Paddleducks
Old Yahoo Group => Yahoo Messages => Topic started by: Paulrjordan on June 15, 2005, 02:41:40 AM
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Those interested in Australian ship research might find Jenny
William's "Ships and Passenger Lists" Website helpful. It's
essentially a geneology sight, but deals with the ships that early
immigrants arrived on and also contains a number of useful links.
http://www.standard.net.au/~jwilliams/ships.htm
Did you know?? the first steamship to reach Australia was the "Sophia
Jane" which reached there from England in either 1821 or 1831,
depending on who you are reading!
And the first paddler up the Murray? Here's some information provided
by the Powerhouse Museum.
"The Lady Augusta was a paddle vessel designed by Captain Francis
Cadell and built in Sydney by T.Chowne and Co at Pyrmont. She was
officially recognised as the first to travel from the mouth of the
Murray River to a point 240 km beyond Swan Hill. Captain Francis
Cadell was a deep sea sailor who had been working on the Australian
coastal run.
On hearing of the South Australian government's reward he had the Lady
Augusta built. The vessel was 32m long, with a 3.7m width, the holds
were 1.7m deep and it was powered by two 15 KW engines.
She was named Lady Augusta after the wife of the governor of South
Australia, Henry Fox Young. The vessel was rigged as a ketch for its
delivery voyage, leaving Sydney on 1 June for Melbourne from where she
departed on 27 July arriving at Port Elliot on 6 August.
On 16 August the Lady Augusta safely negotiated the dangerous bar
across the mouth of the Murray River and berthed in Goolwa.
Another navigator, William Randell, had already attempted to navigate
the Murray aboard the Mary Ann but with no success. He was unaware of
Cadell's enterprise and was taken by surprise when the Lady Augusta
charged past his crew up the river. This started a race between the
two boats with the Lady Augusta arriving in Swan Hill three hours
ahead of the Mary Ann on 17 September 1853. There, Cadell gathered a
cargo of wool and returned to Goolwa to claim the South Australian
government's prize of 2000 pounds for navigating the Murray River from
Goolwa.
Boy...2,000 British Pounds in 1853? THAT was a prize was worth
having?
Anyway..all good ideas for historically significant ship models.
PJ