Guardians of the Port: Hobart’s Colonial Pilots

From the first days of Hobart Town, the primary role of pilots was to protect the port and its shipping. This entailed a variety of duties – looking after government boats, exploring and reporting on the waterways and pursuing and sometimes capturing escaped convicts who often stole boats. Incoming ships were not to be boarded by anyone but the pilot or later the Health Officer to try and ensure goods weren’t smuggled ashore. Ships had to be checked for illnesses and if infected were taken to the quarantine areas, first off Snug and later off Sandy Bay. On departure ships were searched several times to ensure there were no convicts trying to escape or other unauthorized persons aboard. Ships were escorted to the Iron Pot, the outer limit of the port to ensure no one boarded.

Colonial pilots were important members of the often isolated communities, with hospitality and assistance being both expected and offered. Their story is also that of the development of the port and its shipping, the social life of the time and the changing form of shipping that arrived and goods that left.

Guardians of the Port is Suzanne Smythe’s second book with Forty South Publishing following on from her extremely popular, History of the Iron Pot.

PB 266 pages