Tasmania's Cannibal Coast: Macquarie Harbour

[Bronteboy]

Well down into the Roaring 40s latitudes, the pretty little
Tasmanian West Coast port of Strahan is one of the most isolated places in Australia.





It is said to rain on 300 days of the year here, but - for some reason - anecdotally it is the most expensive town in the State to visit. We didn't particularly find that to be the case, although we only spent one day and a night there.





Established in 1877, Strahan serviced the local huon pine timber felling industry, some colonial-era shipbuilding and later served as a port for nearby tin mines.





It sits of the 50km-long Macquarie Harbour, a body of water several times bigger than Sydney Harbour - but limited by a narrow and treacherous entry known since the convict days as 'Hell's Gate.' About 2000 tonnes is the size limit for ships that can enter the Harbour.





The Gordon and King Rivers drain into Macquarie Harbor, which historically was most famous of course for the most severe of all the convict settlements, established for the 'worst of the worst' on tiny Sarah Island in the Harbour in 1822.




Alhough it only ever held around 160 convicts at any one time, during the 11 years that it operated various British commandants handed out more than 57,000 punishment strokes of the lash - almost 10,000 in one of its earliest years.





There are number of documented cases in which convicts made murder pacts - one to die and one to hang for it - just to get out of there.

The little island was entirely stripped of timber when in operated. It was meant to pay its own way, with huon timber felling around the local coasts, and several shipbuilding slipways on the island itself.





The last ship built there was almost 300 tons, and the convicts who built it escaped on it - and sailed it to Chile.




Among the famous and infamous convicts who were held in these cells (below) were the 'gentleman bushranger' Matthew Brady, a former British Army officer convicted of forgery (who escaped from Macquarie Harbour with a gang of 15 men), the psychopath and cannibal Mark Jeffries (he ate 4 men and dashed a woman captive's baby against a tree after killing her husband) and the equally notorious Alexander Pierce (also variously spelt Pearce and Pearse).






Although there were scores of escape attempts, very few were successful. The only access was by sea, and the surrounding rainforests almost impenetrable - particularly because of plant life called 'horizontals,' which made any extended attempt at 'pushing through' difficult.


Food was another problem.

Convicts were given a substantial dose of the cat if they were found to be possessing so much as a fish hook, and the bread baked on the island was treated with an additive so it would quickly go mouldy, to prevent hoarding of escape supplies.

In 1822 Irish convict Alexander Pierce and seven escape companions came up with their own solution.



They began eating each other. An axe did the first work, then a knife and fork I guess. Robert Greenhill did the first killing and all had a hearty meal.

As this went on, not unreasonably two of the boys pulled out and went back to Sarah Island, where they died from their exposure and various punishments soon after arrival.

The remaining five pushed on until only Pierce and Greenhill were left, trying to stay awake at night in order to keep an eye on each other.

And then there was just Pierce. He was captured, tired but well fed, near Hobart - where a magistrate refused to believe his babbling cannibalism stories and sent him back to Macquarie Harbor.

Next time they believed him.


In May 1823 Pierce escaped again with a young English convict named Thomas Cox, and when he was finally captured again he had bits of Cox in his pockets.

Before they hanged him in 1824, Pierce gave at least four accounts of his culinary adventures to jailers and priests, raving about the deliciousness of human flesh, which he said was better than pork or fish, of which he still had plenty when caught.

As was not uncommon then, the authorities had his body dissected to find out what was wrong with the chap, in death he anticipated the comedian W.C. Fields famous quip.

For some extraordinary reason, Pierce's head now sits in a museum in Philadelphia.

Well, that's the end of this Tassie story. Sorry i didn't have more graphic pictures.

Bronte.

[CULWULLA]

great stuff. love photos of tassie you wouldnt normally see. very interesting history. looks like a horrible place.
did you manage to get to the tremendous lighthouses?
The aptly named Hells Gate in Macqquarie hrb



The cape Sorell lighthouse built in 1889 rises to impressive 37m and is 6th tallest in Oz.
was one of the tallest structures in TAssie for years!

[Bronteboy]

Thanks No we didn't get out to the lighthouses - i was both a bit light-housed and forest walk/treed-out by the time we got to Strahan.

[CULWULLA]

understandable.
king Islands Cape Wickham lightouse would have been best. Its tallest lighthouse in south hem. 48m. now open to public as of 2006.
cheers

[gappa]

Thanks for the history lesson Bronte.

[Yardmaster]

Geez Sarah Island has concrete paths now!

Here's a picture of Hell's Gates for Cullwalla: the channel in the middle is so narrow you can't get a surf-board in at change of tide. :



Leads to a very impressive harbour.

It might rain for 300 days a year at Strahan, but I arrived on one of the lucky days:



The main street: pretty noisy that night: maybe the locals were celebrating the dry weather :



The view from across the harbour:



The Abt (Rack) Railway runs from Strahan to Queenstown, these days to convey tourists, but originally, to convey copper down the King River Valley to Strahan:



Further down Macquarie Harbour: at Sarah Island:



Bronteboy didn't mention that some of the convicts here, after being trained in the art of boat-building, commandeered one of the boats that they built there (excellent timber for the purpose in Tassie) and sailed away to Chile. This drama is re-enacted nightly in Strahan, and, although I didn't see it, it's purported to be the longest running performance in the southern hemisphere or wherever.

The Gordon River: some of you may disagree, but the fight to save this river (and its tributary the Franklin) was the turning-point in the environmental debate in this nation:



Returning from the Gordon River, across Macquarie Harbour:



Edited in the light of the subsequent posting!

[Bronteboy]

Thanks for adding some great pics Yardmaster. It all felt like a lone battle there for a while.

I did mention the last ship built, the near-300-tonner that was stolen by the convicts who built it - but I had it as sailed away to Chile. Not sure at all now of my memory of that , it was one of the two places.

Here's another historical fact about the lighthouse you've shown at Hell's Gate: lighthouse keeper's wife and two daughters were on a ship returning from Hobart, which got caught in a North Westerly gale approaching the Harbour and foundered there. They drowned more or less in sight of their home. I think that may have been in 1911, but perhaps earlier - just a remembered story from the boat tour.

Two men who went out to the wreck the next day were also drowned. Tragic place. And yep, the proposed Franklin River dam battle was a watershed moment for Australia's environmental movement. Bob Hawke made the announcement that it would not be going ahead.


Oh, the paths on Sarah Island are just well-pounded gravel.

[Yardmaster]

Originally Posted by Bronteboy

I did mention the last ship built, the near-300-tonner that was stolen by the convicts who built it - but I had it as sailed away to Chile. Not sure at all now of my memory of that , it was one of the two places.

Yes, now that you mention it, I think it was Chile ... my memory seems to store things geographically rather than linguistically (i.e. if it really was Chile and I got it a bit wrong, I'd say Peru rather than China)

Sad story in your posting above ... reminds me of the wreck of the "Casino", Apollo Bay, 1930's ... eleven lives lost, within sight of spectators and potential rescuers, just off the beach.

[Bronteboy]

Originally Posted by Yardmaster

Sad story in your posting above ... reminds me of the wreck of the "Casino", Apollo Bay, 1930's ... eleven lives lost, within sight of spectators and potential rescuers, just off the beach.

A little research on that shipwreck at Strahan. It was in August 1907, and the ship lost was the 'Kawatiri.' The woman I mentioned was the assistant lighthouse keeper's wife, lost with her two small sons. A stewardess was also lost overboard, and others also drowned. As in the Apollo Bay case, the cries of the lost could be heard from the shore.

A reference:
In August 1907 the steamship "Kawatiri" struck the breakwater at Macquarie Heads, slewed across the channel and grounded on the northern shore. With a heavy sea running a boat was launched but the stewardess fell overboard and was lost. The lifeboat reached the breakwater but in trying to land the assistant lighthouse keeper's wife and her two children were drowned.

Their surname was Hope, possibly the couple pictured here. The press report of the wreck states that the screams of the victims could be beard at the lighthouse. It was really a very sad incident, particularly as Mrs Hope was bringing her children home from Hobart.

From the Encyclopedia of Australian Shipwrecks - Shipwrecks of Tasmania

Kawatiri. Iron steamship, 516/322 tons. # 84481. Built at Paisley, Scotland, 1882; reg. Dunedin, New Zealand, 1883, reg. Hobart 4/1901. Ltd.Lbd 170.5 x 26.1 x 11.25 ft. Built as a collier for the Westport Coal Company of N.Z., along with sisters Wareatea and Orowaiti which were also to become well known in the Tasmanian coastal trade.Purchased by the Union Steamship Company of New Zealand in 1887 and placed in the Melbourne-Strahan-Hobart run in 1898. Captain Robert Crawford.

In heavy seas, hit the bar at Macquarie Harbour, Tasmania, in attempting to enter Hell’s Gates; wrecked on the North Spit, 13 August 1907. Boats were lowered but only one manged to get away, this capsizing when struck by a heavy sea - the stewardess was lost overboard and drowned, as was a woman and her two young sons. Two other children also drowned. Three other boats left the wreck and landed safely on Entrance Island. Those left aboard were rescued the following day. When, on the 18 August, a boat, possibly the fishing boat Luida, was sent to the wreck to recover the ship’s papers, two of the three occupants were drowned. [TS2],[LHG],[NH - Captain Carter],[DG]








This is a painting of a somewhat similar scene: not Strahan. Called 'In Peril' its by the famous English landscape realist and painter of dramatic biblical scenes, John Martin, RA.

[brisbanite]

Thanks for the pics and stories Bronte. I went on that Macquarie Harbour cruise a couple of years ago and it was one of the best trips I've done but I missed the stories as I was getting stuck into the free beers and wine on the upper deck and wasn't quite able to remember them. It absoulutely pissed down when we were on Sarah Island so we couldn't hear the guide too well but what that bloke Pierce eating the other convicts.

[Bronteboy]

Thanks Brisbanite As the photos showed, it pissed down when we were on Sarah Island too, and the dismal weather at that moment (cleared up afterwards) seemed entirely appropriate. Improved the visit!

[auslankan]

Similar to what I experenced when at Strahan and Sarah island.

The guide at Sarah island was a wanabe actor and was very funny and informative about the horrors of that brooding place.

Dont miss the boat cruise if you do go to Strahan its great.There is also a lot of commercial fish breeding pods there as well.
They told us that sometimes on a calm day they took the boat outside the narrow entrance I doubt it would happen very often lol

[brisbanite]

We got through the entrance. Here's a couple of pics of the trip.

The entrance of the harbour.


The lighthouse at the entrance




Looking back into Macquarie Harbour


A fishing hut on the south part of the entrance

[auslankan]

Yeah we only went about 100 metres from the entrance and you could why as the sea outside was very rough.

[uewepuep]

Great photos!

[Kawatiri-Survivor]

[QUOTE=Yardmaster;19325534]

Sad story in your posting above ...
Hello, I noticed your piece about the "Kawatiri" Shipwreck. Have you ever had anyone contact you that was a relative of someone on that ill fated voyage? It has brought memories flooding back to me as my grandmother, Eva, who was just under 5, her sister, Doris, aged 3 & their mother, Mary Ann (my great grandmother then 28) were on that shipwreck. My nan spoke many times of this. Their mother died only 12 years later aged 40, they reckon she never recovered from the shock, my nan was always helping her with Doris. I would love to hear back from you or anyone else connected with the "Kawatiri". Sue (Tasmania) niblet09@optusnet.com.au

[Kawatiri-Survivor]

[QUOTE=brisbanite;19539062]We got through the entrance. Here's a couple of pics of the trip. Are you from Qld?

Hello, I noticed your piece about the "Kawatiri" Shipwreck. Have you ever had anyone contact you that was a relative of someone on that ill fated voyage? It has brought memories flooding back to me as my grandmother, Eva, who was just under 5, her sister, Doris, aged 3 & their mother, Mary Ann (my great grandmother then 28) were on that shipwreck. My nan spoke many times of this. Their mother died only 12 years later aged 40, they reckon she never recovered from the shock, my nan was always helping her with Doris. I would love to hear back from you or anyone else connected with the "Kawatiri". Sue (Tasmania) niblet09@optusnet.com.au

[jchan123]

oh you guys were in Hell's Gate

[adelaidedeano91]

Jeez, compared to some of these pics, it looks like we were lucky with the weather! We were there for three days, and it only spat once for about 10 minutes in total!!

Here are some of my pics.

Macquarie Harbour during our cruise
image hosted on flickr


Another picture of the fishing on Macquarie Harbour, with an ex-Sydney ferry in the background
image hosted on flickr


The view heading out of Macquarie Harbour
image hosted on flickr


A ruin on Sarah Island. This was the one time in our whole stay at Strahan that it rained. I got to wear one of those highly fashionable plastic ponchos
image hosted on flickr


Our cruise boat
image hosted on flickr


The very expensive train that we went on the next day. We were unfortunate enough that there had been a landslide along the line, and so we could only go as far as Dubbil Barrill (I think that's how you spell it). Well, actually, we did go a little bit further on the rack and pinion line, but only a few hundred metres.
image hosted on flickr


Dubbil Barrill Station
image hosted on flickr


The view of the train line past Dubbil Barrill
image hosted on flickr


The view out of the side of the train. Amazing!!
image hosted on flickr



To be honest, Strahan was probably one of my favourite places we visited on the trip. Just the sheer beauty of its surrounding environment is amazing. Definately a place I will re-visit if I ever go back to Tassie!

[Oriolus]

Just this morning I was reading an article in Australian Geographic about a group that retraced the journey of Alexander Pearce (minus the cannibalism) - sounds like some pretty tough country. Beautiful part of the world though, I'd love to get down there one day. Thanks for the pics guys (and of course the narrative Bronteboy)

Originally Posted by Bronteboy

In May 1823 Pierce escaped again with a young English convict named Thomas Cox, and when he was finally captured again he had bits of Cox in his pockets.

Whos that in your pocket