Places/ferrycapstan.html
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See also: ferries.
Ferry Capstan Base
The ferry capstan base is between the railway bridge and the wooden road traffic bridge on the south side of Beach Street. It was probably built by convict labour in the 1850s and may have been used both to drive a hawser-drawn ferry across the river, and also to pull river craft up onto the bank for maintenance.
Library:
Max Bousfield is standing on the capstan [base] located on the riverbank adjacent to the Traffic Bridge. The capstan was used to haul barges back and forward across the river before Fremantle's first traffic bridge opened on 21st November 1866. Ref. no. 4698, nd [c. 1970?]
Edward Sim RE reports using the hawser ferry during his time in Fremantle (1858-1862) as follows:
The railway to Perth crosses the Swan River by a fine bridge below the road bridge, built perhaps twenty-five years before; in my time there was only a ferry worked by convicts, a punt on a hawser, at which I had been nearly drowned while the convicts were repairing it after a storm in 1861. (Sim 1897: 20)
The ferry capstan base near the river beneath Cantonment Hill acquired more importance in 2020 when Mains Road was planning the new traffic bridge and gave its location as one reason for not building the new bridge between the existing one and the rail bridge.
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The caption for this 1927 photo from the Western Mail reads: "Near the Fremantle traffic bridge are the remains of the old capstan where the convicts, ten men on a bar, used to pull up the old "Black Swan," the first dredge used on the river."
Heritage Council website:
The Ferry Capstan Base is located to south western embankment of the bridge, towards the base of the embankment on Beach Street. The embankment comprises a grassed area to Beach Street and shrubs to the upper section adjoining Queen Victoria Street. A concrete path winds up the embankment to the south of the capstan base.
The capstan base is almost completely hidden from view by vegetation, which has grown on and around it. It comprises a circular limestone base approximately 6 to 8 metres in diameter, which sits proud of the embankment at its north western side. The base is supported by dressed limestone blocks, approximately 400mm high ranging in size from 400mm to 700mm in length, arranged in a circular pattern. The base has a cementitious screed applied across its surface. A slight indent is visible in the centre of the base.
The Ferry Capstan Base is in a poor condition and has been only intermittently maintained. The growth of vegetation and the cementitious screed are contributing to deterioration of the fabric.
The physical evidence was prepared by Palassis Architects for the Heritage Council of Western Australia’s Register of Heritage Places Assessment Documentation for Fremantle Traffic Bridge and Ferry Capstan Base (2006). It has been slightly edited here.
The date of construction and particulars of use for the Ferry Capstan Base are unknown. Ferry services were established at strategic points along the Swan River from the earliest years of the Swan River Colony. Early maps of Fremantle do not show the capstan and no documentary evidence has been located [ref 2006 HCWA documentation] that provides insight into the workings of the structure. It is generally believed that the ferry capstan was connected to a ferry boat by a moving rope cable. The wood and iron capstan rotated around a vertical axle in the centre, supposedly moved by 10 convicts (according to some accounts; by animals according to others). It is also generally held that the capstan and hauling mechanism was used to tow boats onto the river bank for repairs and maintenance.
For a more detailed account, see the documentary evidence prepared by Wayne Moredount in the Heritage Council of Western Australia’s Register Entry for the Fremantle Traffic Bridge and Ferry Capstan Base (2006).
The capstan base is a rare surviving example of the technology used to haul river vessels in the nineteenth century. It may be the only extant capstan base in Western Australia and is one of a few in Australia.
This statement of significance is based on the Heritage Council of Western Australia’s Register Entry for Fremantle Traffic Bridge and Ferry Capstan Base (2006).
The Ferry Capstan Base has a moderate level of authenticity despite the loss of associated parts. [Heritage Council note]
Photo from the West Australian, 6 April 1962.
Text:
The remains of a turntable capstan, a little known link with the past, overlook the progress of work on the new Fremantle railway bridge.
The capstan was used to haul barges backwards and forwards across the river before Fremantle's first traffic bridge was opened on November 21, 1866.
The capstan is thought to have been worked by convict labour.
Library's comment on the record:
Use of the capstan ended with the building of the North Fremantle bridge in 1866. Pearling luggers were built to the west of this area until the first decade of the twentieth century.
The Whitlam Govt 1972-1978 granted funds under the R.E.D. scheme to restore this facility. The iron work was removed and the sand and rubbish removed from the pit. The ... was discontinued. Unfortunately the absence of the iron capstan in 1986, has meant a link with the ... [photocopy ends]
Photo from the Fremantle Gazette, 14 March 1984.
Text:
Doubt about Historic Blocks
The raised limestone structure in Beach Street, is it the site from where a capstan was used to haul vessels up the slope? Or is it the remains of a block on which convicts were stood to be whipped?
A Fremantle resident contacted the Gazette recently to express concern that this historic site on which she believed convicts had been whipped, could be in danger of being demolished when the proposed road changes are made to Beach Street.
However, some research by the Gazette in co-operation with the staff at the Fremantle Library, has thrown doubt on the purpose of the structure.
An article which appeared in the Western Mail dated April 14, 1927, along with a photograph of the site, states that, “near the Fremantle traffic bridge are the remains of the old capstan where the convicts, ten men on a bar, used to pull up the old ‘Black Swan’ the first dredge on the river.”
A letter to a Fremantle resident from the Department of Marine Archeology also confirms this use. It was believed that the structure was associated with the boat repair yards then operating and that it contained a large winch in the central hole. It appears the winch was used to haul vessels up the slope towards Tilly’s yard and that the circular platform was the walk for the men or animals operating the winch.
That it was used to stand convicts on to be whipped is probably a folk-tale, although convicts were working in the vicinity during the construction of the first traffic bridge which was completed in 1866.
The colony’s best known bushranger, Moondyne Joe (Joseph Lyons) once escaped while working on the bridge which he claimed to have ‘opened'.
Perhaps some harsh treatment was often meted out by the warders to the convicts operating the capstan and this resulted in the talc of the ‘whipping block’.
Whatever its purpose, it is an historic site and the staff at the library would welcome any information about it, phone 335 6422.
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Photo from the Fremantle Gazette, 14 March 1984. >
Caption: The stone blocks (foreground) which were part of the old capstan.
Text:
A part of Fremantle history has become highly visible again on Beach Road, just near the Stirling traffic bridge.
For years the base of the capstan used to pull boats and ferries across the river was hidden from view by a giant Moreton Bay fig tree growing through the centre of the structure.
On the advice of a curator from the WA Maritime Museum, the old tree has been removed to preserve the structure, which undoubtedly has historic significance for Fremantle.
1988 Report
Strategic Planning Committee
6 July 1998
ATTACHMENT 11
FERRY CAPSTAN BASE
Beach Street Fremantle (Historic)
Report on Fabric Condition and Conservation
capstdrvptl doc
INDEX
1.0 Introduction. 4
2.0 Platform Description. 4-5
3.0 Material Description and Condition. 5-6
4.0 Recommendations - Conservation. 6-7
5.0 Photographs 8-10
Photo 1 Capstan base View from east 8
Photo 2 View from north west 8
Photo 3 View from west 9
Photo 4 In situ cut face of limestone blocks 9
Photo 5 Capstan base position in relation to river and possible placement location of a second base on the north side of the Swan River in the area of the coincidence of the railway and traffic bridges 10
Report on Fabric Condition and Conservation
1.0 INTRODUCTION
An early organised method of crossing the Swan River mouth prior to the construction of a bridge was by a ferry connected to a moving rope cable engineered along the lines of a ships anchor capstan on both sides of the river.
The wooden and iron bolted capstan is survived only by several pieces of iron bolts and strips of metal.
The stone and mortar base is still in place on the south side of the river. It is one quarter covered by the Queen Victoria Street earth embankment supporting the road leading to the south end of the Fremantle Bridge.
Access to the capstan base is more convenient from Beach Street
2.0 PLATFORM DESCRIPTION
A capstan base or platform has been constructed opposite the north entrance to the south wharf on stable ground on the south bank of the Swan River immediately upstream of the present Fremantle Harbour, three quarters of the base is exposed and faces the opposite north bank of the Swan River mouth where the opposite capstan may exist below the coincidence of a railway embankment to the west and a road embankment to the east elevating the original ground level by up to five metres.
The strength and stability of placement of the visible southern capstan base makes it probable that a similarly strong and stable capstan case on the north bank would have been left in place by civil works associated with the construction of the railway or roadway, when stability would have been an important construction issue.
The base platform consists of an outer ring of limestone blocks of various sizes with widths ranging from 700mm to 400mm. the blocks are butt joined.
Inside the ring of blocks is a matrix of limestone rubble topped with a mortar the top surface part of which is cementitious.
The construction method involved butt placement of limestone blocks in an approximate circle on well consolidated and partially indurated dune sands. A precise circle was then made by pivoting a rope with an attached point to mark out the circumference line at the outer edge of the placed limestone blocks and then the stone finished by a stonemason to a vertical face and exposed horizontal face.
The internals of the circle of blocks were filled with limestone rubble and at a latter time topped with a cementitious mortar.
A depression in the centre of the capstan base marks the location of a vertical axle around which a wood and iron bolted capstan rotated
3.0 Material Description and Condition
The cut stone examined is consistent with being selected and placed by an experienced stonemason.
Two representative samples of the limestone examined revealed a stone of unusual uniformity in strength and composition within the historical and geological context of the Fremantle area.
Whilst this stone shares the high permeability of limestone quarried below the capstone level the fabric of the limestone shares a uniformity of composition uncommon in much of the limestone used in structures in the Fremantle locality
An examination of the detail in the samples revealed the usual coralline algae together with a ilmenite grain and several grains of a metallic like appearance together with the typical porcelain like grains of carbonate and the translucent grains of quartz.
Cementation between the grams consists of a fine and relatively uniform carbonate coating, however the void spaces between the grains are substantial and are directly related to the uniformity of permeability.
The carbonate grain shape is more rounded than the quartz grains consistent with being due to solution influences.
All the grains were covered with a thin but continuous coating of a lighter colour than either the quartz or the carbonate grains. The continuity of this coating is probably associated with the apparent uniformity of strength encountered in the two samples examined.
The stability of the coating would suggest this carbonate is calcite.
The centre of the circle of stones down to the original consolidated ground level consists of crushed limestone and limestone rubble topped with a cementitious mortar.
It is likely the original lime sands and rubble fill was water consolidated and no doubt would have functioned well due to the ability of crushed limestone to achieve quite high compressive strengths when wet and compacted.
At a later stage it was found necessary to provide a cementitious mortar topping, this has introduced issues which have altered the performance of the original structure.
The original exposed lime sands rubble base would have allowed uniform water penetration and over time this water movement through the carbonate rich material would increase consolidation and the bond between the particles.
However the placement of a cementitious topping whilst having a very strong cohesion with itself has poor adhesion with the limestone. Rainwater is collecting on the cementitious mortar surface and penetrating into the capstan base at the interface between the mortar and the exposed stone blocks. In its present state water will also penetrate into the former capstan pivot hole at the centre of the base.
The concentration of water penetration at these two points are the primary risk to the future stability of the capstan base.
4.0 Recommendations - Conservation
The application of the cementitious topping has altered the uniform movement of water through the capstan base and may have the effect of degrading the base in the area immediately behind the ring of limestone blocks and at the central pivot point where the capstan was originally positioned.
Two options are available to prevent unnecessary degradation -
1. Cover the capstan base with dune sands
2 Effect a sand and rubble consolidation at the two main areas of water penetration by enhancing the bond between sand grains and the bond between individual grains and large pieces of rubble.
This technique would also tend to improve the bond between the cementitious mortar and carbonate materials (sand and rubble).
A further effect would be to reduce the permeability of the cementitious mortar.
The iron remnants of the capstan consisting of fixing bolts and flat straps are still on site and whilst not at risk of rapid corrosion may be removed from site by persons not apprised of their historical significance.
One option would be to partially embed them in a small concrete pedestal. The concrete would certainly preserve the embedded part of the iron materials.
Signed:
BRIAN H CUTLER
Dated: 26 May 1998
FCC 1998
20/07/1998
ITEM NUMBERED SP22 WAS MOVED AND CARRIED EN BLOC EARLIER IN THE MEETING
SP22 BEACH STREET FERRY CAPSTAN BASE: HERITAGE LISTINGS (ATTACHMENT 11)
HERITAGE PLANNER
Purpose
To obtain the protection of heritage listings for the structure by entry on the "City of Fremantle Municipal Heritage Inventory" and referral to the Heritage Council for inclusion on the "Register of Heritage Places ”
Background
A rare limestone structure survives in the Beach Street road reserve adjacent to Gate 3 to the Port and the Fremantle Traffic Bridge. Research suggests that this is the base of a capstan used to winch a barge back and forth across the river, as a colonial ferry crossing predating the various bridge crossings.
The reservation is in the care of the City but planning of various port access options has been an ongoing Main Roads concern for some years.
Interim materials conservation advice has recently been given by the Heritage Planner in City bush regeneration works about the base, raising questions as to the long term viability of its conservation in the face of encroachment of vegetation, irrigation and stormwater runoff.
Heritage Council staff have expressed interest in the registration of the structure as part of the entire Inner Harbour maritime precinct heritage inventory question.
A report has been commissioned to identify materials conservation issues and the viability of long term survival as a pre-requisite to registration.
Comment
The structure is considered to have very high cultural heritage significance as defined in the Heritage of Western Australia Act 1990 for its aesthetic, historic, historical and scientific (technological) values.
The site in August 2020 - almost completely overgrown.
The capstan base in relation to the railway bridge and entrance to the working port across Beach Street. August 2020.
The capstan base in relation to Cantonment Hill on which the former Signal Station may be seen in the background. The stone base can just be seen as a white line across the middle of the photo, as the stone elevation is mostly in shadow. August 2020.
At 1 May 2022 the foliage has been cleared from the base, and some **** has tagged it.
References and Links
Heritage Council - from which all of the above data come.
Western Mail, 14 April 1927.
Brief report of the 1998 'rediscovery' of the base in the Fremantle History Society newsletter, Autumn 1998.
Sim, Edward 1897, Our Travels around the World, Alexander & Shepheard, London: 20.
See also: ferries.
Appendix:
Heritage Council: Fremantle Traffic Bridge and Ferry Capstan Base
Statement of Significance
Fremantle Traffic Bridge and Ferry Capstan Base collectively mark the crossing of the Swan River between Fremantle and North Fremantle and the transition from the Swan River to Fremantle Harbour.
Constructed in 1939, the Fremantle Traffic Bridge is located at a site that has been a river crossing point since 1866, when an earlier bridge was built by convict labour. The convict built bridge was replaced in 1898 when Fremantle Harbour was developed as part of the expansion of public works in Western Australia funded by the Gold Boom of the 1890s.
The existing (1939) bridge is on the same site as the 1898 bridge and demonstrates the continued use of timber in bridge building in Western Australia into the 1930s, when its qualities were well understood and was low cost compared to other materials. The bridge was designed by engineer E W (Ernie) Godfrey, who was in charge of the Bridge Section of Main Roads from 1928 until his retirement in 1957. Godfrey was responsible for the design of all bridges built in Western Australia, and the construction of major bridges such as this, during this period.
The capstan base is a rare surviving example of the technology used to haul river vessels in the nineteenth century. It may be the only extant capstan base in Western Australia and is one of a few in Australia.
The light fixtures to the vehicular deck and the 1991/92 safety rails (although designed to be sympathetic to the original bridge design) are of little significance.
This statement of significance is based on the Heritage Council of Western Australia’s Register Entry for Fremantle Traffic Bridge and Ferry Capstan Base (2006).
History
The date of construction and particulars of use for the Ferry Capstan Base are unknown. Ferry services were established at strategic points along the Swan River from the earliest years of the Swan River Colony. Early maps of Fremantle do not show the capstan and no documentary evidence has been located [ref 2006 HCWA documentation] that provides insight into the workings of the structure. It is generally believed that the ferry capstan was connected to a ferry boat by a moving rope cable. The wood and iron capstan rotated around a vertical axle in the centre, supposedly moved by 10 convicts (according to some accounts; by animals according to others). It is also generally held that the capstan and hauling mechanism was used to tow boats onto the river bank for repairs and maintenance.
Designs for a traffic bridge across the Swan River at North Fremantle were prepared under the direction of James Manning and Captain Grain of the Royal Engineers in 1863. Located adjacent to and upstream from the Queen Victoria Avenue Jetty, convict labour was used for the construction. The bridge sloped upwards (the hump) to allow for ships to pass underneath and due to the design and amount of timber used, it was commonly referred to as the ‘Bridge of Styx’. The bridge was officially opened on 21 November 1866 and regulations were introduced to control traffic over the bridge. Only milch cows and oxen were to be driven over the bridge during the hours of 8am and 10pm – other stock had to be driven during the night.
The bridge was found to be unsafe in the early 1890s, and in 1898, a second was built alongside the 1866 bridge as a low level road bridge. The old bridge was closed to all but pedestrian traffic. The new bridge was intended as a temporary structure but no further action was taken until 1908 when the Fremantle and North Fremantle councils wanted to extend the tramway system to North Fremantle. After investigation, it was decided to ‘renovate’ the old bridge, which was cut down to remove the hump and widened to allow for both cars and trams. The low level bridge closed in June 1909 and was later demolished, although the northern approaches were used by fishermen until the 1920s.
Until the 1920s, trains had provided the most popular form of public transport, but from then on, parlour coaches, buses and taxis run by private firms became increasingly common along the Perth to Fremantle road.
By the mid-1930s, the bridge was in poor condition and Ernie W Godfrey, Main Roads Bridge Engineer, designed a replacement bridge. Estimated to cost £78,000, the bridge was designed as a temporary structure (though with a lifespan of 40 years), as it was thought that it would be demolished should the Port of Fremantle expand.
Work on the new structure commenced in May 1937. The jarrah supporting piers were up to 65 feet long and were encased in concrete sleeves to protect them against marine borers. The bridge was 720 feet long with a 40 foot roadway between the curbs and a 6 foot footpath. There were three navigation openings in the middle of the bridge, and essential services such as water and gas mains and electricity cables were installed under the roadway. The majority of the bridge above the waterline was constructed of timber: wandoo stringers and jarrah bearers under a deck of jarrah. Ornamental concrete pylons topped by cast bronze lanterns were placed on the approaches to the bridge. Safety precautions for pedestrians consisted of a mesh and timber post fence topped with wrought iron handrails.
Officially called the Fremantle-North Fremantle Traffic Bridge, the new bridge was opened by Premier J C Willcock on 15 December 1939 (although it was not completed until early the following year). The ceremony was held on the north side of the river. Being war time, the Government delayed the plan to demolish the old 1866 bridge in case the new bridge was damaged in an enemy attack.
In 1992, the Fremantle Gazette reported that $1.3 million had been spent on major repairs to the bridge, including safety railing, replacement of piles and timber supports.
The original bridge was demolished in 1947 and the southern approach in 1951. Jarrah posts cut off below the water are all that remain of the 1866 bridge. These are located on the northern bank, to the east of the existing bridge.
For a more detailed account, see the documentary evidence prepared by Wayne Moredount in the Heritage Council of Western Australia’s Register Entry for the Fremantle Traffic Bridge and Ferry Capstan Base (2006).
Physical Description
Fremantle Traffic Bridge is located across the Swan River between Fremantle and North Fremantle and marks the transition of the Swan River (to the east) in to Fremantle Harbour (to the west). The bridge carries traffic on Queen Victoria Street across the river in both the north and south directions. At the southern end, Beach Street runs along the embankment and under the bridge. The Ferry Capstan Base is located on the western side of this southern embankment.
The northern embankment to the bridge is retained by a limestone wall to the east and bartered to the west, and runs directly into the river. An access stair with timber treads and galvanized metal handrails is located on the eastern side of the northern embankment. The southern embankment, accessed at its base from Beach Street, and from the top (on the eastern side) by concrete steps with galvanized metal handrails.
Fremantle Traffic Bridge (1939) is 222.9 metres in length and 14.23 metres wide. It has a predominantly timber superstructure with a flat bituminised concrete deck carrying four lanes of traffic and a concrete pedestrian deck. The vehicular deck is approximately 12 metres wide and is marked with painted lines for the two lanes of traffic in each direction. Metal safety rails are located to either side of the vehicular deck. Standard Main Roads lights are located at fixed intervals to the eastern side. The concrete pedestrian deck, which is approximately 2 metres wide, is located to the western side of the bridge. It has a timber, steel and wire mesh handrail, which is distinguished by the white painted handrail posts, which have curved heads, and the circular steel rails.
The north and south abutments to the bridge are painted reinforced concrete. The abutments, which have bartered wings are tapered back to the top of the embankments. The bridge is defined by four pillars, which mark the entry points to the bridge, rising from the abutments. These painted, square concrete pillars have moulded string courses and are adorned with distinctive lanterns, capped by hooded bronze spheres.
The circular timber piles which form the superstructure of the bridge have concrete bases. Each of the concrete bases has been fitted with a pair of galvanized metal straps around the circumference. The timber piles, which are predominately jarrah, have been inscribed with roman numerals. While varying in size they are approximately 450mm in diameter. They are set in rows, called piers. There are a set of thirteen piers of seven timber piles each supporting the northern end of the bridge and a set of eleven piers of seven timber piles each supporting the southern end of the bridge. These sets of piers are half-capped and cross-braced, above the high water line, with sawn timber.
Ten rows of circular timber stringers, reinforced by timber corbels, are carried by the timber piles. A section of stringers to the southern end of the bridge has been replaced with steel I beams. Timber joists and bearers support the concrete deck, which has a concrete kerb. Timber access planks with galvanized metal handrails provide access at water level to the piers from either end. These access planks are well utilised by local residents for recreational fishing.
The central section of the bridge has two navigation spans approximately 16 metres wide with a central span of approximately 12.5 metres wide. This central section of the bridge comprises four double pile piers with nine pairs of timber piles each. These piers support a system of five riveted steel girders across each of the navigation spans. Steel bearers are fixed to the girders across the width of the bridge and are sway braced to both sides of the bridge. Concrete fenders have been constructed to the double pile piers to prevent river vessels from striking the timber piles.
The Ferry Capstan Base is located to south western embankment of the bridge, towards the base of the embankment on Beach Street. The embankment comprises a grassed area to Beach Street and shrubs to the upper section adjoining Queen Victoria Street. A concrete path winds up the embankment to the south of the capstan base.
The capstan base is almost completely hidden from view by vegetation, which has grown on and around it. It comprises a circular limestone base approximately 6 to 8 metres in diameter, which sits proud of the embankment at its north western side. The base is supported by dressed limestone blocks, approximately 400mm high ranging in size from 400mm to 700mm in length, arranged in a circular pattern. The base has a cementitious screed applied across its surface. A slight indent is visible in the centre of the base.
The Fremantle Traffic Bridge (1939) is in a good condition and shows evidence of ongoing maintenance and repairs. The Ferry Capstan Base is in a poor condition and has been only intermittently maintained. The growth of vegetation and the cementitious screed are contributing to deterioration of the fabric.
The physical evidence was prepared by Palassis Architects for the Heritage Council of Western Australia’s Register of Heritage Places Assessment Documentation for Fremantle Traffic Bridge and Ferry Capstan Base (2006). It has been slightly edited here.
Integrity/Authenticity
Fremantle Traffic Bridge has a moderate to high level of authenticity. Some timber elements in the superstructure have been replaced with timber and steel components; concrete bases have been installed to timber piles; concrete fenders fitted to navigation piers and the deck has been overlaid with bituminised concrete. The handrails and light fittings on the deck have been replaced.
The Ferry Capstan Base has a moderate level of authenticity despite the loss of associated parts.
Condition
Fremantle Traffic Bridge is in a fair condition. It shows evidence of ongoing maintenance and repairs. The Ferry Capstan Base is in poor condition, having been only intermittently maintained. The screed cement applied to the top of the capstan and overgrowing vegetation are contributing to the deterioration of the fabric.
This page incorporates material from Garry Gillard's Freotopia website, that he started in 2014 and the contents of which he donated to Wikimedia Australia in 2024. The content was originally created on 16 August, 2020 and hosted at freotopia.org/places/ferrycapstan.html (it was last updated on 15 April, 2024). The donated data is also preserved in the Internet Archive's collection.