Port of Port Hedland

Statement of Significance

The Port of Port Hedland is significant as the inception of the town of Port Hedland. It is a landmark and
integral element of the town, and demonstrates the continuous development of Port Hedland. The Malay
grave represents associations with the pearling history of Port Hedland.

Physical Description

Entry statement at The Esplanade and Anderson Street ‘T’ section. The Port
tower located within the entry. Extensive port facility.
Malay grave: large clearing in the mangroves on a tidal island west of and
opposite to BHPBIO extreme south end ship loading berth at Nelson Point.

History

First jetty in year of first lots sold in townsite: 1896. 1901 second jetty. 1910 two jetties joined.
Only one pearling master, WT Banger, used the port as his main operating base. The tidal port necessarily had a tide indicator tower with cane balls that showed depth of water in the harbour, as the tide rose and fell as much as 16 metres.
Until the 1960s, over different periods, the port was used mainly for loading sheep, wool, gold, cattle and stores. In November 1900 the first commercial shipment of Pilbara gold left Port Hedland. Before reliable roads had been established, supplies to the town, including clothing and fruit, arrived on Blue Funnel boats trading between Fremantle and Singapore. A bar across the harbour made it impossible to enter unless it was high tide. The largest boat during this period capable of entering the port was about 3000 tonnes. The jetty at this time was Y-shaped to accommodate the cargo locomotives.
Until the 1950s, the site of the Malay grave was frequented by the pearling luggers during the pearling boom. The Port Hedland harbour was a safe anchorage because eof the sand bar across the main entrance at low tide. The repairs to the beached luggers would take place at low and neap tides, and the crews would camp on the sandy beaches. A Malay crewman was subsequently buried in the vicinity of this site on the small island.
Between 1957 and 1960 all the timber on the wharf was renewed, and No1 berth widened by eleven feet.
Port Hedland is now Australia’s largest iron ore shipping port, capable of accommodating some of the world’s largest bulk carriers. With the lifting of the iron ore ban in 1960 and the formation of the Mt Goldsworthy Mining Company in 1962, Port Hedland’s harbour was developed as the region’s port. Mt Goldsworthy and Mt Whaleback mines were linked to the port by railway. In June 1965 the Utah Mining and Construction Company began dredging the harbour. It was the biggest dredging operation ever undertaken in Australia, and at completion the harbour had been deepened to allow for bulk carriers, and the island increased by 200 acres. The 30,000 tonne ore carrier, Harvey S Mudd, entered the harbour on 27 May 1966. The first shipment of iron ore left the port in March 1969.
During the early 1970s further dredging allowed for 10,000 tonne ships to enter the port, and 29 acres of mangrove beach was reclaimed to make a land-backed berth. Between 1965 and 1975 the throughput of the port increased 40 fold. The harbour was dredged again between 1985-7.
By the late 1990s over 60 million tonnes of iron ore were being shipped annually from the port, from BHP’s operations at Nelson Point and Finucane Island. The Nelson Point wharf contains two berths and two ship loaders, each capable of loading more than 10,000 tonnes per hour to a limit of 260,000 tonnes per ship, and the Finucane Island wharf contains a single berth and ship loader capable of loading up to 180,000 tonnes of ore. In 2002 a new $85 million bulk ship loader was opened at no1 Berth, having less environmental impact than the previous ship loader.
Western Australia’s salt industry, also developed during the 1960’s, added to traffic at the port, exporting approximately 2 million tonnes per year. The live cattle trade also utilises the port, with export numbers increasing annually.
Below the harbour lays a tunnel, 1.1 kilometres long and 5.2 metres in diameter, connecting BHP’s operations at Nelson Point to Finucane Island and to the Hot Briquetted Iron plant. The first of its type in Western Australia, the tunnel broke through on October 3, 1997. Designed to increase the shipping capabilities of the port, the tunnel houses a 1.8 metre wide conveyor able to transport 10,000 tonnes of iron ore per hour. It also contains associated services, and acts as a vantage point to watch Finucane Island operations, and ship movements within the harbour.

Integrity/Authenticity

Integrity: High Degree
Authenticity: High Degree

Changes to place Numerous

Uses

Creation Date

Publish place record online (inHerit):

Last Update

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