IT HAS taken 10 years of hard work, but the William the Fourth vessel has finally returned to Newcastle harbour.
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The working copy of the first steam-powered ship to be built in Australia was constructed for the 1988 bicentenary in Newcastle, but has been out of the water for more than a decade.
“It is fairly well-known, but mostly forgotten about,” Bob Cook, secretary of William the Fourth said.
“Optimistically we thought we would have the renovation done [in 2013], we thought it would go quickly, but we just couldn’t raise the money.
“Bringing the ship to its home berth is fundamentally the end of this long project.”
The replica was constructed on the banks of the river in Raymond Terrace. It was was taken over by the William the Fourth group about 10 years ago, after Newcastle City Council decided to offload it.
Up until this year, a lack of money had halted the restoration works, but the Hunter and Central Coast Development Corporation stepped in and funded the project.
HCCDC Chief Operating Officer Valentina Misevska said the voyage from concept to delivery has been a labour of love for a crew of passionate volunteers.
“William the Fourth project was one of the original funding applications for the NPCC, and today’s docking at Honeysuckle demonstrates community outcomes that can be celebrated for years to come,” she said.
“I know that many people have been involved in this initiative, which is important acknowledgement of maritime history and also presents a new opportunity for training and education moving forward.”
The steam boat will take up residence for the next 12 months at Lee Wharf and operate as a new tourism attraction, running chartered tours of the harbour and education programs for schools.
“What was lost, has now been found,” Mr Cook said.
“We have saved a piece of our history.”
HISTORY OF WILLIAM THE FOURTH
THE William The Fourth was the first coastal steamer wholly built in Australia.
Launched on October 22, 1831, the vessel became legendary in Australia’s maritime history.
It was built at the Deptford yards of William Lowe and James Marshall at Clarence Town on the Williams River and operated on the Hunter until the end of 1835, with occasional trips to Port Stephens, Carrington and Brisbane Waters.
It went on to provide a service to Port Macquarie in 1836 and operated on the South Coast to Jervis Bay in the 1840s, before ending up in China in the river trade in the early 1860s.
The last record of its existence was in 1866.
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Jessica Brown
Jessica began her journalism career in 2009 as a cadet at The Port Stephens Examiner before moving to London for a two-year stint working in magazines and digital publishing. The Lake Macquarie local returned to Australia where she took up a reporting role at The Maitland Mercury. She worked across several rounds including local council, police and property before moving into digital journalism and joining the team at The Newcastle Herald in 2017.
Jessica began her journalism career in 2009 as a cadet at The Port Stephens Examiner before moving to London for a two-year stint working in magazines and digital publishing. The Lake Macquarie local returned to Australia where she took up a reporting role at The Maitland Mercury. She worked across several rounds including local council, police and property before moving into digital journalism and joining the team at The Newcastle Herald in 2017.
