Port Victoria Maritime Museum
Encyclopedia
Port Victoria Maritime Museum is a maritime museum
on Yorke Peninsula
, which is housed in the original general cargo shed which was brought out from England
in kit form in 1877. It was erected at the landward end of the jetty. The jetty took only seven months to build and was completed in January 1878.
Household goods for the early settlers in the town and surrounding farmlands were brought by steamers from Port Adelaide
and stored in the cargo shed until the settlers’ homes were completed.
The first overseas sailing ship to come to Port Victoria, South Australia
was the Cardigan Castle. It loaded 1800 tons of bagged grain and sailed to Europe in February 1879. By 1883 twenty three sailing ships (windjammer
s) had anchored in the bay between Wardang Island
and the mainland, some visiting more than once. This was the beginning of the bagged grain trade between the Spencer Gulf ports and the markets of Europe.
The heart and soul of the town was the grain trade. Farmers, grain agents, lumpers (the men who handled the bagged grain) and their families were vital to this. From November onwards the town bustled with activity as the grain was harvested and brought into the town. The bags of grain were built into huge stacks around the town to await the arrival of the sailing ships. When the ships arrived the bags were taken down the jetty and loaded onto small ketches and schooners which took the grain to the large ships at anchor in the bay. The present day museum has photographs, exhibits and DVD presentations highlighting these busy times.
Many of the sailing ships which came to Port Victoria from the late 1920s sailed under the flag of Finland
. By far the largest fleet of ships was owned by Gustaf Erikson
whose home port was Mariehamn
on the island of Aland in Finland
. With so many of his ships regularly visiting Port Victoria the town became known to them as the Mariehamn
of the South. In 1934 there were only 26 commercial sailing ships left in the world and 17 of them came to Port Victoria during that year.
The visits of these magnificent sailing ships and the life at sea of the crews is also well documented in the present day museum. The journey from the port to Europe was eastwards in the Roaring Forties
and Furious Fifties via Cape Horn
. Voyages took anything between the record breaking 83 days by the Parma in 1933 to over 5 months – depending on the ship, weather conditions and the skills of the captains and crews.
The sailors who rounded Cape Horn
were known as Cape Horners
. Cape Horner Associations were set up in many countries around the world. The museum has signage and displays paying tribute to the Cape Horners and the Australian Cape Horners in particular.
The era of the sailing ships finally came to an end in 1949 when the Pamir and Passat made the final commercial sailing voyage in the world by ships without auxiliary engines.
The museum also is famous for its displays of shipwreck artifacts from around Wardang Island. The Wardang Island Maritime Heritage Trail exists on the sites of eight of the shipwrecks.
There is also a First Encounters Display telling the story of the local Narungga
aboriginal people and their culture, the charting of the Spencer Gulf
by Matthew Flinders
and Nicholas Baudin, as well as the setting up of the large sheep pastoral leases on the Yorke Peninsula
in the nineteenth century .
Maritime museum
A maritime museum is a museum specializing in the display of objects relating to ships and travel on large bodies of water...
on Yorke Peninsula
Yorke Peninsula
The Yorke Peninsula is a peninsula located north-west and west of Adelaide in South Australia, Australia, between Spencer Gulf on the west and Gulf St Vincent on the east. It has geographic coordinates of...
, which is housed in the original general cargo shed which was brought out from England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in kit form in 1877. It was erected at the landward end of the jetty. The jetty took only seven months to build and was completed in January 1878.
Household goods for the early settlers in the town and surrounding farmlands were brought by steamers from Port Adelaide
Port Adelaide
Port Adelaide is a suburb of Adelaide lying about 14 kilometres northwest of the City of Adelaide. It lies within the City of Port Adelaide Enfield and is the main port for the city of Adelaide...
and stored in the cargo shed until the settlers’ homes were completed.
The first overseas sailing ship to come to Port Victoria, South Australia
Port Victoria, South Australia
Port Victoria is a town on the Spencer Gulf coast of southern Yorke Peninsula. At the 2006 census, Port Victoria had a population of 345.Like many other coastal towns on the peninsula, it has a jetty and used to be a thriving port for the export of grain to England. Its anchorage is sheltered from...
was the Cardigan Castle. It loaded 1800 tons of bagged grain and sailed to Europe in February 1879. By 1883 twenty three sailing ships (windjammer
Windjammer
A windjammer is the ultimate type of large sailing ship with an iron or for the most part steel hull, built to carry cargo in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century...
s) had anchored in the bay between Wardang Island
Wardang Island
Wardang Island, also known as Wauraltee Island, is a low-lying 20 km2 island in the Spencer Gulf close to the western coast of the Yorke Peninsula, South Australia. It acts as a natural breakwater, protecting the former grain port of Port Victoria and providing a sheltered anchorage. ...
and the mainland, some visiting more than once. This was the beginning of the bagged grain trade between the Spencer Gulf ports and the markets of Europe.
The heart and soul of the town was the grain trade. Farmers, grain agents, lumpers (the men who handled the bagged grain) and their families were vital to this. From November onwards the town bustled with activity as the grain was harvested and brought into the town. The bags of grain were built into huge stacks around the town to await the arrival of the sailing ships. When the ships arrived the bags were taken down the jetty and loaded onto small ketches and schooners which took the grain to the large ships at anchor in the bay. The present day museum has photographs, exhibits and DVD presentations highlighting these busy times.
Many of the sailing ships which came to Port Victoria from the late 1920s sailed under the flag of Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
. By far the largest fleet of ships was owned by Gustaf Erikson
Gustaf Erikson
Gustaf Adolf Mauritz Erikson was a ship-owner from Mariehamn, in the Åland islands, famous for the fleet of windjammers he operated to the end of his life, mainly on the grain trade from Australia to Europe....
whose home port was Mariehamn
Mariehamn
Mariehamn is the capital of Åland, an autonomous territory under Finnish sovereignty. Mariehamn is the seat of the Government and Parliament of Åland, and 40% of the population of Åland live in the city...
on the island of Aland in Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
. With so many of his ships regularly visiting Port Victoria the town became known to them as the Mariehamn
Mariehamn
Mariehamn is the capital of Åland, an autonomous territory under Finnish sovereignty. Mariehamn is the seat of the Government and Parliament of Åland, and 40% of the population of Åland live in the city...
of the South. In 1934 there were only 26 commercial sailing ships left in the world and 17 of them came to Port Victoria during that year.
The visits of these magnificent sailing ships and the life at sea of the crews is also well documented in the present day museum. The journey from the port to Europe was eastwards in the Roaring Forties
Roaring Forties
The Roaring Forties is the name given to strong westerly winds found in the Southern Hemisphere, generally between the latitudes of 40 and 49 degrees. Air displaced from the Equator towards the South Pole, which travels close to the surface between the latitudes of 30 and 60 degrees south, combines...
and Furious Fifties via Cape Horn
Cape Horn
Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...
. Voyages took anything between the record breaking 83 days by the Parma in 1933 to over 5 months – depending on the ship, weather conditions and the skills of the captains and crews.
The sailors who rounded Cape Horn
Cape Horn
Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...
were known as Cape Horners
Cape Horner
Cape Horner is a term that denotes a captain of a sailing ship which has sailed around Cape Horn and is a member of the Association Amicale Internationale des Capitaines au Long-Cours-Cap Horniers....
. Cape Horner Associations were set up in many countries around the world. The museum has signage and displays paying tribute to the Cape Horners and the Australian Cape Horners in particular.
The era of the sailing ships finally came to an end in 1949 when the Pamir and Passat made the final commercial sailing voyage in the world by ships without auxiliary engines.
The museum also is famous for its displays of shipwreck artifacts from around Wardang Island. The Wardang Island Maritime Heritage Trail exists on the sites of eight of the shipwrecks.
There is also a First Encounters Display telling the story of the local Narungga
Narungga
The Narungga are a group of Indigenous Australians whose traditional lands are located on Yorke Peninsula, South Australia. The boundary of their traditional lands runs roughly between the towns of Port Broughton and Port Wakefield....
aboriginal people and their culture, the charting of the Spencer Gulf
Spencer Gulf
The Spencer Gulf is the westernmost of two large inlets on the southern coast of Australia, in the state of South Australia, facing the Great Australian Bight. The Gulf is 322 km long and 129 km wide at its mouth. The western shore of the Gulf is the Eyre Peninsula, while the eastern side is the...
by Matthew Flinders
Matthew Flinders
Captain Matthew Flinders RN was one of the most successful navigators and cartographers of his age. In a career that spanned just over twenty years, he sailed with Captain William Bligh, circumnavigated Australia and encouraged the use of that name for the continent, which had previously been...
and Nicholas Baudin, as well as the setting up of the large sheep pastoral leases on the Yorke Peninsula
Yorke Peninsula
The Yorke Peninsula is a peninsula located north-west and west of Adelaide in South Australia, Australia, between Spencer Gulf on the west and Gulf St Vincent on the east. It has geographic coordinates of...
in the nineteenth century .
External links
- Yorke Peninsula website
- Yorke Peninsula: Port Victoria
- Sydney Morning Herald article about Port Victoria mentioning the Maritime Museum
- Maritime Heritage in South Australia
- Wardang Island Maritime Heritage Trail
- International Association of Cape Horners
- Information about Wardang Island and the Narungga aboriginals