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Original Dinghy Built
by Reg Fazackerley
The Rusich’s Bow
The first of many wooden ships to sail up
the Derwent River was the Lady Nelson in
1803. She was a double-masted, square
rigger known as a ‘Brig’. Aboard were
the crew and first settlers, as well as ten
convicts and three soldiers, that had been
sent to Van Dieman’s Land.
The original ship was lost with all its crew
in 1825, after it was captured by pirates
near Timor. The replica that appeared
at the festival was built in 1988 using
Tasmanian Blue Gum for the keel and
frames, Celery Top Pine decking and masts
of Oregon Pine grown in Tasmania. The
Lady Nelson is based in Hobart and was
one of the stars of the show during the
festival, along with the restored James
Craig, the beautiful Brigantine Windeward
Bound and the Enterprize from Melbourne.
The story of how the Windeward Bound
came to be is one of great tenacity and
belief. The ship was built by the captain,
Sarah Parry and a small group of volunteers
in the 1990s.The hull is strip planked
Swamp Gum and is constructed entirely
from salvaged and recycled material that
Sarah and her crew were able to collect.
Much of it came from old timber ships
awaiting demolition.
The ship is based in Hobart and is now a
sailing training vessel and has guided many
young people into a maritime career. The
crew work with many of the city’s troubled
youth to help restore a sense of belief
in themselves. Sarah explained that she
always knew that this was the real purpose
of the Windeward Bound.
At the opposite end of the scale, the Maritime
Museum in Hobart mounted a display of
exceptional clinker-built dinghies by prolific
local boat builder Reg Fazackerley. These
dinghies epitomise the romantic image of
traditional wooden boats with their curved
planks, ribs and copper roves.
It is believed that Reg built over 100
vessels, the first when he was only 16
years old. They were built using only hand
tools and he worked entirely by eye. Peta
Knott of the Maritime Museum of Tasmania
has been researching the life and work of
Fazackerley. His boats are highly prized and
are now collector’s items with significant
value. The main characteristics of his
dinghies include Huon or King Billy Pine
planks and no ribs forward of the thwart.
(cross brace that also serves as a seat).
The nails are typically clenched below the
thwart riser, then roved above it. One very
endearing feature is the oak knees that
act as braces, they are cut from naturally
grown timber to utilise the strength of the
curved wood grain that grows in tension or
compression and give support where there
is a natural bend or crook in a tree. Using
the properties naturally present in the timber
is a very traditional method of construction
and marks this style of boatbuilding apart
from the more contemporary approach
of laminating. Reg’s dinghies also have a
distinctive curvature to the transom, but
most telling of all, he usually signed and
dated each one with the initials R.F. under
one of the seats.
After a presentation by Peta Knott about
the work of Reg Fazackerley, we met
Bruce Miller who built a clinker dinghy in
1967 under Reg’s tutelage. Bruce told
the wonderful story of the process they
went through together to build his one
and only boat. He still owns it today and
remembers the experience with great
fondness. The dinghy has become a
significant part of his family’s history.
By the end of the four days, it felt as though
some of the people and the boats at the
festival were becoming old friends.
There are many clubs and community
groups that work to faithfully resurrect and
maintain Australia’s maritime heritage.
There is a list of these groups on our
website so if you feel compelled to look
them up, I strongly encourage you to do
so. At the very least you will meet some
interesting people.
Go to the Develop and Discover section of
our website for more stories and images.