Whaling on the South Coast - a talk by Adam Wolfe

Drift whaling, the harvesting of the windfall arrival of dead whales on the shore, has been part of the traditional community life on the south coast for thousands of years, with evidence that in on occasion, non-Aboriginal people also engaged in the practice. Subsequently, and meeting different and commercial focused needs, shore, bay and pelagic whaling developed resulting in Albany and the surrounding coastal waters, and adjoining ocean depths, becoming a favoured whaling ground for 19th century British, American, French and Australian whalers.

In the 20th century the Norwegians took the initiative and in the post war years two Albany based whaling companies were established. One would become the ultimate persona of the Australian whaling industry.

This talk considers the technical and practical aspects of whaling, while reflecting on local economic, social, and cultural influences on the local community.