Mannum on the Murray: Keith checks out the meeting "place of many ducks" in the Murraylands region of South Australia
The Murray River no doubt looks very different from when Captain Charles Sturt and his men rowed a whaleboat along its length in 1830. Searching for a great 'Inland Sea', he was the first European to chart this great waterway. As he approached the Southern Ocean, he speculated about how the river could help open up the 'promising' country he had found.
His vision became a reality when the Murray became a transcontinental highway linking four states. Settlements and towns sprang up along its length and one of the earliest and most important was the town of Mannum - a bit over an hour east of Adelaide.
Meaning a 'place of many ducks' in the language of the indigenous inhabitants, Mannum's heritage main street points to the time when it was a pioneering river port. And, indeed, it still is a port. The Murray Expedition calls in here on her regular cruises. They now have a distinctly ecological slant.
Mannum's also the home base for a grand dame lending a touch of Mississippi elegance beneath the cliffs. The Murray Princess also cruises the expansive "bottom end" beauty of this magnificent river.
And then, there's the Paddlesteamer Marion. Ask the river folk and they will tell you she is the Queen of the fleet down this end. And expeditions? Well, from way up river to Echuca all the way down to Lake Alexandrina - she's been there. What's more, she's essential part of the riverport of Mannum - old and new - so come on board.
A living splashing time-capsule, she's an impressive sight, paddling familiar waters - after all she's been doing it for more than a century! The steady rhythm of the antique steam driven pistons, the smell of the redgum wood and the heat from the firebox make for an intoxicating and addictive concoction.
John Norris is one bloke who fell under the spell. As engineer, he's like a proud father - tending his charges every need. But his love affair with the Marion goes even deeper - he used to own her.
"It's really great to see her running again," said John. "It's the best restored boat on the river. There are other restored boats but as far as authenticity go, the Marion takes the cake. It's a tribute to the people who work it."
The Marion's life hasn't always been so glamorous. She was originally built as a barge down at Milang in 1897. A deck and cabin was added three years later in Echuca where an English steam engine also went in - the very one that's going strong over a hundred years later!
Up in the wheelhouse, Captain Roger Heritage and Mate, Dick Bromhead reckon it's a privilege to be in charge of an historic vessel.
"They converted it into a store boat - a floating general store," said Dick. "It had this great cavernous structure on its deck that was just like being in a country store."
The Marion's also served as a work-horse for cargo and courtesy of another deck or two - a classy passenger boat on a regular run upstream from Morgan.
"People used to pay for the privilege to go from Morgan to Mildura," said John. "They ran 24 hours and with the noise of the gears grinding away all night … I don't think it would be all that flash..."
After a long stint as a floating boarding house in Berri and thirty years in the Mannum dry dock the Marion is now back where she belongs - sailing out of the town where it all began - Mannum.
We have to thank Gumeracha flour-miller, Captain William Randell for the riverboat trade and Mannum's founding role. He built the first paddlesteamer on the Murray here, the Mary Ann.
"He saw the commercial opportunity to take flour to the Victorian diggings," said Dick. "It was the beginning of the gold rush - the Bendigo and Ballarat fields are all booming in 1856 so Randell was trying to get his flour as close as possible to the diggings. He took it to Moama - just up from Echuca (and It was then carted overland to the diggings)."
Marion is a rare survivor of the booming transport industry that followed in Randell's wake. Hundreds of steamers plyed the river carting wool and wheat down and supplies back up stream.
The Shearer Brothers manufactured farm implements in Mannum and the Marion helped get them up river.
Captain Randell built a grand house high on the hill overlooking the busy port below. His dry dock was a hive of activity as the demand for boats and maintenance was strong.
It's all quiet on the western bank today, but the historic dry dock - the only one of its type in the world, stands as a silent tribute to those boom times - slowly strangled by the arrival of the railways up river.
Modern river transport's a bit different these days with hundreds of luxury houseboats cruising the waters. It's luxury all the way in what's become a multi million dollar tourism industry with about one hundred houseboats in the Mannum area alone. Kia Marina, just upstream of town has more than thirty pleasure cruisers for hire.
But it's still a very special experience to cruise the Murray onboard the PS Marion. When she's not out on one of her occasional weekend cruises or overnight runs the PS Marion is open for inspection at the Dock Museum. If you have any further questions please email info@postcards-sa.com.au
PS Marion
Mannum Dock Museum
Open 7 days
MannumPublished 2nd September 2007
