Not so Solitary Island

When captain Cook journeyed north along the east coast of Australia in 1770, he encountered a group of nine barren, rocky islands lying 430km north of today’s Sydney and, inspired by their standing apart loneliness, he named them Solitary Islands. Captain Cook did not land on any of the islands and because of their inaccessibility, it is not very likely that a local aboriginal tribe of Gumbaingirr ever made camp on the islands, at least there is no archeological record of that.

Even after the Europeans arrived on the scene, the islands’ forbidding appearance and a lack of suitable landing prevented would be explorers or exploiters from visiting them. For more than 100 years, Solitary Islands remained true to their name until one of them, South Solitary became home to many lightkeepers and their families, after the lighthouse was built there in 1880.

The first mention of a need for a lighthouse in this area came as early as 1856 but things moved very slowly in 19^th century colonial Australia and it took a few years to even decide where the lighthouse should stand. The decision to build a lighthouse at one of the Solitary Islands was finally made in 1873 but another hurdle had to be overcome when it came to the exact location for the lighthouse. It was a toss between South and North Solitary Islands and after putting those alternatives to a vote in 1876 it was decided with overwhelming majority, that the lighthouse should be placed on the smaller but more conveniently placed South Solitary Island 18 km NNE from Coffs Harbour. Only 11ha in size, South Solitary Island consists of four separate islets: Lighthouse or Main, Birdie, Archie Rock and an unnamed islet to the north-east. Archie Rock has a beautiful natural arch on its south side. The layer of topsoil on the island is so thin that it could only support a hardy, salt tolerant grass. The attempts by the lightkeepers to cultivate trees failed and today there are none left.

While timber getting and agriculture were the original economic engines behind the spread of population and development of coastal settlements north of Sydney from 1830, things really started to move after its northern neighbour Queensland was proclaimed a separate state in 1859 and especially after gold was discovered there in 1870s. Shipping along the NSW north coast increased dramatically and with it the number of shipwrecks. To prevent them, the NSW Marine Board was created in 1872 and the pace of lighthouse building increased accordingly. Between 1872 and 1891 twelve lighthouses were established in NSW, all of them designed by Colonial Architect James Barnet. After Sugarloaf Point, South Solitary lighthouse was to be the second major light designed by the ingenious but sometimes controversial architect. Barnet with his entourage visited the site in 1877 to assess the area and selected the best spot for the lighthouse at its southern end where the cliffs were the highest at 58m above the sea. Although there may have been others before him, his is the first documented human landing on the island. Detailed plans for the lighthouse and associated cottages were drawn the following year and tenders called for its building. John McLeod turned out to be the successful tenderer, probably because he’s already proven his worth by successful building of Sugarloaf Point lighthouse in 1875. But South Solitary Island turned out to be a much harder nut to crack for the builder. The severe conditions caused by the exposed nature of the island created problems when building materials were brought there. Three attempts had to be made to create a landing stage strong enough to withstand the forces of nature and enable the materials to continue to be brought to the building site. The lighthouse was supposed to be finished in 1879 and the ambitious Mr. Barnet even had the date carved on the keystone above the entry to the lighthouse, but in reality, it took until March next year till the light was finished and exhibited in all its glory.

The tower, only 17m high including the lantern, was built from mass concrete. Cement and sand were brought to the island but the aggregate stone was obtained locally. Because the lighthouse was one of the first structures cast of mass concrete, it is little wonder that there were some teething problems. The architects did not know at the time that the concrete should be properly compacted after pouring and the finished product was too porous and absorbed seawater, which expanded when it formed salt crystals. As a result, the surfaces cracked and got easily eroded, but the problem was rectified when the tower was painted.   

The lantern room and the first order optics were created by Chance Brothers and imported from England. At the heart of the lens, which had 8 panels and rotated once every 30 seconds, was a kerosene burner – no small feat at the time when colza oil still ruled the lighthouse world. In fact this burner was so successful, it lasted for 96 years before it was replaced by an automatic electric light. South Solitary lighthouse therefore has the privilege of being both the first and the last kerosene light in NSW.

From the outside, the lightkeepers cottages look like they were built from stone, but in fact they were also made of mass concrete. The outer layer was then etched in such way that it resembles blocks of stone. Some of the rubble for the cement was obtained at the spot where the cottages are standing and after blasting was finished, the holes left in the ground were waterproofed, enclosed and conveniently used as water tanks.  

The roomier head keeper’s cottage closer to the lighthouse, was free standing and contained three bedrooms, living room, dining room and kitchen. The semi detached assistants keepers quarters were somewhat smaller and contained only two bedrooms, living room and a storeroom. Both buildings were surrounded on all four sides by a deep verandah and despite many later additions and alterations, are still a fine example of the Victorian/Georgian style frequently used by the late 19^th century colonial architects. A path connects the keepers’ quarters with the lighthouse, protected from the winds by a sturdy wall.

A derelict, rusting structure catches the eye when overlooking the island from the high ground. Facing the mainland on the northwestern side, they are the remains of the jetty or Gantry, which for many years played such an important role for the island’s inhabitants. The sad ruin we see today is the third jetty, constructed between 1957 and 1959. The first was built with the lighthouse in 1878 and was only 5m above sea level. Larger one replaced it in 1904 and was further reconstructed in 1932. The current one which has an outward leaning seaward support is no less than 13m above sea level and. There used to be rails leading from its end to the storehouse, remains of both could still be seen today. When goods or people needed to be brought to the island, they were hoisted in a basket from the boat to the jetty a practice used at the time at many such inaccessible lightstations in Australia.                  

 For the first 50 years coastal traders brought mail, supplies and stores every 3 months directly from Sydney. Later the store boat visits became more frequent, coming every six weeks, then two weeks and in the end, it took only a week before the next call. With the development of technology, it eventually became possible to also use other means of transport to get access to the island and the first helicopter landed there in January 1958. Today, helicopter is the only form of transport used to get to the island.

The first lightkeeper on the island was Captain Leddra, appointed in March 1880 with his assistants Mr Skelton and Mr, Burgess. A long line of dedicated men and women followed these first pioneering lighthouse keepers, their living conditions improving as time went by. One of them was Jim Duncan who, after serving at Norah Head, Smoke Cape, Cape Byron and Green Cape, was transferred to South Solitary Island in 1947. He and his family stayed there for four years till 1951. His daughter Beryl Royal who was a teenager at the time remembers:

The launch trip out to Solitary Island wasn't much fun, as we always got seasick. The trip took about an hour and a half, depending on conditions. I once did a trip that took four and a half hours, punching against what we called a 'black' northeaster wind. We'd watch each other on the trip to see who displayed the first seasick symptoms by going green.

My mother was in hospital while the packing up was going on and she was horrified to later learn that when Dad had packed her well used treadle sewing machine into it's crate, he had stuffed our eiderdowns all around it. She imagined the eiderdowns would be covered in oil but in fact, they saved the machine when the crate got dropped into the water during the trip. Because of the eiderdowns, the crate floated and was hauled back into the launch. The sewing machine was never quite the same again but I still have some of the eiderdowns

On arrival at the island, which is a rocky, windswept lump of rock of about 11 hectares, a crane on the island jetty would lower a basket to the launch and gods and passengers would be loaded and winched far up to the jetty above. If you were lucky, you didn't get wet! Our cat and chooks went with us to the Island -- those poor chooks were seasick too and were very staggery after they were released.

Life at Solitary Island was much the same as at other stations - a pedal radio was our link with the mainland, later a radio telephone was installed, that innovation saved a lot of leg power. A wonderful whale watching place, I delighted in seeing those massive creatures come in very close to the rocks on calm evenings.

Calm weather wasn't always our lot of course; cyclones and adverse winds often delayed the weekly delivery by launch of mail and supplies. One memorable cyclone caused such massive seas that water washed over the middle of the island and rocks thrown up by the waves chipped the light tower. On that occasion the supply launch was unable to deliver goods for three weeks. Toward the end of that time, food for the chooks was running rather short and for a few days we fed them with bread. When the sea had calmed a bit, Dad was able to fish on the sheltered side of the island and he caught a lot of big schnapper - up to five pounds in weight - and we boiled these up and fed them to the chooks. A tall solid wall ran between the houses and the light tower at Solitary and men going to the tower walked on the leeward side so they wouldn't get blown away.

One of the most exciting times at Solitary was the day the launch made a special trip to deliver three kerosene fridges, one for each household on the island. To us, this was really modern living and we were at the ready with beaters and ingredients waiting for the fridge to be cold to freeze our first batch of icecream.

Our household lighting on all these stations was by kerosene lamps and it was not until after my father had retired that electricity from generators was in use. Four years later, when Dad was transferred to Sugarloaf Point, I had left home to work and only my youngest brother Tom made the transfer with our parents.

For many generations, lightkeepers and their families lived on the island – three or more at a time - making the island far from solitary or lonely. When the lighthouse was automated 1975 and its people were sent back to the mainland, the island reverted once again to an inaccessible, rarely visited piece of rock visible from the beaches between Coffs Harbour and Emerald Beach. Its appearance drastically changed with a new fiberglass lantern room, the lighthouse still continued to send out flashes every 5 seconds. While the lighthouse was being looked after by AMSA, the keepers cottages fared much worse.

Their ownership was transferred to NSW Parks and Wildlife Service and, as it often happens in such cases, left to the harsh environmental elements. While the lighthouse was being looked after by AMSA, the keepers cottages fared much worse. Their ownership was transferred to the Commonwealth government and, as it often happens in such cases, left to the harsh environmental elements. The paint soon started to peel and the roofs to shatter, allowing water to penetrate inside, accelerating the damage. In  2000 NSW Parks and Wildlife Service took control of the island.   

The wind of change came in 2004, when the government allocated $440 000 to halt the cottages’ deterioration. First of all the asbestos roofs were sealed, stopping water from leaking inside. The chimneys, gutters and the window shutters were painted blue and white making the contrast between the outside conditions of the lighthouse and the cottages much less pronounced.

When Precision Helicopters organized trips to the island in 2007 for 85 lucky winners of a local newspaper raffle, the interest in the remote lightstation skyrocketed so much, that the trips were repeated a year later, this time with over 200 paying visitors. The enterprise proved to be very popular not only for Precision Helicopters, but also for NPWS who organized the program for the visitors once they were on the island. Former lightkeepers and people closely associated with the lighthouse were flown to the island to entertain the visitors with their stories. The day after the weekend visits finished, NPWS flew back a specially invited group of people with ties to the lighthouse during its glory days, to acknowledge their past contribution and to say thanks to them for making the event such a success. This impromptu meeting had an unexpected benefit. Some of the former lighthouse people realized that the future of the lightstation still matters to them and that it is in their power to help to make it look great again. “Friends of “ lighthouse volunteer groups are already operating around Australia and with the cooperation of NPWS, there is no reason, why such a group could not be established at Coffs Harbour. The seeds were sawn in August 2008 and a few months later, the Friends of South Solitary Island are becoming a reality. The future no longer looks so gloomy for this enigmatic island with its white lighthouse and lonely cottages.

*North Solitary Island had to wait for another 100 years before it also received a lighthouse, alas much more prosaic, in 1975