Another historic seaside resort with a maritime culture and gorgeous! Can’t believe how busy the southern coasts of Victoria and South Australia were in the 19th century - the legacy - beautiful scenic towns and villages with great ambience, charm and atmosphere.
Robe perches between the Southern Ocean and the southern end of Guichen Bay about 350kms south east of Adelaide.This charming seaside town has a very interesting and colourful history that goes back to the 1840’s and by appearances, has changed little since the late 19th century.
We enjoyed the afternoon taking in the beauty and the history of this charming town - the Information Centre has a great pictorial display of the town’s development; the Customs House has a wonderful display of the town when it was a very busy port, outlining it’s colourful early history - shipwrecks, smuggling and immigrants ; and a stroll along the main street and historic Smillie Street dose you with that 19th century charm! There are over 84 historic buildings and sites and special care has been taken to restore most of the original buildings. Well done Robe!
Nicolas Baudin, a French explorer first viewed the bay in1802 and the township of Robe was settled later that year, the bay being named after Admiral de Guichen. Governor Robe surveyed the town in 1846 and proclaimed the county of Robe. 1847 Robe was declared a port and wool began to arrive for shipment. A pioneer agent, George Ormerod, established himself as Robe’s shipping agent and by 1856 Robe was the second major out-port, with a direct shipping link between Australia and England. A very diligent HM Customs officer, Henry Dudley Melville kept the port of "Robetown" humming smoothly from 1857-1872.
The Chinese flocked to the Victorian goldfields through this port. A lucrative business for ship’s captains who brought them in thousands. They would stay in Robe for a short time to avoid the Victorian poll tax, before paying local guides to take them 150kms to the unguarded border and another 400km to the goldfields. At its peak 17,000 Chinese were in Robe. They gave a great economic impetus to the town, and although Redcoat soldiers were sent to keep order, fears of lawlessness were unfounded.
1870 Robe declined as a thriving port for various reasons, the construction of the railway to Port Caroline - now Kingston - in 1878 being the most significant. “Robe was closed as a port and became a quiet little country village” wrote AH Barrowman. And that is just how it is today for all visitors to enjoy!
A great holiday destination for lots of reasons - bays, beaches, lakes, pubs, cafes, restaurants, trendy shops of all descriptions, galleries, walking trails, golf....the list goes on!
Pics to come
No comments:
Post a Comment