DUGONG 1892

Description:

Steam powered paddle Lighter with donkey boiler, engine & winch

Owner:

Public Works Department

Construction:

Wood

Sunk:

There does not appear to be any record of the loss of the Dugong. There is a Public Works Department drawing of the Dugong dated 1896, so it must have been abandoned in Bull Creek after that date.

Size:

20m length 3.9m beam

Underwater:

The remains of the Dugong lie in shallow water with the tops of the frames, stem and stern post showing above water only at very low tides.

Built:

circa 1894 by Henry Passmore, the officer in charge of the convict camp, and his son, George, with the assistance of a Chinese carpenter and some of the convicts. Built from bush-hewn timber and scrap by an assortment of men associated with the convict camp on the Canning, the Dugong was used to deliver supplies from Perth and Fremantle for the Dredge Black Swan.

Location:

Bull’s Creek, Canning River

Sinking:

Before being abandoned the Dugong was stripped of the boiler, engine, winch and paddles.

Longitude:

115.860471

Latitude:

-32.045510