Cable Remains

Statement of Significance

Cable and building remains are a significant and relevant marker of the history of telecommunications and Broome’s pivotal role in that network.

Physical Description

The concrete foundations and housings of the cable and junction box are evident approximately half way along Cable Beach, in the sand dunes of Minyrr Park. The remains of the cable keepers cottage are also in the vicinity.

History

In 1888, the two undersea telegraph cables linking Java and Darwin were broken by volcanic activity and the Eastern Extension, Australasia and China Telegraph Company (E.E.T. Company), which operated the cable, decided to lay another cable from Java to the northwest coast. The cable was landed on the beach in February 1889 by the steamship Seine, at a place that has ever since been known as Cable Beach. A beach station was erected, completed by 3 March, and the cable was installed and tested. A section of cable was then run from the beach station across the peninsula to Broome Lot 99 where Cable House (Place no. 27)) had been erected for the staff of the E.E.T. Company. There the cable was linked to the overland telegraph line from Perth. The overland section of cable between Cable Beach and Cable House was placed inside a subterranean pipe. In 1901, the undersea cable to Broome became redundant when a new cable was laid from Durban to Adelaide. The cable to Broome carried little traffic for the next 13 years and was removed in March 1914. Broome remained linked to Perth and the rest of the world by the overland telegraph line. The beach station was still standing in the early 1920s when a police constable from Broome spent a week there to recuperate from fever.

Integrity/Authenticity

Low degree
High degree

Condition

Unknown

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Last Update

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