Images(2)

Wallagarugh

Vessel numberHV000425

Vessel Registration NumberEC69

Previous owner Symes Family

Builder J J Savage

Previous owner Lakes Entrance Salmon Fishing Company

Previous owner Bulls Shipyard

Date1913

DimensionsVessel Dimensions: 9.45 m x 9.45 m x 2.9 m x 0.76 m, 5.08 tonnes (31 ft x 31 ft x 9.5 ft x 2.5 ft, 5 tons)

DescriptionWALLAGARUGH was built at Savage's yard in Williamstown and the first recorded owner was the Symes family, who were associated with the Melbourne Age newspaper. The next known owner was the Lakes Entrance Fishing Company. WALLAGARUGH is now with another business on the lake, where it is their workboat and rescue boat for their cruiser hire fleet. In its time it has carried cargo, towed barges, and has been used as a fishing boat or for the occasional recreational adventure.

The 9.45 m long hull is planked in Huon pine on blackwood frames. The cabin house it carries today is evident in a 1960s image; however the windscreen and cabin top over the cockpit are more recent additions.

Between 2003 and 2008 it was extensively overhauled. WALLAGARUGH remains in good condition in 2010, and is close to marking its centenary year of operation.
SignificanceWALLAGARUGH is a launch and workboat designed and built in 1913 by JJ Savage that has a long association with the Victorian Gippsland Lakes region, where it is still operating in 2010. WALLAGARUGH has been a work boat, rescue boat, fishing boat and recreational launch from the early days of the Gippsland Lakes area. It also represents one of many types of craft from JJ Savage whose family have been boatbuilders on Port Phillip in Victoria for over 100 years.