Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Decorative object - Pen Tray, David Hay, circa 1847
This pen tray is handmade from some of the timbers from the wreck of the schooner Enterprise. It was originally donated to the former Warrnambool Museum and Art Gallery and transferred to Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village when it was first established.
The inscription on the rear was added at a later date. It incorrectly states that the vessel "was the first boat up the river Yarra with Fawkner", confusing this Warrnambool wreck "Enterprise" with Fawkner's vessel "Enterprize" (sometimes written "Enterprise").
THE “ENTERPRISE” 1847-1850
The wooden, two-masted schooner Enterprise was built in New Zealand in 1847 and registered in Melbourne, Australia. The Enterprise carried cargoes of agricultural produce and other commodities for trade between the ports of the Colony. On September 14, 1850, the Enterprise was at anchor in Lady Bay under its Master, James Gardiner Caughtt, loaded with a cargo of wheat and potatoes. A strong south-easterly wind caused the vessel to drag on its only anchor, and the rudder was lost. The gale-force wind blew it sideways, and it became grounded. A local indigenous man, Buckawall, braved the rough sea to take a line from the shore to the Enterprise. All five members of the crew were able to make it safely to land. The Enterprise was wrecked.
The Enterprise wreck was in an area called Tramway Jetty in Lady Bay. Since then, the area became the location of the Lady Bay Hotel, and now, in 2019, it is in the grounds of the Deep Blue Apartments. In fact, with the constantly changing coastline through built-up sand, the wreck site is now apparently under the No. 2 Caravan Park on Pertobe Road, perhaps 150 metres from the high tide. Its location was found by Ian McKiggan (leader of the various searches in the 1980s for the legendary Mahogany Ship).
DIFFERENTIATING the New Zealand Schooner “Enterprise” from John Fawkner’s “Enterprize“
Dr Murray Johns, Melbourne, says in his article The Mahogany Ship Story
“… As I documented in 1985, the Warrnambool wreck was of an entirely different ship, also called Enterprize [with the spelling ‘Enterprise’], but built in New Zealand in 1847. Fawkner’s ship had already been sold to Captain Sullivan in 1845 and was wrecked on the Richmond Pier in northern New South Wales early in 1847. “
The pen tray is significant for its association with the wreck of the Enterprise, which is listed on the Victorian Heritage Database, VHR S238.
The Enterprise is of significance as a New Zealand-built but Australian-owned coastal trader. The wreck was also significant for its association with the indigenous hero Buckawall, who saved the lives of the five crew on board.
The pen tray is an example of the use of timbers salvaged from shipwrecks along the coast.Decorative pen tray; handmade and carved from timber from the vessel "Enterprise", 1847-1850. The tray is made from several pieces of wood and has a concave surface. The engraving includes a border, motifs, and decorative scrolls on the sides. The inscription on the rear was written in script. A paper tag marked 'Swinburne' was with the board."Swinburne", "from the vessel Enterprise"
Writing on the back of the pen tray: "Made from / wreck of / "Enterprise" first boat / up river Yarra with / Fawkner later wrecked / at Warrnambool Vic"flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, wood carving, carving, carving craft, 1850 wreck, john watson, james gardiner caught, tramway jetty, lady bay, rescue line, ian mckiggan, vhr s238, relic, buckawall, schooner, enterprise, coastal trader, new zealand, indigenous rescue, indigenous hero, pen holder, pen tray, wood souvenir, enterprise s ouvenir