Shipbuilding at Huskisson

Tall, straight timber and the deep harbour attracted George Dent to Jervis Bay.

He moved his family from the Georges River area to Huskisson in 1861. George had been a timber-getter for the boat-builders on the Georges River in Sydney. Two of his sons, George Junior and Joseph became boat builders while his other two sons, James and William worked in the bush finding and felling the right timber for the boatbuilding.

William Wood joined George Dent Senior in the first shipyard, and later set up his own yard with other shipwrights joining them over the years. In the 1880s, George Dent Junior set up a new yard, and at the turn of the century Joseph Dent did likewise. It was in his shipyard that the Lady Denman was built.

The Settree family arrived in Huskisson in 1932, by which time the Dent Shipyards had ceased operation. Alfred William Settree was followed by his son Alfred Raymond (Alf Settree, OA), and in turn by Alfred Raymond's sons, John and Trevor. The last timber Settree vessel, the Tasman Sea, launched in 1979, was built by John Settree. The Tasman Sea was a feature of the Huskisson wharf until 2005, used as a fishing and charter vessel.

There have been at least five different boatbuilding sites at various times on the shores of Currambene Creek between the grounds of the Lady Denman Heritage Complex and Huskisson Wharf. The tools displayed in the museum came from the Dent and Settree boatbuilding sheds. The timber floor in this part of the museum was constructed by Alf Settree and is an example of the type of timber decking that was built by the early boatbuilders. There are no nails in the floor. Wooden dowelling has been used and the oakum fibre, which comes from coconuts, has been tamped with a caulking iron. Tar or pitch was then used to seal between each plank, making it watertight.

"Spying out" was a term for looking for timber of the right shape for certain parts used in boatbuilding, such as the 'breasthook' which was used in the bow of the ship. Spying out was a skill at which James Dent was particularly good.

Timber used for wooden-hulled boats was Ironbark or Spotted Gum for keels and usually Beechwood for decking. Spotted Gum was used because of its bending qualities for planking. The timber was passed through a steam box and bent to the required shape, then secured into position. Blackbutt and Ironbark were used for stringers.

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