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A HIVE OF ACTIVITY

It is hard to visualise our Port being a busy port, that is with ships coming and going, barges coming and going up the rivers, the "resident" tug plying back and forth shuttling ships in and out over the bar and moving sailing ships from one loading point to another.

There were Miles wharves on the Forster side, there was Porter on the southern end of Tuncurry Waterfront, Wright and McLaren's main depot where John Wright Park now stands and where the Fishing Co-op now stands was the depot for Goodlet and Smith from Coolongolook.

Timber punts brought down further loadings from both Nabiac and Failford and loaded directly from barge to ship in the channel.

In addition, some of the sailing ships were towed up river to Failford and loaded directly off the wharf at the Breckenridge Mill site there.

Let us take a reasonably busy year like say 1912, and analyse the volume of traffic in and out of the port: -

This made 215 arrivals for the year, which represented a tonnage capacity of 20,483 for the year.

Timber: -

GENERAL LADING

(generally shipped through Wright and McLaren, Shipping agents):

If we take a look some nine years hence, in 1921, we find that there has been a decrease in the shipping:

The export of sawn timber is down to 2,500,000 s/ft., but a huge increase in poles to two million - these were used for extension of electricity throughout the city.

Fish were reduced to 13,157 baskets, and 100 dozen lobsters, with oysters at 1,126 bags. This showing the influence of the railways, now, in 1921, well established in Taree (since opening in 1913).

Following through a further ten of so years to 1931, we find shipping brings us some new names, such as: -

Total sawn timber export now reduced to 1,652,418 s.ft. for all mills, and with palings 148,000, poles 872,000, sleepers (railways) 23,000, girders 218,000 cu/ft. piles 99,673 lin/ft. and shingles 33,000 bundles.

A significant factor here shows up when it is realised that the total carrying capacity of the shipping entering the port was 3,454,000 s/ft. timber, but only 2,097,301 s/ft. of timber actually transhipped.

The pilot made a note for the year that, had the ships entering the port been able to carry full loads across the bar, a further 1,356,301 s/ft. could have been carried from the port.

SHIPS LOSING TO THE RAILWAY

Two things were happening here, greater clearance of the lands beside the streams and erosion was building up a bigger bar, consequently the shipping, although by far the cheapest means of transport, was losing.

This was especially so in the goods counted as perishable, for the railways were faster and surer of getting to the destination fresh and not lost at sea or held up by adverse weather.

We cannot give any details of passengers travel by ship, although prior to the railway it was almost the only way to travel to the city, except for the Lakes Way, a traumatic experience of travelling the "roads" by coach and later car. But, as the hire cars of 1912 advertised to deliver one from Taree to Newcastle to catch the train in 1912 in five hours, one would weigh comfort against the possibility of an accident at sea.

The train removed this question, leaving one with the decision based on whether one liked or disliked the sea travel, and as the train was new and novel the railways won out mostly.