Four South Australian Company ships, in province's 1836 settlers fleet, the first to arrive at Kangaroo Island
An 1818 watercolour of the brig Lady Mary Pelham by Nicholas Cammillieri. Bought by George Fife Angas for the South Australian Company, she was converted to a three-masted barque for the voyage to South Australia and a whaling venture.
Image courtesy National Maritime museum, Cornwall, United Kingdom
The first four ships in the fleet of nine carrying first European settlers to South Australia from 1836 were owned of chartered by the South Australian Company.
All the South Australia Company ships arrived at Reeves Point in Napean Bay on South Australia's Kangaroo Island – the Duke of York on July 27, Lady Mary Pelham on July 30, John Pirie on August 16 and Emma on October 5.
The Lady Mary Pelham was the third of the South Australia colony’s first fleet of settlement ships, leaving Liverpool, England, on March 30, 1836. Bought by George Fife Angas for the South Australian Company, Lady Mary Pelham was formerly a brig launched in 1816 that worked as a packet carrier for the British post office and carrying Irish migrants to New York City.
After being modified to a barque, she joined the South Australian Company fleet in 1836. A third mast was added to increase its speed for the long voyage to South Australia. It was also fitted for whaling so that it could catch a return cargo of whale oil in the South Seas after delivering its first cargo to South Australia.
Captain Robert Ross was in charge for the journey to South Australia with most of the 29 on board being crew members who anticipated the whaling venture (when they would be paid according to their share of the catch) but were permitted by the South Australian colonisation commissioners in London to be classified as emigrants.
The only full fare-paying passengers were Cornelius Birdseye, the South Australian Company’s overseer of flocks and herds, and his wife. There were also five assisted emigrants, also South Australian Company employees and working as crew members. The first officer James Doine Thompson died at sea.
Lady Mary Pelham arrived at Nepean Bay on South Australia’s Kangaroo Island on July 30, 1836. It sailed from South Australia to Hobart Town for a fitout for the whaling voyage in the South Sea fishery. Only a small amount of whale oil was taken and it was decided to convert the cruise to a trading voyage. Lady Mary Pelham thentook 2,000 bags of sugar to Sydney.
S.G. Henty & Co. of Portland, Victoria, bought the Lady Mary Pelham and refitted her in Hobart Town as a whaler. Under the Hentys, her captain from 1844 was William Dutton, who killed 100 whales in his career. Lady Mary Pelham was eventually wrecked in 1849 at Port Fairy – or Belfast at it was then officially named – in Victoria.
