Inskip Point – Some of the history and a Tragic Story

Jan 20, 2024 | Gympie, Gympie District Families, Gympie Region

 A BRIEF HISTORY OF INSKIP:

Inskip Point was named after Captain George Henry Inskip, a Naval Officer, by Captain Owen Stanley, the Admiralty Hydrographer and Commander of “HMS Rattlesnake‟ in October 1849. This ship was used for surveying much of the Northern East Coast of Australia and surveyed the area between Fraser Island and the Great Sandy Straits on a journey from Moreton Bay to Cape Deliverance, New Guinea. One of the most memorable stories of this area is of a pregnant Eliza Fraser, who was on board the ‟Stirling Castle‟ when it was wrecked on the Queensland Coast.  Eliza was aboard one of the boat loads of survivors who made it to Fraser Island, and was cared for by local Aboriginal women. She was taken by them to Inskip Point in a canoe, then Rainbow Beach and finally rescued at Lake Cootharabah.  With the start of free settlement in 1842 the number of ships heading to Queensland increased dramatically. At the time of Queensland‟s separation from New South Wales in 1859, ports had already developed in Wide Bay.  In 1848 the first Harbour Master for Wide Bay was appointed, Government Botanist John Carne Bidwell. His other duties were Commissioner of Crown Lands, Registrar of births, Marriages and Deaths, performing marriage ceremonies and acting Magistrate. He died in 1853 at the age of 38 after being lost for 8 days in the bush at the head of the Mary River. He had forgotten to take his compass. In 1859 the Sub-Collector of Customs for Wide Bay Richard Sheridan was appointed Harbour Master.   

 The Wide Bay Bar, like all bars, is a shallow area of sand deposited near the mouth of a bay or river. When the water from the Sandy Strait slows down to meet the ocean, it deposits tons of silt and mud that it carries. This area is called the Wide Bay Bar which extends across the southern entrance near Inskip Point. The benefit of having a light keeper at Inskip is that they can signal the state of the bar so Captains can get their timing right. The coxswain is the master of the pilot boat, he will take the pilot from shore station out to the steamer or other ship requiring safe passage through the straits. He will have one or more deckhands to operate the sails or row the pilot boat. These deck hands are skilled operators of boats and are called boatmen. Photo Samuel Reilly and son James at Lighthouse, Inskip Point

EMILY JANE REILLY: Emily was born on the 1st July 1875 in Maryborough, the eldest daughter of Samuel James Reilly and Emily nee Crompton. Samuel was born in Middlesex England, Samuel Crouch, but his name was changed to Reilly. Emily Crompton was also born in Middlesex. The couple married in Maryborough in 1875, and went on to have 17 children. He joined the Navy as an Able Seaman at the age of 19 and arrived in Australia under the assumed name of Samuel Reilly. He joined the Queensland Lighthouse Service as a Pilot and Receiving Officer at Inskip Point 1st December 1875. On the 15th June 1891 a terrible tragedy struck the Reilly family. Their 14 year old son William accidently shot his sister, Emily Jane.

The Magisterial Inquest into her death was held at Inskip Point on the 16th June 1891 and went as follows: William Walter Reilly, on oath, deposed: Am the son of Samuel James Reilly and the brother of deceased; on the 15th instant my father left the house leaving my sister and myself alone; my sister was cleaning pictures in the kitchen; there was a revolver hanging in the parlour; took it down off the nail; I was standing on a chair; my sister was in the next room (the kitchen) standing at the table; did not think the pistol was loaded; looked at the chamber and saw the cartridges were all dented in; as I stood on the chair I turned round toward my sister and said to her, ”It ain’t loaded” at the same time pointing toward her; I had previously snapped the hammer down, but it was not at my sister; when I pointed it at her I pulled the trigger and it went off: She immediately said “Oh Will, you’ve shot me,” and threw her arms out; she ran out to the gate and fell down; Mrs. Dewar than came up but my sister did not speak; I was about five yards from her when the pistol went off; I saw where the bullet struck her afterwards; it was right under the breast. Samuel James Reilly, on oath, deposed: Am a coxswain pilot stationed at Inskip Point; the deceased Emily Jane was my daughter; she was 17 years of age; on the 15th instant left home at Inskip Point a little after 2 pm, leaving William Walter, aged 13 years; before leaving I took down some pictures off the wall of the front Photo Reilly Family at Inskip Point. Photo: House Inskip Point Page 11 The Gympie Researcher room for the deceased to clean; there was a revolver hanging on one of the walls that I took a picture from, which had one chamber loaded with ball cartridge; loaded it myself the evening before with a pin-fire cartridge; about 4 pm I was called, and returning to the house saw the deceased lying at the gate in the front of the house; when I went up to her she was still breathing, but did not speak, and died in about a minute after my arrival; examined her after death, and saw a wound under the left breast and a slight mark of blood; the body of the deceased lied in the house; it was not unusual to keep the revolver loaded; loaded it the previous evening for the purpose of shooting a dog, but had not discharged it: had warned the deceased not to allow the revolver to be touched

William Reilly stayed with his family at the lighthouse station until he turned 19 years of age. The regulations of the department forbade any son of a light keeper or pilot from remaining with the family at a lighthouse or light station after turning 19 years. In 1902 there were very few vessels that required the services of a Pilot through the Sandy Straits so the Inskip Pilot Station was discontinued in 1902. Samuel James Reilly and his family left Inskip and stayed at Cape Moreton from 21st July to 1st October of the same year. The Inskip Point Pilot Station was officially abolished on the 31st July 1902.

This story was written by Lyn Fleming and it appeared previously in The Researcher Newsletter of March 2017 and you can read that Newsletter here.