James Service Shipwreck

Author

City of Mandurah

Place Number

16112

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Location

9 km W of Madora & NW of Peel Inlet Mandurah

Location Details

Parts of the shipwreck including the anchor were taken to P1489 Christ Church in Pinjarra Road, Mandurah where they are currently located in the graveyard.

Local Government

Mandurah

Region

Peel

Construction Date

Constructed from 1869

Demolition Year

N/A

Statutory Heritage Listings

Type	Status	Date	Documents	More information
(no listings)

Heritage Council Decisions and Deliberations

Type	Status	Date	Documents
(no listings)

Other Heritage Listings and Surveys

Type	Status	Date	Grading/Management		More information
Type	Status	Date	Category	Description	More information
Register of the National Estate	Permanent	21 Mar 1978			Heritage Council
Municipal Inventory	Adopted	20 Jul 1999	Category 1	Category 1 National or State significance The highest level of protection is appropriate including referral for entry on to the appropriate national and/or state registers, and the provision of maximum encouragement to the owner/s to conserve the significance of the place. The place should be photographically recorded and a conservation plan be prepared.

Statement of Significance

The wreck of the James Service is significant for its impact on the Mandurah community at the time. Given the dependence of the community of communication via sea links, it galvanised residents to lobby for improved land links.

Physical Description

Mostly intact hull structure with environmental deterioration factors minimal. Good site for public recreation and educational interests. The wreck is protected under the Historic Shipwrecks Act.

History

The James Service was a clincker built, round sterned 441 ton iron barque, and carried three masts on two decks. She measured 46.8 metres by 8.6 metres by 4.7 metres. The James Service was on a return journey from Calcutta to Melbourne. The illness of Captain Young and a ‘mutiny’ as a result of his delirium saw the
agents replace the captain in Penang with Captain Sievwright. Captain Sievwright charted a course from Penang which should have taken the vessel a considerable distance away from the coast of Western Australia. She had
encountered rough weather, a diary was ashore recording that the yards touching the water. It is unclear as how she was blown so far of course, but storm damage was considered the most likely possibility. The vessel was lost with all hands on 23 July 1878. The slow discovery of the bodies strewn along the beach was a gruesome reminder to locals of their dependence on the sea. Most of the victims are buried in the graveyard of Christ’s Church, while some were buried where they were found in the dunes. The anchor salvaged from the wreck occupies a prominent place in the graveyard.

References

Ref ID No	Ref Name	Ref Source	Ref Date
	G & KJ Henderson "Unfinished Voyages: Western Australian Shipwrecks 1851-1880"	UWA Press	1988
	Register of the National Estate Database 010665

Place Type

Historic site

Uses

Epoch	General	Specific
Original Use	Transport\Communications	Water: Other
Present Use	Transport\Communications	Water: Other

Historic Themes

General	Specific
SOCIAL & CIVIC ACTIVITIES	Education & science
SOCIAL & CIVIC ACTIVITIES	Sport, recreation & entertainment

Creation Date

08 Mar 2002

Publish place record online (inHerit):

Approved

Last Update

01 Jan 2017

Disclaimer

This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.