Thrasyvalos Eustration

The following report was filed on 1 December 1899, by Constable Douglas of the WA Police Department:

“I beg to report that I found the body of the Greek fisherman, Thrasivoulos, at 4pm on the 1st on the East bank of the Canning River about two miles beyond Mill Point. The body was fully clothed and lying face downwards in the water. The face and hands were very much eaten by fish. I handed the body over to River Police Constable Geplin at 4.30pm.”

Thrasyvalos (also referred to as Thrasivalos and Thrasivoulos) was a Greek fisherman, single, residing in James Street, near Pier Street, and employed by John Nicholis, the keeper of the London Oyster Saloon fish shop, located at 176 Williams Street, Perth. He had been fishing for about four months before his accident.

Nicholis stated in his police report that he last saw Thrasyvalos at 12 noon on 28 November 1899, when he left his shop to go fishing, indicating that he would go down the river to the vicinity of Fremantle. He took a spring balance with him and a small basket of bait. When leaving the shop, Thrasyvalos told Nicholis that he would return the following day.

On Tuesday 28 November 1899, Antonio Fossileau (Fossilo), a lighterman who had known Thrasyvalos for around five years, was employed by the Swan River Shipping Company. He left from the Swan River Shipping Company’s jetty around 2.30pm in a lighter towed by the Company’s steamer (tug) ‘Warreneen’. When sailing down the river, about halfway between Crawley and Dalkeith, Fossileau saw Thrasyvalos in his boat. He called out to Fossileau to throw him a rope, which he did.

Thrasyvalos caught the rope and Fossileau told him to hurry up and make fast the rope. Fossileau’s police report states that the deceased first walked aft to fasten the rope and then turned around and walked towards the bow. Appearing too excited to fasten the rope, he held onto it in his hands and as the steamer kept on its course he was dragged out of the boat into the water. Fossileau observed that Thrasyvalos held onto the rope until he was about ten to fifteen yards from his boat, then let go of the rope and appeared to be swimming back to his boat.

Fossileau stated that he called out to the master in charge of the steamer, Charles Coxwain, but he could not hear him. He saw another sailing boat about 300 yards from Thrasyvalos’s boat, and thinking that they would pick him up, took no further action. He told a Greek about the accident on going ashore at Fremantle, but never thought anything more of the matter, until some days later he casually heard that the deceased had been drowned.

At around 3pm on Tuesday 28 November 1899, three fishermen were in their boat fishing at Pelican Rocks. They were Francis Roper, Frederick Roper (son of Francis) and Frank Whitfield. They noticed a boat about a mile away with a man standing up in it. They knew it was a fisherman, but could not identify him. Shortly afterwards Frank Whitfield drew their attention to the same boat which was drifting. They headed over to the boat and on arrival there was nobody in the boat and the sail was thrown carelessly on the side of the boat.

They immediately suspected an accident had occurred, and started searching along the line that they first saw the boat. They soon recovered a man’s tweed cap floating on the water and knew it belonged to a Greek fisherman, but they did not know who. Soon after they recovered a paddle, which came from the drifting boat. The Water Police arrived and the matter was reported to them.

The body of Thrasyvalos was found on Friday 1 December 1899, by Constable Douglas in shallow water, about two miles south of Mill Point. The body of the deceased was conveyed to the morgue by Water Police and an inquest was opened at the hospital at 9am on Saturday 2 December 1899, by the acting district coroner (Dr. E Black, R.M.).

After the jury had formally viewed the body, the inquiry was adjourned until Monday, 4 December 1899 at 2 pm. Sergeant Lappin conducted the inquiry for the police, and witnesses included Frederick Roper, John Nicholis, Antonio Fossileau and Dr James Thompson (Perth Hospital). Dr Thompson gave it as his opinion that the deceased had met his death from drowning.

The jury returned a verdict that the deceased had come to his death by having been accidentally drowned and that no blame was attributable to anyone. Dr. E. Black, Acting District Coroner, delivered a verdict of ‘accidental death’.