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apollonaut. Built by People Who've Been

Journal / History

History, industry & the sea

A whaling station.
A last season.

The story of the Cheynes Beach Whaling Company at Frenchman Bay, from 1952 to the end of whaling in Australia in 1978.

The black hull and white superstructure of the whale chaser Cheynes IV on display ashore, with the sea and distant hills behind
The black hull and white superstructure of the whale chaser Cheynes IV on display ashore, with the sea and distant hills behind.

A company of fishermen

The Cheynes Beach Whaling Company was formed by a syndicate of fishing families and set up its station at Frenchman Bay, near Albany, in 1952. It took its name from the settlement east of Albany where some of the founders had fished, but it was never based at Cheynes Beach.

The station’s white tanks and sheds and the beached Cheynes IV on the far shore of Frenchman Bay, below a granite-topped hill
The harpoon gun on the bow of Cheynes IV, with coiled rope at its base, looking down over the station’s lawns and sheds

From humpbacks to sperm whales

The company hunted humpback whales at first. After the International Whaling Commission ended the hunting of Antarctic humpbacks following the 1962 season, it turned to sperm whales. Between 1952 and 1978 it took 1,136 humpbacks and 14,695 sperm whales.

The last season, and a museum

The company announced its closure in July 1978. The last whale, a sperm whale, was harpooned on 20 November 1978, and the next evening the whale chasers Cheynes II, III and IV berthed at the Albany Town Jetty for the last time. The station opened to visitors in December 1980.

The brick visitor centre with its red roofs and glass-fronted café above the beach at the whaling station

Continue exploring

The harpoon gun on the bow of Cheynes IV, with coiled rope at its base, looking down over the station’s lawns and shedsThe last seasonWhaling at Frenchman Bay, 1952–1978.The black hull and white superstructure of the whale chaser Cheynes IV on display ashore, with the sea and distant hills behindWhat to see at the stationThe ship, the factory and the park.Plan your visit

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