Ship Building in Tasmania
From Engineering Heritage Australia
Ship building commenced in the early years of the colony of Van Diemans Land. Poor roads, where they could be constructed, and a ready availability of good timber and cheap labour led to a shipbuilding as a ready means of transport. The most famous of the early shipyards was established at the wild and inhospitable West Coast Macquarie Harbour. Convicts were free labour and the was a ready supply of one of the best shipbuilding timbers, Huon Pine. The most famous vessel from the yard was the last. When it was completed it was seized by the convicts and sailed to South America.
