An original Maitland flood boat used to rescue stranded victims in the 1949 and 1955 floods will be on display at the Newcastle Maritime Museum in March.
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It once belonged to Maitland City Council and was refurbished by Ron Haug in 2007.
The boat was found at Maitland High School while Grahame Tumpane was working on a project there.
With the help of Bob Hayman and Marilyn Bliss the boat was moved to Mr Hayman’s house at Lambton, then to Coal Point and finally Kilaben Bay.
The boat was donated to the maritime museum when its owners moved to Queensland.
It is part of a collection managed by Bill Storer who has decades of experience in caring for museum objects.
He became collection store manager and supervisor of volunteers in October 2007 after the storms and floods in June that year.
He was employed to move and catalogue a collection of 7500 items which had been housed in a shed at Throsby Wharf.
Mr Storer had previously worked as registrar of Army Museum of NSW, Victoria Barracks, Sydney.
“If you understand the past, better decisions can be made about the future,” Mr Storer explained.
“Museums provide people with information and material objects that tell stories about the past.
“It is also a collection of information about social aspects of the past.
“The flood boat from Maitland shows how things have changed.
“The council used to own the boats, then the SES got up and running and no longer needed the boats so they were disposed of which is normal practice.
“The method of construction for the flood boat is no longer used.
“It is clinker built using planks nailed together.
“Its size, shape and style proved to be safe for moving people on fast flowing water in flood time.”
Museums are important because they create awareness, Mr Storer said.
“These collections show how people used to deal with situations and their amazing skills, which is evident in the construction of the Maitland flood boat.
“Understanding the past is important for our cultural heritage. Museum objects give us information and background.”
Mr Storer has been confronted with questions about the value of museum collections in recent years because the internet supplies information and images at our fingertips.
“Can you see an image of an apple in your head?,” he said
“What does it look like? It is round, a certain colour and that’s it.
“An actual apple, however, can be touched, smelled and tasted.
“All those dimensions come with the real thing.”
Mr Storer knows nothing beats the sensation of being inside a museum and taking in a collection.
“We’ve got the real thing. The important thing is that you look at the objects that interest you inside a museum.
“It beats anything you will see on a computer screen.”
FLOOD BOAT SPECIFICATIONS
Rowing boat, clinker built, painted cream and varnished inside and out, seven planks per side, copper nailed and roved, 29 ribs, five thwarts, transom steam, no rudder, replacement flooring installed, restored with some non-original parts.
Used as a Maitland flood boat in 1949 and 1955.
Restored by Ron Haug replacing rear thwart, some knees, new thwart knees of mangrove, keel knees in keel to strengthen the area – not original; wood guides for rowlocks replaced with teak as original, wide aft thwart and transom thwart not original; brass band on keel not original – was wood batten.
This boat was to be reused but leaked badly in places – split planks were filled with glue and sawdust to remain original.
WHERE TO SEE IT
Hidden maritime history open days will be held in March.
See behind the scenes of the Newcastle Maritime Museum at Lee Wharf on Thursday, March 5 and Saturday, March 7.
Cost is $3 per person with sessions at 9.30am, 10am, 10.30am, 11am, 1pm, 1.30pm and 2pm.
Bookings are essential at the Maritime Centre on 4929 2588.
For more on the 1955 flood:
