The Long Jetty Excavation Report 1994

Author/s D. Garratt

Year of publication 1994

Report Number: 78

Introduction
In July 1984 the Western Australian Maritime Museum became aware of plans to build a marina in the vicinity of the Long Jetty. Challenger Harbour (as it was named), was designed for the yachts of the contenders for the America's Cup Challenge in 1987.

The plans showed that a significant portion of the visible remains of the jetty would be covered by the northern groyne of thc ncw harbour. The expected time to the beginning of construction was one month, In what was effectively a case of salvage archaeology, the Museum instigated an immediate assessment of the impact of the harbour works on the jetty area. The project co-ordinator, Mike McCarthy was allocated a budget of $2,000 to complete the project.

Time constraints necessitated that the archival research was to run concurrently with the excavation process. The author wa~ responsible for conducting the archival research and producing a report outlining the historical significance of the Long Jetty and the Bathers Bay area.

The aims of the project were to map the remaining jetty structure, ascertain the spread of material and to gauge the extent to which it would be covered or disturbed by the development. A sampling of artefacts were later catalogued, conserved and prepared for display for public information and study purposes. Due to the enhanced public awareness created by the Long Jetty display and various press reports (see Appendix A), pressure was brought to bear to force the realignment of the harbour works so that only a small section of the jetty would be affected.