Boston Island
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Boston Island (
Barngarla The Barngarla, formerly known as Parnkalla and also known as Pangkala, are an Aboriginal people of the Port Lincoln, Whyalla and Port Augusta areas. The Barngarla are the traditional owners of much of Eyre Peninsula, South Australia. Languag ...
: ''Goorilyali'' ) is a privately owned island in Boston Bay, Spencer Gulf,
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
. It has been primarily used for grazing sheep and was also once the location of a proposed township called Kerrillyilla at the southern end of the island. In 2009, the island was rezoned to allow for future residential and tourism development. As of 2009, it is owned by the former mayor of
Port Lincoln Port Lincoln is a town on the Lower Eyre Peninsula in the Australian state of South Australia. It is situated on the shore of Boston Bay, which opens eastward into Spencer Gulf. It is the largest city in the West Coast region, and is located a ...
, Peter Davis. Davis' development plans include up to 1,000 residential allotments, three tourism developments and an inland marina. Prior to rezoning, there had been little interest expressed in the development plan, despite the then mayor's enthusiasm.


Geographic features & nomenclature

The northernmost point of the island is Maria Point, the southernmost is Point Fanny and the westernmost is Hayden Point. Point Fanny was named after Fanny Conway, a favoured guest of Lady Gawler, wife of Governor Gawler. The Governor pledged to name the point after Conway's tent collapsed while she was camped there. She was traveling with a party arranged by Governor Gawler at the time. The island's longest beaches are Squeaky Beach at the north (east of Maria Point) and Homestead Beach to the north-west. Picnic Beach on the eastern shore and Cemetery Beach on the central west coast are smaller. The bay between Point Fanny and Hayden Point is known as Rotten Bay. In 2010, attempts to formally rename Rotten Bay to either Bluefin Bay or Fishdance Bay were unsuccessful due to public opposition to the idea. It is believed that the origin of the name is a reflection of the quality of its anchorage.


Wildlife

Fauna species of conservation concern recorded on Boston Island or in adjacent waters include:
bush stone-curlew The bush stone-curlew or bush thick-knee, also known as the Iben bird (''Burhinus grallarius'', obsolete name ''Burhinus magnirostris'') is a large, ground-dwelling bird endemic to Australia. Its favoured habitat is open plains and woodlands, whe ...
,
pied oystercatcher The pied oystercatcher (''Haematopus longirostris'') is a species of oystercatcher. It is a wading bird native to Australia and commonly found on its coastline. The similar South Island pied oystercatcher (''H. finschi'') occurs in New Zealand. ...
,
sooty oystercatcher The sooty oystercatcher (''Haematopus fuliginosus'') is a species of oystercatcher. It is a wading bird endemic to Australia and commonly found on its coastline. It prefers rocky coastlines, but will occasionally live in estuaries. All of its fea ...
,
fairy tern The fairy tern (''Sternula nereis'') is a small tern which is native to the southwestern Pacific. It is listed as " Vulnerable" by the IUCN and the New Zealand subspecies is " Critically Endangered". There are three subspecies: * Australian fai ...
, eastern osprey,
white-bellied sea eagle The white-bellied sea eagle (''Haliaeetus leucogaster''), also known as the white-breasted sea eagle, is a large diurnal bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. Originally described by Johann Friedrich Gmelin in 1788, it is closely related t ...
, Australian sea lion,
New Zealand fur seal ''Arctocephalus forsteri'' (common names include the Australasian fur seal, South Australian fur seal, New Zealand fur seal, Antipodean fur seal, or long-nosed fur seal) is a species of fur seal found mainly around southern Australia and New Z ...
and southern right whale.


Little penguin colony

Penguins were present on Boston Island in 1915. In 2006, Boston Island supported a small colony of less than 100 little penguins. As of 2011, the status of the colony is unknown.


Mysterious object

On September 8, 2014 the Department of Defence investigated a suspected explosive mine located off the east coast of Boston Island. A public exclusion zone was established and a team of Navy clearance divers was deployed to identify the object, defuse it if armed and arrange for its safe disposal. Specialists of the
Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the principal naval force of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (CN) Vice Admiral Mark Hammond AM, RAN. CN is also jointly responsible to the Minister of ...
did not find a sea mine.


History

In 1840, Boston Island was the location of choice for a future whaling station, intended to be operated by the Port Lincoln Whaling Company. There is no evidence the whaling station was actually established. Mr and Mrs Jesse Lock were residents of Boston Island for a period during the 1800s. In the 1850s a mission for the conversion of Indigenous Australians to Christianity operated on Boston Island by Archdeacon Hale. The mission was moved to
Poonindie __NOTOC__ Poonindie is a small township near Port Lincoln on the Eyre Peninsula, South Australia. The land upon which it sits was originally the land of the Barngarla people. Poonindie Mission was established as a mission for Aboriginal people ...
on the mainland because of the island's confined space was 'unsuited to the natives' way of life'."Boston Island Sold"
''Chronicle'', South Australia (1950-06-22). Retrieved 2014-01-24.
Availability of water was also likely to have been a factor. In 1883, John Joseph Laffan was granted a Miscellaneous Lease No. 593 for a term of 21 years, over certain sections of land at the northern end of the island. After 12 months, the lease was forfeited for non-payment of rent. In 1885, a member of the South Australian Yacht Club described Boston Island as 'undulating and grassy, with clumps of trees planted by the hand of nature in such a charming way as would render bankrupt the taste of a landscape gardener to approach in regard to effect; it is a place which once seen will live in the recollection ever afterwards.' In November 1907, Joseph Kemp Bishop made application to bring all of Sec. 70; the Township of Kerrillyilla on Boston Island, under the Real Property Act by virtue of a sole uninterrupted possession by himself and predecessors for over 40 years (since 1859)."What became of Boston Island township?"
''Port Lincoln Times'', South Australia (1954-11-25). Retrieved 2014-01-24.
In 1909, Allotment 37 was transferred from John Ridley to Joseph Kemp Bishop. Under Certificate of Title, Volume 794, Folio 84, Joseph Kemp Bishop became the sole owner of the land once intended to be the Boston Island township. In 1920, Joseph Kemp Bishop purchased the island from his father, Captain J. Bishop."Boston Island up for sale"
''The Advertiser'', South Australia (1954-07-17). Retrieved 2014-01-24.
In 1928, the motor ship ''MS Minnipa'' of the
Adelaide Steamship Company The Adelaide Steamship Company was an Australian shipping company and later a diversified industrial and logistics conglomerate. It was formed by a group of South Australian businessmen in 1875. Their aim was to control the transport of goods b ...
ran aground at Hayden Point, Boston Island in a thick fog. The 160 passengers aboard who had been traveling to Port Lincoln lighted in rafts and launches. She was refloated again two days later. She was then taken to Melbourne for assessment and repair. A Marine Enquiry was later held in Port Adelaide to investigate the circumstances and cause of the incident. The captain of the vessel was not found to be negligent in his actions. In August 1939, Boston Island was described by a visitor from Melbourne as a 'green wonder... graceful and yet stately.' In 1950, Boston Island was purchased by Wilfred (Bill) Hogan of Calca Station, Streaky Bay district. At the time it was free of rabbits and foxes, and was running sheep, one to the acre. In 1954, Boston Island was purchased by H. P. Davis of Hamilton Downs Station, Alice Springs for the price of £49,200. It was sold at auction in Port Lincoln before an audience of 500 people."Boston Island sold for 49,200"
''Chronicle'', South Australia (1954-09-09). Retrieved 2014-01-23.
At the time the island featured a five-roomed furnished weatherboard cottage, ten sheep-proof paddocks, five wells with windmills, four 5,000-gallon galvanized iron tanks and a large stone tank.


References

{{Eyre Peninsula , state=autocollapse Islands of South Australia Spencer Gulf Private islands of Australia