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Valthora Ferry
Valthora was a locally constructed motor ferry launched in Perth on 17 December 1909. It was built by boatbuilder Thomas Hill for Sutton and Olsen, the operators of the Swan River Ferry Company and entered service before Christmas that year.
Construction of Valthora
The vessel measured 46ft long, or about 14 metres, making it two feet longer than Valhalla. Its beam, meaning its widest point, was 8ft 6in, while its draught was 3ft 6in. Draught refers to the distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull, showing how deeply the vessel sat in the water.
The hull was constructed with 1¼-inch-thick kauri planking fixed over blackwood frames measuring two inches by one inch. These frames formed the internal ribs that gave the hull its shape and supported the outer planking. They were positioned at six-inch centres, meaning there was a distance of six inches from the centre of one frame to the centre of the next.
Kauri was commonly used for wooden boat hulls because it was available in long, straight planks and was relatively light, stable and resistant to decay in seawater. Blackwood was a denser hardwood that could be steam-bent to follow the curved shape of the hull while holding nails and other fastenings securely. Each timber therefore performed a different job: the kauri planking formed the vessel’s lighter outer shell, while the closely spaced blackwood frames provided its internal strength and support.
Valthora was powered by a three-cylinder Union marine petrol engine producing 25 horsepower. A marine engine is designed or adapted specifically for use in a boat, while the three cylinders contained the moving pistons that generated its power. It was described at the time as the largest engine of its type operating on the river and could propel the vessel at approximately 10 knots, equivalent to about 18.5km/h.
The engine installation was considered particularly unobtrusive, producing very little vibration that could be felt by passengers. Valthora was licensed to carry 80 passengers and was constructed for the Applecross ferry service.
The “Val” ferry fleet
Valthora was one of the company’s distinctive “Val” ferries. The fleet included Valkyrie, Valhalla, Valdemar, Valdavia, Valfrida, Valdura, Valmeda, Valdana, Valthora and Valthera. The names reflected the Scandinavian background of ferry operators Harry Sutton and Jack Olsen.
Jack Olsen drowned in the Swan River in March 1907, before Valthora was constructed. His son, Oscar Mouritz Olsen, later became involved in the business with Harry Sutton and took greater control after Sutton died in 1922.
Applecross ferry services
Valthora was built primarily for the company’s Applecross service. Timetables show it departing from Barrack Street Jetty and carrying passengers to Applecross and Canning Bridge, with services also operating to Como and Coode Street. It was regularly used on weekends, public holidays and special outings, and could also be privately hired for group trips and picnics.
Although Valthora departed from Barrack Street and served destinations within what is now the City of South Perth, it doesn’t appear to have been regularly used on the direct Barrack Street to Mends Street crossing. The State Government purchased Mends Street Jetty in 1912 and established its own ferry service on that route, while Sutton and Olsen continued operating the longer private services to Applecross, Canning Bridge, Como and Coode Street.
Valthora also called in at Crawley on Sundays and public holidays. Advertisements described it as one of Sutton and Olsen’s “fast and favourite” motor launches and promoted the vessel for private hire at what were described as moderate charges.
1926 Engine Replacement
In December 1926, Valthora’s original petrol engine was replaced with a new semi-diesel engine manufactured by Norris, Henty and Gardiners of Manchester. A semi-diesel was an early oil-powered engine that operated at a lower compression than a conventional diesel engine, generally using a heated chamber to ignite the fuel.
During a test journey from Barrack Street to Applecross and back, the upgraded ferry reportedly travelled more smoothly and at a greater speed. The engine ran at 400 revolutions per minute and consumed approximately 1½ imperial gallons, or 6.8 litres, of oil each hour. Valthora completed a measured nautical mile in six minutes and 40 seconds, giving it an average speed of nine knots, or approximately 16.7 kilometres per hour. It was reported to be the first engine of its type installed in a Swan River ferry.
The Como ferry incident
One of the most serious incidents involving Valthora occurred at Como Jetty on 27 November 1927. Eighteen-year-old Greta Bulline of Berwick Street, Victoria Park, was swimming near the jetty when the ferry departed. She was drawn into the revolving propeller and suffered extensive injuries, including a compound fracture to one leg, which later had to be amputated.
Proposed end of the Applecross service
On 17 June 1930, it was reported that the Swan River Ferry Company intended to discontinue its services to Applecross, Canning Bridge and Como at the end of the month. Concerned Applecross residents held a meeting chaired by Sidney Victor Eaton (businessman and local councillor) to consider how the suburb’s transport needs could be maintained.
Harold Buckley (Applecross resident) proposed a combined ferry and bus service operated by the South Suburban Omnibus Company. The proposal would retain a boat service for Applecross residents while also providing employment for two local ferry drivers who were expected to lose their jobs when the Swan River Ferry Company withdrew.
The death of Oscar Mouritz Olsen
Like his father years earlier, Oscar Mouritz Olsen drowned in the Swan River in August 1935.
In November 1935, a company chaired by Perth solicitor Nathaniel Philip “Nat” Lappin purchased the interests held by the late Oscar Olsen and Mrs Olsen in Swan River Ferries Ltd, including its fleet of “Val” launches.
Although the ferry business is commonly referred to as the Swan River Ferry Company, contemporary advertisements were using the name Swan River Ferries Ltd by at least 1915. Swan River Ferries Ltd entered voluntary liquidation in June 1937, with Lappin recorded as its chairman. The ferry service continued under Swan River Ferries Pty Ltd and remained responsible for the Val fleet until the remaining boats were offered for sale in 1949.
Decline of the ferry service
The ferry company gradually lost passengers as road transport became more convenient. Government buses began competing directly with its Perth to Coode Street service in August 1948. Swan River Ferries attempted to continue with a reduced timetable but abandoned its regular service one month later.
On 15 November 1949, the company announced that its remaining “Val” ferries would be sold. Company secretary William Annand Carcary said government bus competition had taken the passengers previously carried on the Perth to Coode Street route. The sale marked the end of Valthora’s regular passenger service on the Swan River after approximately 40 years.
Acquisition by the Fremantle Harbour Trust
On 1 November 1952, it was reported that Swan River Ferries had sold Valthora, Valfrida, Valdavia and Valdura to the Fremantle Harbour Trust, subject to the vessels passing inspection. The launches were expected to support operations connected with the new harbour in Cockburn Sound, including the Kwinana oil refinery and BHP steel-rolling mill. The purchase had evidently been completed by February 1953, when Valthora was described as a Fremantle Harbour Trust ferry operating at Victoria Quay.
On 2 February 1953, Valthora sank in approximately 30 feet, or nine metres, of water at Victoria Quay during gale-force winds that reached 63 miles per hour, or about 101 kilometres per hour. It was believed that a heavy gust caused the bow mooring line, which secured the front of the vessel, to part. Valthora then took on water and sank. One harbour official described the gale as the strongest he had witnessed in 33 years. The ferry was raised the following day and later returned to service. Other accounts indicate that this was not the only time Valthora sank during its unusually long life.
The Fremantle Harbour Trust later withdrew Valthora from service, after which the vessel passed into private ownership.
January 2025
Alterations
Later photographs show that Valthora’s original passenger-ferry layout had been substantially changed. Previously open sections were enclosed and a large rectangular cabin was constructed above the deck, with a smaller raised structure containing windows built above it. This may have served as the wheelhouse, where the vessel was steered and controlled. The alterations gave Valthora the appearance of a private workboat or houseboat. Government records continued to describe it as a timber launch with a white superstructure and an inboard motor.
Wrecked
Valthora eventually ended up on a mooring in the Canning River off the Rossmoyne foreshore, within an area officially described by the Department of Transport as the Bull Creek mooring area. It reportedly sank at least twice while at the mooring. During its final period at Rossmoyne, most of the vessel rested on the riverbed, with only the upper section containing three small windows remaining above the water. It remained partly submerged until it was recovered in 2025.
In May 2025, the State Government awarded Franmarine Underwater Services Pty Ltd a contract valued at $50,831 to recover Valthora and its remnants from the Bull Creek mooring area. The vessel was raised from the river and transported to the Department of Transport and Major Infrastructure boating facility at Jervoise Bay Cove, within Woodman Point Recreation Reserve at Munster. It had arrived there by 22 July 2025, when the Department photographed it for a later disposal tender.
Valthora was removed under section 71 of the Western Australian Marine Act 1982. This allowed the Department to remove a sunken, abandoned or derelict vessel when it was considered a hazard or obstruction. If its owner failed to remove it after receiving notice, or could not be located, the Department could sell the vessel to recover the cost of its removal.
The Department offered Valthora and its remaining components for purchase and removal under tender DOT419025, which closed on 11 November 2025. Its WA vessel registration number, 15152, remained current until 15 December 2025. The tender described Valthora as a 14.10-metre timber launch constructed by T R Hill Marine, with a blue hull, white superstructure and inboard motor.
No contract was awarded following the tender, with the official Tenders WA record indicating that no offers were received. Valthora had nevertheless been removed from the Woodman Point boating facility by May 2026.
