Whaling Cove (Ruins)

Statement of Significance

Whaling Cove (Ruins), a former whaling station and now an archaeological site, has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons:
The place marks the site of one of the earliest bay whaling operations in Western Australia, being used almost continuously for that purpose from 1835 to at least 1872 and has potential to yield information about the construction, technology and operation of such stations.
The place is part of the development of the whaling industry, which predated settlement in Western Australia, and was the State’s first revenue-earning industry. Whaling is no longer practised in Australia due to technological advances and international pressure to conserve a dwindling global whale population.
The place represents part of an extensive industry that contributed significantly to the economic growth and development of Albany and Western Australia in the nineteenth century. The industry provided an international point of contact at Albany, where whaling vessels from various countries, including America and Norway, called in for water and provisions.
The place was a venue for the employment of Aboriginal men who worked with Europeans as part of the whaleboat crew.
The place has landmark value and contributes to the local community's sense of place as the site of early whaling activity in an area that continues to be used for maritime and tourism activities.
The place is associated with James Daniells, who operated from the site from 1849 to at least 1852 and most probably had the station buildings and tryworks constructed and is also closely associated with the Sherratt family, who carried out the first bay whaling operation at the site in 1835, and later operated at the site from 1857 to 1872.

Physical Description

The site is situated to the east and west of the granite rock shelf which forms a notable promontory in Whaling Cove. This granite shelf is where whales were hauled out onto the shelf to be flensed.

The ruins of a tryworks lie on the western shore side of the granite shelf. The ground surrounding the tryworks is scattered with small fragments of charred material which may be burnt blubber and corroded iron, which may be the remains of iron hoops used to make wooden barrels to store whale oil. Immediately east of the tryworks are a series of worn rectangular grooves in the rock shelf which may have been associated with the operation of the bay whaling station. The grooves run roughly north south and are less than one metre long.

On the east side of the rock shelf, approximately 25 metres from the water, above the beach are the remains of a double chimney and fireplace. The structure was intact in 1948 and may have survived as such until the 1980s but has since been demolished and all that is left is the chimney base.

Two water holes are located on high ground, south east of the site towards Mistaken Island.


Immediately south east of the water holes is an extensive sheet of bare rock which rises up the slope of a hill. Lumps of worked granite litter the site. Groups of rock suggest that that stone was piled before removal from the site. It is possible that rock from this site was used to build the bay whaling station. Continuing up the slope above the bare rock sheet is a small stony rise which provides good views of Whaling cove and the north west part of King Georges Sound which may have been used as a lookout for whales.

History

Whaling Cove is the site of Albany earliest whaling operation. It was established in 1835 at this location as it suited a land based operation with its flat land close to the ocean and good views of the sea. The site was first operated by William Lovett, Thomas Brooker Sherratt and Mr Dring in 1835. Later operators were James Daniells in 1849 and 1857 and Sherratt’s son Thomas in 1862 and 1865.

Whaling was an intrinsic part of Albany’s heritage for more than a century. Its impact has been a major factor in the way Albany has developed. It helped the town evolve economically and culturally as it drew keen interest from all over the world. The first records of whaling in King George Sound come in 1800 when English whalers arrived to pluck the bounty from our seas.
Albany is unique in that it is one of the few places worldwide which reflects a diverse range of whaling practices and techniques. It is the only place in the world which shows evidence of all three types of whaling practice – bay, shore and pelagic…
Whaling was a seasonal occupation which was undertaken between May and September when the most ideal prey were humpback and southern right whales. Despite the fact that whaling ceased in the Whaling Cove area more than a century ago there are still artefacts left behind by the whalers… The huge curving rock which runs conveniently into the water was where whales were winched out of the ocean ready for flensing (the process which stripped the whale blubber from the carcass). [The Weekender 1996]

The remains of the bay whaling station are part of the evidence of the whaling industry that operated in King George’s Sound from as early as 1800 when English whalers Elligood and Kingston entered King George’s Sound and caught a number of whales. Therefore, the ruins at Whaling cove provide a link with an industry that operated in the region for c178 years, longer than anywhere else in Australia.

Until 1977 the remains (a substantial stone chimney) of part of a whalers hut remained at the site but vandals and the elements have reduced the remains to rubble. In 1997, a stone plaque was erected by members of the Albany Maritime Heritage Association to recognise the landmark. They also intend to rebuild the stone fireplace which was the last structure remaining and was photographed in 1948.

Integrity/Authenticity

Integrity: Moderate
Authenticity: High/Moderate

Condition

Fair

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Last Update

Disclaimer

This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.