SAHA 2 | Shore Whalers of Western Australia: Historical Archaeology of a Maritime Frontier

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The Shore Whalers of Western Australia: Historical Archaeology of a Maritime Frontier, Martin Gibbs, 2010

Studies in Australasian Historical Archaeology 2

Every winter between 1836 to 1879 small wooden boats left the bays of southwest Western Australia to hunt for migrating Humpback and Right whales. In the early years of European settlement these small shore whaling parties and the whale oil they produced were an important part of the colonial economy, yet over time their significance diminished until they virtually vanished from the documentary record.

Using archival research and archaeological evidence, The Shore Whalers of Western Australia examines the history and operation of this almost forgotten industry on the remote maritime frontier of the British Empire and the role of the whalers in the history of early contact between Europeans and Aboriginal people.

About the author

Professor Martin Gibbs is a professor in the School of Humanities at the University of New England.