Busselton Jetty Relics

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Overview

2 sanded and polished jarrah wood bricks that were made out of wood salvaged from the Busselton Jetty debris after Cyclone Alby and sold as souvenirs to raise funds for the Jetty rebuild.

Historical information

In 1839 Governor Hutt appointed "the place in Geographe Bay opposite the Settlement at The Vasse to be the legal place for the loading and unloading of goods". Construction of the jetty, which was originally known as the Vasse Jetty, commenced in 1864 after persistent pressure by settlers. Timber merchant Henry Yelverton was awarded the tender for construction and in 1865 the first section 176 metres of the jetty was opened. In 1875 an additional 143 metres was added to the original structure, as over 10 years' accumulation of drift sands had made the water too shallow for mooring. The jetty was continually extended until the 1960s when it reached its current length of 1,841 metres. Fires on the jetty were commonplace, with some attributed to fishermen carelessly disposing of burning cigarettes and lit matches or to sparks falling from the train's fire box.

Nowadays the Busselton Jetty is celebrated as the longest timber-piled jetty in the Southern Hemisphere at 1,841 metres and is managed by the Busselton Jetty Inc which is a not-for-profit community organisation.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-124-2024.134

Item type

Wood blocks

Themes

Social History

Material

Jarrah (Wood)

Width

3 in

Height or length

6 in

Depth

1.2000 in

Inscriptions and markings

One side of each black has gold embossing that has a crown over a pine tree in a circle on the left and the following wording on the right

BUSSELTON
JETTY
RELIC

On the back of one block the yellow paper label tells the following story

"BUSSELTON JETTY SOUVENIR

The Souvenir you have purchased is made of timber from the Busselton Jetty which was partly destroyed by Cyclone Alby on April 4, 1978. It is hoped this piece of the Jetty will remind you of the devastation that took place on that day.

The Jetty was commenced in 1865 after much pressure on the Government of the day from local settlers for a port for the Vasse (as Busselton was then known). From that day there have been constant additions until the Jetty’s fixed length reached 1 ¼ miles, one of the longest structures of its type in the Southern Hemisphere.

The Jetty was closed to shipping in 1972 and now provides a unique attraction for Busselton and its visitors.

The money you have given will help the people of Busselton undertake a restoration programme to once again make the Jetty a safe and serviceable structure which will provide recreation and enjoyment to thousands of Western Australians.”

On the back of second block the cream paper label tells the following story

"AUTHENTIC JETTY SOUVENIR

The Souvenir you have purchased is made of timber from the Busselton Jetty which was partly destroyed by Cyclone Alby on April 4, 1978. This piece of the jetty will remind you of the devastation that took place on that day.

Contextual Information

After Cyclone Alby severely damaged the Busselton Jetty, on April 4th 1978, the State Government decided that the structure should be removed as it had not been used by shipping since 1972. A dedicated group of locals formed a committee to raise funds to Save the Jetty. One of the fundraising efforts was Souvenirs made from timber from the Jetty ruins which were sold for $2 each and these made their way into homes across the state and perhaps the nation.

Keywords

Busselton Jetty

Busselton Historical Society

Organisation Details
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