Point Cloates
Encyclopedia
Point Cloates, Western Australia
, is situated off North West Cape
of Western Australia
..
Cloates island remained on marine charts and world maps until late in the 18th Century. The Guthrie world map published in 1785 maps out the voyages of Captain James Cook
and shows "Cloats" Island in 97 degrees East
longitude, due south of Keeling Island, some 16 degrees west of its true position. Tryall Rocks is shown further east in 20 degrees south
latitude. These anomalies are largely due to the account of captain Brooke of the Tryall
who sailed along this coast of Western Australia in 1622 on the way to the East Indies
. The Tryall was then wrecked on the 22 May, on the rocks that now bear the name of the ship, to the north of the Montebello Islands
. Brookes claimed he sailed his skiff from the wreck site in a north-easterly direction reaching the coast of Java. Cartographers extrapolated the position of Cloates Island and the Tryall rocks from Brooke's account.
Ida Lee
writes that:
From 1912 the Western Australian Government granted a license to a Norwegian company to operate whaling stations at Frenchman's Bay near Albany
and Point Cloates (then known as Norwegian Bay). (Refer to the article on Whaling in Western Australia
.)
In 2005 the ruins of Point Cloates lighthouse, built in 1910, were listed in the Western Australian register of heritage places.
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
, is situated off North West Cape
North West Cape
North West Cape is a large peninsula of land in the north west coast of Western Australia. Cape Range runs down the spine of the peninsula and Ningaloo Reef runs along the western edge...
of Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
..
Cloates island remained on marine charts and world maps until late in the 18th Century. The Guthrie world map published in 1785 maps out the voyages of Captain James Cook
James Cook
Captain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
and shows "Cloats" Island in 97 degrees East
97th meridian east
The meridian 97° east of Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, Asia, the Indian Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole....
longitude, due south of Keeling Island, some 16 degrees west of its true position. Tryall Rocks is shown further east in 20 degrees south
20th parallel south
The 20th parallel south is a circle of latitude that is 20 degrees south of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses the Atlantic Ocean, Africa, the Indian Ocean, Australasia, the Pacific Ocean and South America....
latitude. These anomalies are largely due to the account of captain Brooke of the Tryall
Tryall
The Tryall was a British East India Company owned East Indiaman of approximately 500 tons. She was under the command of John Brooke when she was wrecked on the Tryal Rocks off the north-west coast of Western Australia in 1622...
who sailed along this coast of Western Australia in 1622 on the way to the East Indies
East Indies
East Indies is a term used by Europeans from the 16th century onwards to identify what is now known as Indian subcontinent or South Asia, Southeastern Asia, and the islands of Oceania, including the Malay Archipelago and the Philippines...
. The Tryall was then wrecked on the 22 May, on the rocks that now bear the name of the ship, to the north of the Montebello Islands
Montebello Islands
The Montebello Islands, also known as the Monte Bello Islands, are an archipelago of around 174 small islands lying north of Barrow Island and off the Pilbara coast of north-western Australia. Montebello is Italian for "beautiful mountain"...
. Brookes claimed he sailed his skiff from the wreck site in a north-easterly direction reaching the coast of Java. Cartographers extrapolated the position of Cloates Island and the Tryall rocks from Brooke's account.
Ida Lee
Ida Lee
Ida Louisa Lee, , historian and poet, was born at Kelso, New South Wales. She was a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Australian Historical Society...
writes that:
There is a curious silence among historians regarding Cloates Island, or Cloates Doubtful Island, off Western Australia, yet to sailors in olden days it was an island of mystery; and for English sea captains who made it their duty to fall in with New Holland it possessed a peculiar attraction. They looked for it and wrote about it in their log-books more than any other part of the continent, because for years people were wont to disbelieve in its existence too. Owing to the hidden trendings in the coast and the elbow that is formed in its outline where they first sighted land a difficult problem was presented to one sailor after another which none could solve.
...Early explorers had passed along this portion of the coast, though none had named the point until in 1719 it was suddenly christened Cloates Island, and Cloates Island it remained until a hundred years later, when King proved it to be a peninsulaPeninsulaA peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....
. This supposed island was discovered by Captain Nash (possibly an Englishman), in command of a FlemishFlandersFlanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
ship, the "House of Austria," bound from OstendOstendOstend is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke , Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the largest on the Belgian coast....
to ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. On seeing it he wrote in his journal: 'Being clear weather brought to, sounded, and had no ground with 100 fms. though not above four miles off shore. The day before and several days after observed an incredible quantity of seaweed like that from the Gulf of Florida and small birds like lapwings both in size and flight. This island cannot be seen far even in clear weather and lies N.E. by E. and S.W. by S. about 32 leagues in length with terrible breakers from each end running about three miles into the sea.' He gave the lat. as 22° S22nd parallel southThe 22nd parallel south is a circle of latitude that is 22 degrees south of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses the Atlantic Ocean, Africa, the Indian Ocean, Australasia, the Pacific Ocean and South America....
. and from it made 7°26' westing to Java Head. As he could find no account of this land in any of his books or charts Captain Nash named it Cloates or Cloot's Island in honour of a Flemish Baron, one of the owners of the ship."
From 1912 the Western Australian Government granted a license to a Norwegian company to operate whaling stations at Frenchman's Bay near Albany
Albany, Western Australia
Albany is a port city in the Great Southern region of Western Australia, some 418 km SE of Perth, the state capital. As of 2009, Albany's population was estimated at 33,600, making it the 6th-largest city in the state....
and Point Cloates (then known as Norwegian Bay). (Refer to the article on Whaling in Western Australia
Whaling in Western Australia
Whaling in Western Australia was one of the first viable industries established in the Swan River Colony following the arrival of British settlers in 1829...
.)
In 2005 the ruins of Point Cloates lighthouse, built in 1910, were listed in the Western Australian register of heritage places.