A $3000 scholarship encouraging original research into Fremantle’s history has opened for applications, continuing the legacy of two of the city’s most influential heritage advocates.

The Ron and Dianne Davidson Scholarship is offered by the Fremantle History Society to support new research into the port city’s rich past and was funded through the Fremantle Ports Community Investment program.

Named after founding FHS members Ron and Dianne Davidson, the scholarship was established in 2018 to “encourage new, high quality research which will contribute to the understanding of the history and heritage of Fremantle and encourages new audiences to this endeavour”.

• Ron and Dianne Davidson.

The award is open to community members as well as entry-level, mid-career and experienced history and heritage researchers.

Although not specifically focused on maritime history, the society says almost every aspect of Fremantle’s past is shaped by its role as one of the world’s best-preserved 19th-century port cities and its continuing function as a working port.

Applications are assessed by a panel of history and heritage experts, with researchers required to submit a proposal, curriculum vitae and writing sample. Projects will be judged on their originality, connection to Fremantle, ability to be completed within the required timeframe, creativity and confirmation the work has not been published elsewhere.

A journalist, author, academic and founding member of both the Fremantle Society and the Fremantle History Society, Mr Davidson played a pivotal role in the campaigns to protect Fremantle’s built heritage during the development battles of the 1970s.

He was widely regarded as one of the city’s foremost storytellers and historians, documenting Fremantle’s people and places through books including Fremantle Impressions and Divided Kingdom, while helping build the Fremantle History Society into one of the city’s leading heritage organisations.

The society says the scholarship reflects its aim of increasing understanding of and access to Fremantle’s past, particularly its cultural diversity, in ways that strengthen community understanding and resilience.

Research proposals close on October 5. The successful applicant will be notified by October 22, with the public announcement to be made on Studies Day on November 1.