The Australian National Maritime Museum has recently added Steve Fairbairn’s boat to the Australian Register of Historic Vessels. This is the story of the boat and the Barwon Rowing Club members who restored it to the magnificent wooden shell we see today.

A wooden pair has been hanging in the Barwon Rowing Club’s shed for as long as our oldest members can remember. Always known as “Fairbairn’s boat”, it has survived onslaughts of paper planes from young coxswains and barrages of bread rolls from more rowdy rowers, the demolition of the old shed, its refurbishment and transfer to pride of place in our new club rooms.

It once belonged to one of the earliest members of the club. Stephen (Steve) Fairbairn was born in Melbourne, Victoria in 1862 and educated at Geelong Grammar School between 1874 and 1880. Whilst at the school he was taught to row by J.L. Cuthbertson, a teacher at the school and by the Captain of Barwon, Edward Nicholls. The boys were offered free membership by Barwon from 1871 until 1874 when the school formed its own boat club. The school did not have a boathouse on the river until 1877 and so used Barwon Rowing Club’s shed and fleet. In 1879 Steve joined Barwon and rowed stroke in the Barwon Rowing Club Senior Eight at the Colac Regatta.  In 1881-84 he read law at Jesus College, Cambridge. He rowed in the Oxford/Cambridge Boat Race in the Cambridge crews of 1882, 1883 (both defeated by Oxford), 1886 and 1887 (both victorious), in college crews at the Head of the Cam four times, and in crews which won the Grand Challenge Cup (the blue ribbon of amateur rowing in England), the Stewards’, and the Whyfold at Henley Regatta.

Fairbairn returned to Australia between 1884-85 and was then to and fro from England to Australia during 1887-1904, pursuing his family’s pastoral interests in Victoria and in Western Queensland at Beaconsfield, originally one the largest sheep stations in Australia.

On a trip to England beginning in 1897 he competed at Henley-on-Thames Regatta and was captain of Thames Rowing Club. In 1898 he was runner up in the Silver Goblets (coxless pairs) at Henley Regatta in a boat built by boat builders, Brewer Swaddle and Co. of Putney, England. This boat was adapted as either a coxless pair or a double sculling boat, being fitted so that that either bow or stern could steer.

In 1899 Steve returned to Australia, arriving in Brisbane by steamship with his wife, two young sons, two maids and the boat. In October he travelled to Melbourne, taking the boat with him, where he took extensive exercise on the Yarra River in his highly finished craft. In November Steve was appointed coach of the Queensland crew for the Intercolonial Eights Championship in Melbourne and had a fortnight’s supervision of the crew before the race where Queensland finished last. Before his return to Beaconsfield in the middle of 1900 by rail, he donated the boat to his old club, Barwon. The Club President, in acknowledging the gift, spoke of the great interest that Steve had always maintained in the club, and appointed him as the club’s first Honorary Life Member.

Steve returned to Cambridge in 1904 where he made his name as one of the most influential rowing coaches and introduced a new style of rowing, known as Fairbairnism, placing an emphasis on movement – “a perfect loose and easy elastic action” – above strict restrictive conventions on body placement. He died in Cambridge in 1938.

A few months ago, three intrepid gentlemen, John Guiney of Belgrove Hire and Barwon members Gary Giles and Chic Chandley, braved the heights to photograph inside the boat, providing the vital clue to proving its provenance.

The club’s thanks go to:

Hear the Boat Sing historians Tim Koch, Peter Mallory, Tom Weil, William “Bill” O’Chee, Goran Buckhorn and Bill Miller. Michael Kemp, Vintage Wooden Rowing Shells Australia.“One of the oldest and most important shells remaining in Australia”.

Rob Gardner, Sean Drew, Sam Elliott and Alan Chalmers for stripping back the old varnish. Tom Prime for restoration of the boat and storage until the new shed was built. Rob Gardner, Sean Drew, Alan Chalmers and Peter White for hanging the boat in the new shed.

For 118 years past and present members of the club have cared for the boat. Thanks to their committment, we are now able to confirm not only that the boat belonged to the great Steve Fairbairn but that it is one of the oldest and most important wooden shells remaining in Australia.