''Trixen'', registered as B47 (originally named ''Trixie'') is a preserved 15.33 metre

pearl A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle (mollusc), mantle) of a living Exoskeleton, shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pear ...

lugger A lugger is a sailing vessel defined by its rig, using the lug sail on all of its one or more masts. Luggers were widely used as working craft, particularly off the coasts of France, England, Ireland and Scotland. Luggers varied extensively ...

built in 1904 currently displayed in the

Western Australian Maritime Museum The Western Australian Museum is a statutory authority within the Culture and the Arts Portfolio, established under the ''Museum Act 1969''. The museum has six main sites. The state museum, WA Museum Boola Bardip, is located in the Perth Cult ...

Elizabeth Quay Elizabeth Quay is a mixed-use development project in the Perth#cbd, Perth central business district. Encompassing an area located on the north shore of Perth Water near the landmark Swan Bells, the precinct was named in honour of Elizabeth II, ...

History

Built around 1904 in Broome originally for use by Coleman & Palmer as a 11.58 metre

schooner A schooner ( ) is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel defined by its Rig (sailing), rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more Mast (sailing), masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than t ...

, they sold it to Henry Miller in 1907 who registered it in 1911, as a result of another vessel already having the name ''Trixie'' its name was changed to ''Trixen'' after his wife, Eliza. Alice Capes, the wife of the

Roebuck Bay Roebuck Bay is a bay on the coast of the Kimberley (Western Australia), Kimberley region of Western Australia. Its entrance is bounded in the north by the town of Broome, Western Australia, Broome, and in the south by Bush Point and Sandy P ...

Hotel licensee, would own the vessel from 1916 to 1923, by 1940 ''Trixen'' was owned by Louis Goldie who commenced having it rebuilt by Japanese

shipwrights Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. In modern times, it normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces i ...

, however due to Japanese entry into the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

''Trixen'' remained uncompleted until being bought by

pastoralists Pastoralism is a form of animal husbandry where domesticated animals (known as "livestock") are released onto large vegetated outdoor lands (pastures) for grazing, historically by nomadic people who moved around with their herds. The anima ...

George Streeter and Arthur Male of Male & Co. who finished it with kadjebut frames and outfitted it with a Southern Cross 3 cylinder

diesel engine The diesel engine, named after the German engineer Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which Combustion, ignition of diesel fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to Mechanics, mechanical Compr ...

. In 1951 Trixen was relocated to Darwin, registered as a

ketch A ketch is a two- masted sailboat whose mainmast is taller than the mizzen mast (or aft-mast), and whose mizzen mast is stepped forward of the rudder post. The mizzen mast stepped forward of the rudder post is what distinguishes the ketch f ...

while owned by M. T. Paspalis who sold it in 1952 to R. N. and Harold Ormsby Hocking of

Thursday Island Thursday Island, colloquially known as TI, or in the Kalaw Lagaw Ya, Kawrareg dialect, Waiben or Waibene, is an island of the Torres Strait Islands, an archipelago of at least 274 small islands in the Torres Strait. TI is located approximately ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

with ''Trixen'' becoming part of the Australian Pearling Company fleet and helped transport materials for the construction of the Hammond Island

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

in 1953 during which its crew consisted entirely of Hammond Island residents and was captained by Francis Sabatino. The Hockings returned ''Trixen'' to

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

in the 1960s converting it into a trawler for

prawn Prawn is a common name for small aquatic crustaceans with an exoskeleton An exoskeleton () . is a skeleton that is on the exterior of an animal in the form of hardened integument, which both supports the body's shape and protects the intern ...

and then

crayfish Crayfish are freshwater crustaceans belonging to the infraorder Astacidea, which also contains lobsters. Taxonomically, they are members of the superfamilies Astacoidea and Parastacoidea. They breathe through feather-like gills. Some spe ...

at Lancelin, still part of the Australian Pearling Company. On 29 December 1960 one of its tail shafts broke, it was towed back to shore by the ''Nanango''. By 1970 ''Trixen'' had been converted into a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

yacht A yacht () is a sail- or marine propulsion, motor-propelled watercraft made for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a ...

for Arthur Ernest Lethby on the Swan river and then a salvage boat before being refitted as a

ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...

for use between

Garden Island A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate both ...

and Palm Beach until the island was requisitioned by the

navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

in 1973 being moored at

Crawley Edge Boatshed The Crawley Edge Boatshed, commonly referred to as the ''Blue Boat House'', is a boathouse located on the Swan River (Western Australia), Swan River at Crawley, Western Australia, Crawley in Perth, Western Australia. A well-known landmark, the ...

for a while afterwards. ''Trixen'' sank in the mid-1970s at its moorings in the Swan river at Maylands, but was salvaged at a cost of $310 by the Maritime Archaeology Association of Western Australia on behalf of Les Penny on 31 March 1981 who donated the vessel to the

in July 1981 and was placed in storage. Until 1986 when the hull was refurbished under the direction of Jay Lawry with plans to return it to operational status with funding provided by a Commonwealth Employment Program Grant, ''Trixen'' being offered to the '' Leeuwin'' Ocean Adventure Foundation. It was restored to its 1949 pearling condition under the direction of Bill Leonard and Ray Miller with help from Jeff Beale, Bill Leonard, Don Cockerell and Alex Kilpa, going on display in 2002{{Cite web , date=2002 , title=2001-2002 Annual Report , url=https://www.parliament.wa.gov.au/publications/tabledpapers.nsf/displaypaper/3620318a5cb167f5b8f56fe348256c5400277751/$file/culturearts02.pdf , access-date=22 October 2024 , website=Department of Culture and the Arts , page=90 before moving to the present building in 2010. During its service life ''Trixen'' went through no less than five conversions, it has also operated in all major pearling locations in Australia. ''Trixen'' was also at one time owned by

state treasurer In the state and territorial governments of the United States, 54 of the 56 states and territories have the executive position of treasurer. New York abolished the office of New York State Treasurer in 1926, in which the duties were transfer ...

Philip Collier Philip Collier (21 April 1873 – 18 October 1948) was an Australian politician who served as the 14th Premier of Western Australia from 1924 to 1930 and from 1933 to 1936. He was leader of the Labor Party from 1917 to 1936, and is Western Aus ...

References

Luggers 1901 – World War I ships of Australia Motorboats Ships of Western Australia Ferries of Western Australia Museum ships in Australia Ships built in Western Australia 1904 ships Maritime incidents in 1960 Maritime incidents in the 1970s