Sweers Island

Geography

Sweers Island is approximately 8 kilometres long. It is located 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) east of Bentick Island (the largest island in the South Wellesley Islands) and 70 kilometres (43 mi) north from Burketown on the Queensland mainland.

History

The island was named by explorer Matthew Flinders on 16 November 1802 after Salomon Sweers, a council member of the East India Company at Batavia who was one of those who instructed Abel Tasman to explore the Gulf of Carpentaria in 1644. Flinders was circumnavigating the Australian continent in the sloop HMS Investigator to map the coastline and establish if Australia was a single island or whether there were two or more islands (the Gulf of Carpentaria and the Great Australian Bight were suspected to be the entrances to straits between the islands).

Robert Towns established Burketown in 1865 as a base for his extensive holdings in the Gulf Country. Burketown's development was limited due to the extent of tropical diseases suffered by its inhabitants. When a ship "Margaret and Mary" arrived in Burketown from Sydney carrying a fever (possibly typhoid), the majority of those on board died at Burketown. In the belief that Burketown was inherently unhealthy, William Landsborough evacuated most of the survivors to Sweers Island for 18 months, with only a further two people dying. Towns and Co then traded wool, tallow, hides and skins between Sweers Island and Batavia in October 1868.

The Investigator Tree

In 1841, the island was visited by John Lort Stokes, commander of the Beagle on an exploration of northern Australia. Stokes discovered a tree on the western part of the island with the word "Investigator" carved into it by Flinders on this 1802 visit, giving the tree the name "The Investigator Tree". Stokes also carved the name "Beagle" to the tree. Subsequent visitors to the island also carved names including from Augustus Charles Gregory's expedition in 1856 and William Landsborough's search for the Burke and Wills expedition in 1861. A cyclone on 5 March 1887 severely damaged the tree so part of the trunk was removed to the Queensland Museum in 1889.

Recreation

Recreational activities on Sweers Island include fishing and watching wildlife. Sweetlip is the most common table fish caught off the island, while other fish species include: coral trout, red emperor, golden snapper, nannegai and parrot fish. In winter fish species including spanish mackerel, grey mackerel, giant trevally, giant leatherskin, queenfish, northern blue fin tuna, and cobia can be caught. Accommodation, meals and boats are available at the Sweers Island Resort.

Transport

The island has a 1,100 metres (3,600 ft) all-weather gravel airstrip.