The MV Cape Don
Crew at
Work
National Archives of Australia Collection

NAA: A1200 L45610
Painting the Point Charles Tower |
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Series number A6247
Title Glass plate copy negatives of Australian coastal
lighthouses
NB: I am only showing those images with Lighthouse
tender crew working on them on this page. See more NAA Lighthouse images.

NAA: A6247, L45670
Leseur Island |

NAA: A6247, A3/3
Airlie Island |
Series number A1200 Title
Photographic negatives and prints, single number series with 'L' [Library]
prefix
The date attributed to this series
of images is 1963, the first year of MV Cape Don as the Lighthouse Tender
servicing WA and NT. Certainly, some of the images appear very posed and may well
have been a promotional set of images taken on the Cape Don's maiden voyage.

NAA: A1200, L45611
Point Charles NT |

NAA: A1200, L45619
Marshall Shoals Buoy, NT |

NAA: A1200, L45621
Roper Rock Buoy, |

NAA: A1200, L45648
Captain Griffiths |

NAA: A1200, L45649
Captain Griffiths |

NAA: A1200, L45657
Bosun W. Osborne hoisting the 'not in command' signal |

NAA: A1200, L45714
Getting from... |

NAA: A1200, L45715
....
point A to... |

NAA: A1200, L45716
...point B takes teamwork. |

NAA: A1200, L45717
close up of buoy work |

NAA: A1200, L45625
New
Year Island NT |

NAA: A1200, L45629
New
Year Island NT |

NAA: A1200, l45658
Engine room |

NAA: A1200, L45665
Degerando Island landing point |

NAA: A1200, L45666
Carrying supplies to the site |

NAA: A1200
Repositioning the Medusa Buoy |

NAA: A1200, L45667
Monorail on Degerando Island |

NAA: A1200, L45668
Monorail on Degerando Island
|
Time to relax in the cabin and enjoy your hobbies
and time off. Most steaming between points of call was done overnight. While the
ship was away for about 3 months at a time there would be several crew changes
in that time.

NAA: A1200, L45613
Assistant Chef Les Challiss with bread |

NAA: A1200, L45617
Happy Birthday Matt |

NAA: A1200, L45613
Matt Carr in his cabin
NB:
The chair on which Matt is sitting are still on board the
Cape Don today while she is being
restored in Sydney. |
Series number A8763 Title
Photographic colour negatives, single number with 'KN' [Colour Negatives] prefix
Cape Don crew work was varied - anything from the
specialist work of the mechanical and electrical engineers to delivering
Correspondence School of the Air lessons, clearing the vegetation from the
immediate area, the never ending chipping, antirusting and painting of steel
components, repairing anything from a gas leak to installing new solar panels to
fitting bird spikes to sunvalves, transferring Keepers and their families and
other visitors, delivering supplies to remote Keepers, building new lighthouse
installations, replacing batteries, transferring fuel and water, check and
replace tower bolts and even resupply emergency food supply locations. The work
itinerary was planned prior to leaving. At all times they were involved in the
maintenance of lights of the coast of WA and NT, inspecting each light as they
arrived and making recommendations as to the need for future work itineraries.
With the demanning and automation of lights, the work continued although now
without the contact with the Keepers and their families, and included tasks such
as installing helipads preparing for the end of an era of Lighthouse Tenders.

NAA: A8763
Changing the mantle at? Cape Don? |

NAA: A8763 KN22823
Burning off at Adele Island |

NAA: A8763
Mending the CLS ensign |

NAA: A8763, KN22834
LARC beside Point Charles Light, NT |

NAA: A8763, KN22833
Ropers Rock Buoy work
|

NAA: A8763, KN22831
Charles Patch Buoy NT |
|