A Hazardous Life: Captain George Forsyth (1843-1894): Mariner and First Harbour Master for the Colony of Western Australia

Book Description

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George Forsyth arrived in Western Australia in the early 1860s, still in the era of wood and sail and at the beginning of the era of iron and steam. The port of Fremantle, a critical maritime hub for the colony, was desperately unfit to meet the demands of growing maritime activity.

Forsyth battled snobbery, entitlement and antagonism in his efforts to secure better maritime infrastructure and working conditions. He risked his life in many emergencies at sea, was beaten up, had his throat cut and nearly drowned. For all his efforts he was contemptuously dismissed from his position of Harbour Master.

Resilient and defiant, he went on to become a sea captain, plying the treacherous waters along Western Australia's coast.

Forsyth's working life unfolded against a backdrop of dramatic change in Western Australia: the opening up of the colony, the end of the convict era, the quest for responsible government and the start of the Gold Rush.

This book provides fresh insights into the colony's colourful maritime heritage and evolving political and social dynamics. It also contains 16 of Forsyth's artworks, many of which have not been seen before in public.