History 1868 to 1936

Crown & Anchor Inn - Historic B&B above Snug Cove, Twofold Bay, is a National Trust listed Building.

After 1868 the Crown & Anchor Inn briefly became the telegraph office when Charles and Martha Kebby moved in. They continued to live there after the telegraph moved next door to operate from the "Half House" (also constructed by Rixon), renaming the property "Sherwood Cottage" until their deaths. For a brief period the building was extended to house a bank, but it appears circumstances were not conducive and it never opened. Subsequently Charles and Martha's daughter Alice, married Thomas H Wellings, and moved in living there until their deaths in 1935-1936. They had renamed the property "Edgecliffe". The top left image shows the Crown & Anchor Inn circa 1915 when an observation tower was constructed to observe coastal shipping during WWI. The other images were taken around 1935-1940.

The Crown & Anchor Inn was the first substantial building constructed in Eden and is the oldest preserved building on the Sapphire Coast. It is remarkable that it has survived. It has been privately restored using contemporary heritage reconstruction techniques with the assistance of the National Trust and advice from an heritage architect.

The property is classified by the National Trust and is listed as an heritage item at both State and Local Government planning levels.

Whaling…A fascinating history

The Davidson Whaling Station Historic Site, on the southern shores of Twofold Bay, offers a journey back in time providing a fascinating insight into the lives and industry of the 19th century whalers. A relatively small family business, operated by three generations of the Davidson family, the Station was the longest operating shore-based whaling station in Australia and the last of its kind to close. The whaling industry around Eden began in 1828. Early success saw the whaling industry explode and by 1840 there were some 27 whaleboats operating from bases within Twofold Bay. When the industry was at its height, competition for the whales was fierce. The cry “Rusho! Rusho!” filled the streets and crowds flocked to headlands around the Bay to follow the action. The whale was harpooned by hand, which was a dangerous practice at the best of times. The rope from the harpoon was lashed to the whaleboat to tire the whale – sometimes the boat was towed for miles out to sea before the whale was exhausted. Competition decimated the whale population and by the 1860s only three operators remained. One of these was Alexander Davidson who established his station around 1860. Davidson made extensive use of Aboriginal labour – these men proved excellent harpooners. Declining profits and the difficultly of obtaining skilled labour saw whaling from the early part of this century into an opportunistic activity with no regular watch kept. By the 1920s whaling was virtually at a standstill and in 1929 the last whale was taken into Twofold Bay. Discover more about the early whaler’s way of life in a guided tour of the station during the Eden Whale festival in October or during the National Parks and Wildlife Service discovery program. Visitors are welcome at other times to visit this picturesque site. For further information contact the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Office on (02) 6495 5000.