A wooden ferry, its hull painted white and black, suspended next to the walkway.

Valdura

HB 77_VAL, donated by Swan River Authority

Valdura was built in 1912 for Perth ferry operator Jack Olsen. Olsen’s Scandinavian heritage is reflected in the naming of his fleet, with sister vessels christened Valhalla, Valkyrie, Valdavia, Valthora, Valdana and Valdemar. Valdura could carry 76 passengers and its service continued under Sutton and Olsen’s heirs until 1935 when the fleet was sold to the proprietor of Swan River Ferries Company, Nat Lappin. Under Nappin, it continued to be a ferry service and was available for private hire, excursions and fishing expeditions to Rottnest Island and Rockingham.

During World War II, the fleet was taken to the Middle East by the military. In 1949, when the vessels were returned, Nat Lappin put the fleet on the market as he was no longer able to compete with the public transport options on offer. In 1953, Valdura and the fleet were purchased by the Fremantle Harbour Trust to transport workers between the wharfs of Fremantle Harbour. Valdura was renamed Penguin and went through a complete restoration which lasted a year.

Penguin was later sold and used as a houseboat before being abandoned and becoming derelict. In 1993 it was sold by the Swan River Trust to the Western Australian Museum where it was restored to the appearance of its Fremantle Harbour Trust days.

A ferry under construction, its cabin is more rounded and further forward than the Valdura, and there is a passenger railing on the top extending across the whole of the boat.

The 'first passenger boat in West Australia to be constructed entirely of local timber' - another Swan River Ferries vessel, the Valdana, under construction before its launch in 1919.
Credit: State Library of Western Australia, 4689B/43

The Valdura was one of a fleet of Swan River ferries built by Harry Sutton, Jack Olsen, Thomas Hill and Lawrence and Sons for Jack Olsen.
Credit: WA Museum