How We Found Liba1 - The Oldest Hire Houseboat On The River Murray
Original Liba 1 Houseboat found still in service on the Murray at Mannum! As their retirement years were approaching, Janet and Barry Hansen of Trott Park in SA considered looking for a houseboat to fulfil their dream, which they’d had for many years, of owning their own houseboat on the River Murray.After contacting Mannum Anchorage, Janet & Barry were shown over many houseboats within their price range but found that they all seemed unsuitable. Finally, since they saw that the Liba-T had been substantially renovated, they decided to have a look. Not to purchase but to get some ideas as to what could be done. However, on walking on board, both Janet and Barry were immediately overcome by a feeling of comfort and warmth towards the boat. It had been extensively modified with a new kitchen, new bathroom, new furniture and a new shaded rooftop area. Although the basic original design and layout had not changed. It still had the Holden Red motor drive to the tractor diff and paddles. Everything seemed in good working order so, uncharacteristically, they decided to sign up to purchase it. An offer was put and subsequently accepted. Being curious about the history of the houseboat, Barry contacted Hague Showell, the son of the original builder and operator of the Liba Liba fleet, Ian Showell, to see if Hague could identify the boat and it’s place in the Liba fleet. After viewing photos and further correspondence to confirm details, Hague was able to identify the Liba–T as Liba 1. Liba 1 was the second Liba houseboat built by the Showells in 1964 after building the original with Bunny and Michael Kempe. These two original boats were unique in that they were built with timber wall and floor cabin frames as well as side mounted paddles. The smaller boat, the original built in 1962, was named Liba 2. This boat was destroyed by fire in 1987. Barry and Janet were very happy with the revelations and knew that they had purchased a share of the River Murray’s history. Their houseboat they now knew was Liba 1, the historic oldest surviving hire houseboat on the river. Liba 1 had survived 46 years of constant hire and countless hours of fun, excitement and even catastrophe for hundreds, thousands, who knows how many families, groups and footy teams. It was time for someone to love her, cherish her and enjoy her. Janet and Barry could not wait to spend time on the river with her, enjoying her comfort, reliability and her lasting historic connection with Australia’s greatest river system. This river system had seen the great historic period where it was the busiest highway for freight in the country. Then, when that era was well and truly behind it, Ian and Fée Showell, along with Bunny and Michael Kempe had pioneered the era of luxurious recreational houseboats which so many people have enjoyed on the river since. Liba 1 is a valuable historic reminder of their original vision along with the Liba Liba fleet still operating from Renmark today. It even has a link to the original inhabitants of the Murray region as, according to Fée Showell, the Liba Liba name apparently means “two canoes lashed together”. It was taken from a book on Northern Aboriginal words when Ian and Fée Showell with Michael and Bunny Kempe got together to name the fleet. Janet and Barry are looking forward to many years of enjoyment on their historic houseboat. The major changes over the years have been: - Conversion to centre paddle wheel - Pontoons changed approx. 10 yrs. ago -- Cabin extended forward by approx. 1.5m and extra side windows added - Whole cabin re-clad with alum cladding - Roof repaired and sundeck added For more information on the Liba Liba fleet see Fée (pronounced Fay) Showells journal:-
Thanks to Hague and Fée Showell for their assistance and, of course, there were many more wonderful people involved in the history of the Liba Liba fleet. Thank you to all of them as well.
No comments:
Post a Comment