Company Boats, Sailing Dinghies and Passenger Fish: Fathoming Torres Strait Islander Participation in the Maritime Economy

Abstract

While research has been conducted into Torres Strait's Queensland government controlled lugger-based company boat system, which operated from about 1904 until the late 1960s, another significant Torres Strait Islander mode of production, the gathering of marine product using shore-based sailing dinghies, has been largely overlooked. This article traces the emergence of this small-scale, yet substantial, pervasive and persistent form of enterprise and makes some preliminary observations about the patterns of activity. It suggests that a more detailed analysis of sailing dinghy work might offer fresh insights into Torres Strait Islander engagement with colonialism and further complicate the social control interpretive model.