Buttons Mainly …

but also knife handles, watch faces, jewelry boxes, in the beginning it was all about the shell.

The first pearling fleet arrived in Roebuck Bay in the 1870’s. Shark Bay and Thursday Island had been fished for Mother-of-pearl but the North West had a superior oyster, Pinctada maxima. The site that became Broome offered a suitable place to haul out boats for repair and a source of fresh(ish) water. Broome was proclaimed in 1883. Named after Frederick Napier Broome, Governor of the colony of Western Australia, it didn’t get off to a roaring start. No lots were sold until 1886. The Governor was so disappointed to have his name associated with so miserable a place he was considering cancelling the proclamation.

Mother-of pearl was in big demand, pearling was profitable Broome grew. There were some major obstacles, essential supplies had to come a significant distance – Perth is more than 2000km away, the markets for shell were on the other side of the globe. Labour was hard to find, heat, humidity, cyclones and sickness had to be overcome. Nonetheless, by the end of the 19th century there were wealthy folk living in fine bungalows in Old Broome with a plethora of servants to wash and starch their white outfits and bleach their white suede shoes.

Meanwhile in Japtown indentured workers from Asia were enjoying life of a different style and largely banned from town the displaced Aborigines were not enjoying life all that much at all. If you wish to explore the social history further let me commend Beyond the Lattice by Susan Sickert (available online from Kimberley Bookshop). A popular song dating from that era that survives today (in various forms) puts it this way…

But, forget for the moment Beri Beri, the Bends, hardship and injustice and take the time machine to the days of hard hat diving …