‘MATILDA is a wooden fishing boat built in Hobart in the late 1880s by R. Bennett in Horses Cove, now known as Victoria Dock. MATILDA was built as a double-ended, open fishing craft, typical of the type developed to fish in the Derwent estuary and surrounds during this period.

MATILDA also played an important role in servicing the mail run to the Tasman Lighthouse for more than 40 years, carrying provisions, building materials, and passengers, including lighthouse keepers’ wives, returning to Hobart to give birth.

It is one of only a few remaining Tasmanian working craft from this period. MATILDA was donated to the City of Hobart for restoration, with work focusing on the topsides and making the hull watertight.

MATILDA is now housed on a display pontoon in Constitution Dock, supported by TasPorts, as part of our commitment to preserving Tasmania’s rich Maritime Heritage.’

Source: TasPorts Tasmania