Busselton Historical Society > Records

Invitation - Driving of a Pile in new Busselton Jetty

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1909

Subcollections

Busselton Jetty

Ephemera

Marine

Overview

Two separate pieces of paper with black and white photographs, and black text

Historical information

The historical "Driving of a Pile" was a major civic event held on November 15, 1909, to celebrate the construction of the new Railway (or "Skeleton") Jetty in Busselton. At the ceremony, the Mayor of Busselton, George William Barnard Jr, requested the Minister for Works, Frank Wilson, to officiate. The Mayor's daughter, Marjorie, pulled a ceremonial ribbon that released an iron weight to drive the first pile. Barnard’s Hall in Busselton served as the site for the official conversazione program. This extension ultimately allowed the Busselton Jetty to reach its full extended length and established the birthing head for steam trains to load and unload cargo

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-124-2023.98

Item type

Ephemera

Themes

Mining and Resources

Social History

Material

Paper

Width

250 mm

Height or length

200 mm

Inscriptions and markings

Item 1: Invitation to Mr & Mrs Mann to witness the Driving of a Pile in the New Jetty and then later at 8 p.m. in Barnard's Hall, at a Conversazione 15th November 1909

Item 2: Invitation to Mr & Mrs Prinsep to witness the Driving of a Pile in the New Jetty and then later at 8 p.m. in Barnard's Hall, at a Conversazione 15th November 1909

Contextual information

How Historical Pile Driving Worked: Prior to modern machinery, contractors built the jetty by skidding out two strong beams over the water to support a pile frame. A horse was then used to pull a heavy iron weight—known as a "monkey"—up through a series of pulleys and trips until it was high enough to drop onto the timber pile with enough force to drive it into the sand and limestone seabed.

Keywords

Busselton Jetty

Frank Wilson

N. J. Moore

G W Barnard

A R Bovell

Busselton Municipal Council

Prinsep

Mann

Place made

Busselton, Western Australia, Australia

Year