finish line of the Avon Descent, both of which involve food stalls and entertainment.

[68] In the suburb's town centre, there is Bert Wright Park, which hosts the Bayswater Growers' Market every Saturday,[69][70] and Halliday Park, which is home to the Bayswater Lacrosse Club and AIM Over 50 Archery Club,[71] and has a war memorial where an annual Anzac Day dawn service is held.

Beechboro Road South connects the town centre and the industrial area to Broun Avenue, north of Bayswater.

[115] In addition, the Ellenbrook line branches off east of Bayswater station and enters the median of Tonkin Highway.

[116] It officially opened on the 8th of December, 2024, creating a public transport connection between Bayswater and Perth's outer north-eastern suburbs.

The railway line has a Principal Shared Path (PSP) along it, which leads to the Perth CBD to the west and Midland to the east.

[123] In 2015, Leake and May Streets were selected to become a "bike boulevard", which meant slowing the speed limit to 30 km/h (19 mph) and installing traffic calming measures.