Independence (schooner)
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Independence , a 35-ton schooner, was the first ship constructed in South Australian waters. The crew of the visiting American sealing brig Union, under the command of Capt. Isaac Pendleton, built her between April and August 1803 at what is now known as American River on Kangaroo Island. Daniel Wright, the ship's carpenter, was in charge of the construction of the Independence at the mouth of Ship Creek, 800m west of the present-day American River oval.
On 15 June 1805, Independence set sail from Sydney for the
Prehistory
In 1802, Capt.
Arriving in what is now known as
Construction and Use
As was common practice at the time, Union carried the frame of a small schooner. This, possibly with the addition of some locally sourced timber, was used to build a smaller vessel. It appears[2] that Baudin had lost a longboat whilst surveying the coastline of Kangaroo Island and his carpenters had found suitable timber to rebuild the longboat near what is now the town of American River. As the new vessel was to be smaller than Union, it would have better access to shallow waters. Thus was born Independence.
No original plans of Independence are known to exist. In fact, it is possible the original Independence was built without plans.
The two ships sealed together, working around southern Australia and then shipped their seal furs to buyers including some in China, "The ship Union, and schooner Independence are expected to sail this day for China.“ from the Sydney Gazette 1804.[3][4] The Union was lost a sea with all hands in 1804 off the coast of Fiji.[5]
Reconstruction
In May 2013, the Rebuild Independence Group, a volunteer group based in American River, was formed to set about reconstructing the Independence.[6]
References
- ^ Fanning 1989:230-231 quoted in Dappert & Moffatt 2007
- ^ Dappert & Moffat 2007
- ^ "SHIP NEWS". Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1803 – 1842). 26 August 1804. p. 3. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
- ^ "Newspaper Clippings on whaling – Early Australia – Whales on the Net". whales.org.au. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
- ^ ""Union" | Monument Australia". monumentaustralia.org.au. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
- ^ "Rebuild Independence". Rebuild Independence Group (RIG). Retrieved 26 October 2016.