Memorial Trail

The memorial is made up of a chronical list of wrecks and an inscription dedicating the memorial to all seamen, passengers and rescuers who lost their life on the Victorian western coastline.

There have been more ships wrecked along the coastline here than on any other coastal area of Australia.

The installation, including a ship's anchor, was dedicated in 1991.

A small memorial plaque was unveiled in 2022 by the daughters of Salvador Antunes, Marian Rybak and Marek Konash who perished in Cyclone Val off Western Samoa when their vessel, the Arga-J was destroyed in 1991. The three men had sold their homes to purchase a small fishing vessel and pursue their dreams. They left Fremantle on a cold spring morning in October and never returned. The plaque reads “Their thirst for life and adventure lives on within us.”

The stone monument was donated by Ben Sutherland in memory of his father, and it commemorates fishers from Beachport who have not come home. The plaque inscription is by the National Trust of South Australia.

The stone monument was dedicated in 2002 to commemorate seafarers, fishers and lightkeepers lost in or from the Cape Jaffa-Kingston area.

The memorial is a stone monument with an anchor in front of it, supported by the Kingston Professional Fishermans Association, Kingston District Council and History Trust of SA.

The inscription at the rear of the monument names the fishers (and others) who were lost, their boats and dates.

Located near the foreshore at Carpenters Rocks, there is a wall commemorating 19 fishermen who lost their lives at sea. Each name is written on an individual plaque.

The memorial was dedicated in 2021 and overlooks Bucks Bay.

We hold you close within our hearts and there you shall remain
to walk with us throughout our lives until we meet again.

The Cultured Pearl Memorial depicts three key people involved in the Kuri Bay pearl industry, T Kuribayashi, Keith Dureau and H Iwaki. Mr.Tokuichi Kuribayashi was originally from Nippon Pearl Company, Tokyo, while Mr. Hiroshi Iwaki and Keith Francis Dureau were from Pearl Prop. Ltd.

The memorial also contains tribute plaques to all those who sailed the sea and dived for pearl, as well as a plaque paying tribute to indigenous pearl divers. The 'golden age' of pearling was during the years before World War One, when 403 luggers operated out of Broome. The recovery after the war was slow and by the 1930s there were no white pearlfishers and the industry had been effectively taken over by Japanese crews.

By 1939 there were only 50 luggers operating in the waters around Broome and the pearl industry was severely depressed. After the Second World War, the pearl industry started up again but this time it was with cultured pearls with the process being learnt from Kokichi Mikimoto.

By 1956 a cultured pearl consortium had been established and by the 1980s it was earning over $50 million per annum for Broome.

The plaque in the Darwin Civic Centre was dedicated by Queen Elizabeth ll in 1977. It commemorates the 49 lives lost onshore and the 13 trawler fishers lost at sea during Cyclone Tracy.

This memorial made from a cathedral window was dedicated in 1974, called the Dalle de Verre window. It was funded by Gollin Kyokuyo joint fishing company working out of Darwin at the time.

The company lost seven of their trawler fishers from three of their boats.

The Memorial Wall remembers those who have committed their bodies to the sea.

The monument, erected by the St. John Ambulance Association and relatives, commemorates crayfisherman and community member, Ernie Crocos (45) who died in 1971 of a sudden heart attack. He was a respected member of the community, involved in search and rescue efforts for others lost at sea.

The Dianne sank off the Town of 1770 in October 2017. Her crew was diving for beche-de-mer (trepang/sea cucumber} when she sank in wild seas. Six of the seven crew members drowned and four of those were never recovered.

Dedicated to all those whose souls remain one with the sea including the crew of the FV Dianne.

The plaque acknowledges response groups and the caring local people.

The memorial plaque was installed by community members and council funding as a tribute to those lost at sea south of Tasmania.

People living in the Far South have a long heritage of working on or near the water, and unfortunately some of them have been lost. This memorial which came about because of community action, is as great way for local families to honour those who have been lost or selected this as their final resting place.

The memorial garden includes the Shiralee Memorial Wall which was built to commemorate all fishers who have set out to sea from Eden and not returned. The wall was commenced after the loss of the fishing trawler Shiralee in 1978.

The Harbour Above

The lament of the wind and surging waves
Sing nature's hymn over sailors' graves
There is no stone or cross, or wreath
To mark at sea where sailors sleep.

This cresting wall of gabo granite
with cross of white up on its summit
Remembers those who can no longer say,
Today we'll anchor in Twofold Bay.

Though the tide of time ebbs grief away,
and those who mourn pass on life's way,
This memorial stands for generations to see
How well were loved those lost at sea.

As the setting sun shines on the cross,
Say a prayer for fishermen this town has lost.
They sailed forth upon the sea they loved
And now rest at anchor tin the harbour above.

- P. Dangerfield.

A circular garden contains plaques identifying fishers who were lost in pursuit of their livelihood. The plaques include one 22-year-old whaler who was lost in Twofold Bay in 1881; the only whaler lost from that port in a century of whaling.

Also of note is a plaque showing compass points that is dedicated to fishers who were lost off Eden. This plaque was added in 1996.

The memorial at Urangan takes the form of a statue of St Peter. It is dedicated to fishers of the Fraser Coast who have not come home. It was dedicated in 2013, funded by local businesses.

There are plaques on a plinth under the statue. One is for those who died at sea, and another is for those who were lost without a trace. Each shows a list of names.

The memorial anchor belongs to the Geltwood, an iron barque that sank on her maiden voyage from England with no survivors.

The Southern Ocean has many moods and can be dangerous and unforgiving. The monument is dedicated to those people who have sadly had their lives taken by the sea, including local amateur and professional fishers.

A park in Denham named after George Wear, a popular fishing identity who lived and worked from his small motorboat Telstar in Shark Bay during the 1960’s to late 1970’s. Born in Denham on 21 February 1916, George served in the Australian Army during World War II and saw action in New Guinea. He was discharged from military service in January 1946.

After the war, he worked briefly at BHP Yampi Sound, North Kalgoorlie Mines and then the Geraldton ice works before returning to Shark Bay in the early 50’s where he fished briefly on the Vigilant, before buying the Telstar. George was highly regarded for his friendly character and was often seen fishing the waters of Dirk Hartog Island. He was a descendant of George Turner Wear, from Northumberland England, who arrived in Shark Bay in 1882 and worked on several pearling boats, including the Clodian and Spectator.

George loved the Bay and its people and was always friendly and helpful to everyone he came in contact with. George died in tragic circumstances when he fell overboard and drowned after loading supplies on to his boat Telstar on February 20, 1983.

A black granite tablet was dedicated at the Christ Church Cathedral in 1975 to the fishers who died on the trawlers of the Gollin Kyukuyo Fishing Company during Cyclone Tracy.

The Company was a joint fishing venture operating out of Darwin. They lost seven of their fishers from three steel trawlers in the harbour.

The inscription on the stone names the boats and the fishers who were lost.

A stone obelisk commemorates the Japanese pearlers who were drowned in a cyclone.

The Japanese pearl divers were mostly from the Taiji which is a small town in the prefecture of Wakayama. Their diving ritual would often begin by downing a bottle of port, before donning their cumbersome, vulcanised canvas suits and massive bronze helmets, after which they would be lowered over the lugger`s side to spend hours underwater. On the bottom they struggled about in lead-weighted boots, often almost horizontal as they peered through inch-thick faceplates into murky waters, frantically scooping oysters into bags because divers were paid by the amount of shell they collected.

The early luggers were sail-powered and only catered for one diver`s apparatus, but by the 1930s, most vessels were motorised and mechanical air pumps allowed two divers per boat. The death toll in the early pearl industry was horrific, from the `bends`, cyclones and sharks. Four cyclones caught the pearling fleet at sea between 1908 and 1935. The death toll for these is only approximate, but it is known that more than 100 boats and nearly 300 men perished.

The unveiling of a monument to the memory of those Japanese who lost their lives in the two blows of 1908 was made an interesting ceremony at the Broome cemetery, when some 600 people attended to do honour to the dead. The road leading to the Japanese portion of the cemetery was thronged with pedestrians, and others in vehicles and on horseback, and by the time proceeding’s commenced the surroundings were thronged with all classes of the community.

The monument was subscribed to and erected entirely by the Japanese residents of Broome.Engraved on the front of the monument were the words (in Japanese), “To the memory of,” and then followed the names of those who lost their lives. Western Mail (Perth), 20th February 1909.

Memorial commemorates John Battersby (19) who died while pearl diving in 1983. John was from Newcastle and disappeared while diving off the Roebuck Pearl, which was drift fishing for pearl near Eighty Mile Beach. Six weeks later remnants of his diving gear were found at Lagrange Bay. The coronial inquest into his death determined it to be accidental.

Japanese pearl diver Kato Osamu who died in August 1955 from the bends in the Arafura Sea. Kato died in August 1955 and was buried by his sea-faring friends beneath a Kakadu Plum tree on South Goulburn Island.

Two years later, the Japanese Society of Darwin built a gravestone for the 26-year-old, inscribing his name, hometown and date of death on the humble concrete construction.

Kato's grave has been permanently declared as a Heritage Place. The declaration means the grave will be protected by the Northern Territory Heritage Act 2011. The declaration was supported by traditional owners from the nearby Warruwi community through the Yagbani Aboriginal Corporation; the Northern Land Council; and the Australian Japanese Australian Association of the NT.

“Although he lies alone, the Warruwi community has developed a sense of guardianship over the grave and was keen to have the site protected.”

Stone walls at Currie commemorate fishers and others who lost their lives at sea around King Island. Included are non-fishing lives and those who have chosen the waters at King Island for their final resting place.

The walls also recognise members of the King Island Lions Club for their efforts to "make King Island a better place for all".

Their bodies were laid to rest, but their reputation
will live forever.
- Sirach 44.14

Monument to the crew members of the fishing trawlers Lady Pamela and Harmony who were lost at sea during Cyclone Bobby, which crossed the coast just east of Onslow in February 1995. Seven lives were lost when the fishing trawlers were sunk off the coast from Onslow.

An intensive investigation was conducted into the sinking of the vessels and the deaths of their crews, which found that the vessels had put to sea believing the area they were heading for would be safe.

Monument to the crew members of the fishing trawlers Lady Pamela and Harmony, which were lost at sea during Cyclone Bobby, when it crossed the coast just east of Onslow in February 1995. Seven lives were lost when the fishing trawlers were sunk off the coast from Onslow.

An intensive investigation was conducted into the sinking of the vessels and the deaths of their crews, which found that the vessels had put to sea believing the area they were heading for would be safe.

Leo Cummings's family were pioneers of the Sheringa district. Leo drowned when the crayboat Wangaree wrecked on the cliffs near Kiana on 29 June 1959. The crew of Wangaree was pulling her pots at Eagles Nest approximately 200 yards offshore when a float line seized the propellor shaft. The boat was pushed onto rocks at the base of the cliff. The crew abandoned the boat. Leo disappeared before he could be rescued. He was 29 years of age.

Memorial dedicated by the Kampe Family to Leo Kampe, who drowned off the coast of Cervantes in December 1975.

The rock memorial is located on a lookout with a plaque which commemorates lives lost at sea since 1870 when Lakes Entrance became a commercial fishing port.

The memorial was installed by the Rotary Club of Lakes Entrance and dedicated in 1994.

This lighthouse sculpture was created by Aubrey Panizza and sponsored by the Cervantes Country Women`s Association to honour and pay tribute to the many lives lost and the ships that have been wrecked off the coast of Cervantes.

The front inscription is written by Mariee Hesford and reads:

To the men who sailed the tall ships
To the men who worked the small ships
They charted the seas
They mapped out the land
Some reaped her rich bounties
Some sadly ran aground
To those men and ships
Who never made it home
We have erected this lighthouse and penned this poem

Plaque commissioned by the Cervantes Historical Society, commemorating the loss of the Mary off the coast of Cervantes in 1946. The Mary was being towed to Fremantle by the Lapwing through the reefs, but was hit by a large wave and took on water, before being hit by a second wave causing her to roll, throwing her six crew into the water.

The Skipper, Luigi Pittorini (47), and five of his crew were drowned. The crewmen were Domenico Cappelluti (53), Giovanni Germinario (43), Silvio Marchese (24), Antonio Marino (31) and Mauro Caputo (21). The shipwright, Len Back, was the only one to survive after being rescued by the Lapwing. The crew were wearing heavy sea overalls and boots and it is believed these may have been responsible for the heavy loss of life. No trace was found of the men, or the Mary, which sank in 40 feet of water.

A plaque commemorating five of the six crew members who were lost with the Milford Crouch on 27 October 1959. No trace of the trading schooner or the crew have been found. Brian Hickman (19) was the only survivor. The plaque was dedicated on 21 September 2001.

The sculptured memorial is in a park with a themed playground. It was donated by the Independent Trawler Association Inc. and unveiled in 2008. The stone base holds plaques naming fishers lost off the Sunshine Coast, with the words The sea calls us home.

The Fisherman's Prayer

I pray that I may live to fish
For another shining day.
But when my final cast is made,
I then most humbly pray:
When nestled in your landing net
And peacefully asleep
You'll smile at me and judge
That I am good enough to keep.

- a stylised version of the poem by Winfred Ernest Garrison

Nerita was a fishing boat lost in June 1939. She left Brisbane for a day of snapper fishing with 11 men and a boy aboard. The only sign of the vessel was an upturned dinghy near Cape Moreton. Nerita was lost and there has been no trace of the 12 fishermen. Commemoration plaques by public donations were installed at the Ipswich showground gates on 12 May 1940.

A Memorial erected at the site above where the Nor 6 crashed into the cliffs. Andy de Petra, a Nor West Whaling fisherman (the company that owned the trawler), Paul & Pam Dickenson and Hugh Edwards were responsible for the memorial that stands along the top of the cliffs just south of Steep Point. The Memorial states:

On April 25, 1963, the brand-new prawn trawler, Nor 6, crashed on the rocks below this spot at 5.30am in the early morning darkness. She was immediately overwhelmed by the surf and rolled over and sank in less than a minute. Her crew, Barry Allen, Ron Poole and Tony Romonostro were all drowned in the accident. Her skipper, Jack Drinan, aged 38, had been off-watch and was flung clear by the first wave. He climbed into the trawler’s brine tank, or icebox, which had floated clear on the backwash from the waves.

At the time, the Admiralty Chart of the area was incomplete. It dated back to sailing ship days when HMS Herald made a survey of Shark Bay in 1858. In 1963, the chart showed only a dotted line along this section of cliffs, indenting considerably to the east. Other causes were the overhead riding light reflecting on the foredeck and back onto the windscreen, obscuring the helmsman’s view into the night.

If the Nor 6 had been half an hour later in her departure, she would have been off this point in the daylight and the cliffs would have been observed in time. A massive sea and air search over several days failed to find any trace of survivors. By the time an aircraft finally sighted the wreck, Jack Drinan and the icebox, had drifted far out to sea. Police divers swam down to the wreck, but could find no sign of the crew and it was presumed that all had drowned. Meantime, Drinan was making a remarkable voyage. His raft was blown on easterly winds. He broke off a metal fitting and carved a hole in the icebox to gain access. Then he survived on the crew’s food in the icebox and the freshwater from the melting ice. Eventually the wind changed, and after 14 days adrift reduced to drinking seawater in the end, he was blown back to the coast close to the spot where his journey had begun.

He had carved a surf ski and a paddle from the icebox lid for when he got close to land. He managed to launch it and paddle into South Passage around Monkey Rock. While crossing the passage to Dirt Hartog Island, he was picked up by the fishing boat Sonoma, and the news of his survival was radioed to the world. In Carnarvon, the destination of the Nor 6, he was greeted by his wife, Jean, family and friends, who for a fortnight had believed he had drowned. Now he was welcomed as a man back from the dead. He continued his sea-going career and died of cancer in Perth aged 61 in 1986. Some years after the Nor 6 tragedy his brine tank, covered in barnacles, washed up in South Passage, returned by the sea.

The Cyclone Mahina memorial commemorates pearlers lost in Bathurst Bay on 4 March 1899. From over 100 luggers caught in the cyclone, 307 crew members were lost when they were caught in the storm surge.

Over 100 First Nations People were lost in the same event. They were rescuing drowning pearlers when the back surge swept them out t sea and they were drowned.

Cyclone Mahina produced the biggest storm surge known in the southern hemisphere. It was the most intense cyclone yet recorded for the area.

This monument is a 4.3 metre lighthouse which was erected with cooperation between the Ceduna Council, Thevenard Ratepayers Group and Ceduna Aboriginal Art and Crafts Centre in 2017.

The lighthouse has a mosaic pattern at its midsection and stands on a brick base.

The Port Denison Obelisk, forming the Fishermen’s Memorial and Lookout, is prominently situated at Point Leander on top of a sand hill and has a commanding view of Arurine Bay.

It is of solid stone construction, standing on a stone base about three metres square. The obelisk is about 1.8 metres square at its base and about four metres high. The top section is pyramidal. It has historical significance for its association with the early development of sea transport at Port Denison and is a rare historical component dating from the early days of the settlement at the Irwin River (c.1860s). The site is highly valued by the local community who consider it to be an important landmark, with its high vantage point and views of Port Denison and the coastline, and a popular tourist destination.

The ruins of the second obelisk, which was demolished 1977-79 and is situated approximately one kilometre from the first, is associated with the original Port Denison and Old Irwin Jetty. Michael G. Kailis unveiled the fisherman’s memorial plaque in 1979, paying respect to several deceased fishermen lost at sea between 1916 and 1977. They include; Albert and Theodore Money, Charles Swanson, Edward Joseph Foster, William Roser, Robert Allan, Maxwell Conrad Bussenschutt, Malcolm Donald Zimmerman, Robert Green and Neville Graeme Hynes.

The three-sided black marble obelisk sits on two steps, thanks to the South Australian Professional Fishermen's Memorial. The monument was dedicated in 1998.

The monument is located at the wharf in front of the Australian Maritime and Fisheries Academy. It honours professional fishermen who lost their lives at sea, listing them on the sides of the obelisk.

A plaque held on a rock is dedicated to eighteen fishers from Port Fairy who lost their lives at sea. The monument was sponsored by the Lions Club of Point Fairy. It was dedicated in 1985.

The sea never changes, and its works, for all the talk of men, are wrapped in mystery.
- Joseph Conrad.

The memorial is located on the foreshore of Port Hughes overlooking Spencer Gulf. It was made possible by the support of many community members and businesses.

The memorial commemorates those who went to sea from Port Hughes, Simms Cove and Moonta Bay and did not return, and those who lived locally and died at sea elsewhere.

The memorials for individual fishers have interactive plaques used with a smartphone readable QR code which provide direct links to information on each person.

This monument is built from calca granite from the Eyre Peninsula. It speaks to the anguish of those left behind. The front represents those looking out to the harbour entrance waiting for their loved ones to return from the sea. the side facing the land shows the faces of women morning the loss of their loved ones. Scattered stones surrounding the sculpture have individual names of 50 fishers who have not returned home.

The installation was commissioned by the Port Lincoln Fishing Industry and the Port Lincoln City Council.

The memorial wall overlooks Portland Bay and commemorates fishers who were lost at sea off the Portland coast. The wall was dedicated in 1993.

Along the walls are plaques commemorating the dead and lost, including a plaque for the Portland whaleboat crew who died attempting a rescue from the wreck of Julia in 1863.

The plaque in the cathedral on Thursday Island commemorates the pearling crew members who died in Cyclone Mahina, many of whom came from Thursday Island.

More than 300 pearlers drowned in the 14.6 metre storm surge from over 100 luggers in Bathurst Bay.

A memorial for the lost crew from the 13 metre fishing trawler Returner that sank off the Pilbara coast, 20 kilometres from Karratha on 11 July 2015 was unveiled in June 2016. Geraldton local Chad Fairley and Mason Carter from Kalbarri lost their lives when the vessel went down. Mason's younger brother, Jesse, stepped up to the plate, pulling the community together, and organised all aspects of getting a memorial installed to commemorate the loss of the men.

Memorial commemorates pearl diver Richard Peter Bisley (27) who disappeared while diving for pearls in Roebuck Bay in 1993.

Richard Bisley was doing a routine dive when he disappeared. His mangled aqualung was found by searchers and his remains were found inside a tiger shark, which was caught in Roebuck Bay a week later.

At the Robe marina there is a memorial commemorating local fishermen who have lost their lives at sea between 1947 and 1997. The memorial has a whale tail shaped wall in front of the small plaques with fishers' names against a blue background.

Two of the names are of men who died aboard the Lady Pamela at sea near Onslow, WA during Cyclone Bobby in 1995.

The cairn lists the names of lost fishers and is accompanied by interpretative signage and an anchor. It is dedicated to local fishers from San Remo who died in pursuit of their livelihood.

While the front of the cairn shows a plaque listing names, the back inscription says:

Down to the sea in ships they go
these chosen men of steel,
though mist & foam and North West wind
is founding at the keel.

So sail they must each crispy morn
away from trees & sod,
the sea may own their wind burned flesh,
but their souls belong to God.

Memorial plaque in honour of Shane Graeme Kramer (49) who died in 2008 when his boat, the Thalia II rolled when entering the North End in Lancelin. His Son, Benjamin, took his own life in 2013 and a plaque in honour of him can be seen adjacent to his fathers.

Sponsored by the Spring Bay Professional Fishermen the memorial honours fishers who died onshore. Individual plaques have names, type of fishing and names of boats. The plaques are dedicated with heartfelt messages by family or crew of the fisher who has gone.

The installation was dedicated in 1997.

The gardens at St Helens Fishermens Memorial Park feature an anchor seated on a rock. There are rocks placed along the pathways with plaques or inscriptions naming fishers who lost their lives in pursuit of the livelihood out of St Helens.

The memorial in Triabunna commemorates all Tasmanians who died at sea and all seafarers of any origin who lost their lives in Tasmanian waters. It has individual plaques for each tragedy since 1803.

The unpredictable seas around Tasmania's coastlines have claimed vessels from the days of sail to modern craft of today; they have claimed the lives of whalers and sealers, convicts and free settlers, traders and fishermen, sailors, seaman and yachtsmen of all ages and nations.

The memorial was dedicated in 1997 as a place for family and friends of those lost at sea and as a testament that those who are lost are remembered.

The memorial is a curved celery top pine facing with a powder coated aluminium and stainless steel frame, located at the Victoria Dock. This installation replaced a previous memorial in 2013.

The installation was commissioned by Seafood Industry Council, the Tasmanian Rock Lobster Fishermen's Association and the Tasmanian Abalone Council, with support from Hobart City Council and the Tasmanian Ports Authority.

The memorial commemorates Tasmanian commercial fishers who have lost their lives fishing. The names of fishers are remembered on laser etched plaques embedded into the facing.

"They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters."
Psalm 107

A committee built the monument which commemorates the Japanese who worked, lived and died between 1878 and 1941. It was dedicated in 1979 to the 700 Japanese fishers and pearlers who died in the Torres Strait.

From 1878 to 1941 there were thousands of Japanese employed in the pearling industry. The Japanese in Darwin contributed positively to the fishing industry.

The Jetty commemorates the local fisherman who started the fishing industry in Fremantle. The memorial incorporates 12 timber columns, the names of 608 fishermen who pioneered the industry in Fremantle, and two bronze sculptures from designers, Jon Tarry and Greg James. The 14-metre jetty sits on the site of the original jetty - long since gone - where fishermen would unload their catches.

Of the 608 names, 17 have perished at sea. They are:

Pre-1947

Name Vessel

Carl Berg Wanderer II

Domenico Cappelluti Mary

Giovanni Germinario Mary

Thomas Katnic Raymond

Silvio Marchese Mary

Antonio Marino Mary

Frank (Francesco) Migliore Wanderer

Franc (Francesco) Olivari Two Friends

Luigi Pittorino Mary

Marcellino Prioli Two Friends

Cono Tripi

Pietro Vinci San Francisco

Post-1947

Paolo Carbonaro Palermo

Salvatore Monastra Palermo

Giuseppe Monastra Palermo

Vito Spadavecchia Roma

Ljubo Surjan Vela Luka

The Nantucket whaleship was lost with all hands in 1804 near Fiji. The ship was struck by a sperm whale causing her to sink.

The crew of the Union were at the current memorial place in 1803. They built a schooner and called her Independence. The schooner sank in 1806 near the Antipodes Islands.

The whaleship anchor was found in deep water near the memorial site in 1969.

A plaque commemorates the deaths of two newsmen killed in a light aircraft crash off Cervantes in 1960. On 28th November that year, Channel 7 news cameraman Keith “Digby” Milner (27) and The West Australian photographer Owen “Willie” Williams (38) were killed when their chartered Cessna crashed into the sea while filming the 82ft freezer boat Villaret, which had struck a reef. The crew of the boat made it to shore. The Cessna pilot and cadet reporter Allan McIntosh were both injured, but were rescued by another boat. The Villaret was later salvaged and taken to Fremantle for repairs. Today the reef is known as Villaret Reef. Re-dedicated by the Surviving Families.

Overlooking the waters of Roebuck Bay at Bedford Park stands a three metre statue depicting an Aboriginal woman emerging from the water holding a pearl shell. This statue is known as the Women in Pearling monument.

The statue seeks to honour the contribution of women to the pearling industry, and to acknowledge the Aboriginal women who were exploited as divers along the coastline south of Broome during the ‘blackbirding’ phase. The practice of blackbirding in the earlier days of the industry was the coercion and kidnapping of Aboriginal women to work on pearl luggers diving for pearl shells.

The site chosen for the memorial is significant, as the it was a lay-up site for pearling luggers, with camps for the indentured labourers set up along the shore. The families of the pearling crews would wait at the foreshore for the luggers to return from their time at sea.

The steamship Alert was an iron screw coastal trader with a crew of 11.
On 27 December 1893 she left Bairnsdale. The next day two of her crew were drowned while rescuing some Chinese people from a flood.

On 30th December Alert was stricken in heavy winds. She went down with eight of the remaining crew and three passengers. Only the cook Robert Ponting survived the ordeal.