Robert Hayles (1843 in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

– 1926 in

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) was an Australian entrepreneur who formed a series of passenger and cargo ferry services in the north of Australia after 1889. He moved to Australia aboard the sailing ship ''Nunda'' in 1861. Hayles worked in the mining and pastoral industries in Queensland before 1889 when he purchased a number of buildings and some land in Picnic Bay,

Magnetic Island Magnetic Island ( Wulguru: Yunbenun) is an island offshore from the city of Townsville, Queensland, Australia. This mountainous island in Cleveland Bay has effectively become a suburb of Townsville, with 2,335 permanent residents. The island ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. Hayles established a permanent tourist operation on Magnetic Island and in 1900 built the

Picnic Bay Jetty Picnic Bay Jetty is a heritage-listed jetty at Esplanade, Picnic Bay, Magnetic Island, City of Townsville, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1959 to 1977. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 5 April 2004. History The ...

, establishing a permanent passenger ferry service to Magnetic Island. Hayles's first ferry, the ''Bee'', was wrecked during a storm in 1901 and Hayles commissioned the construction of a 22-passenger ferry, the ''Phoenix'' and later commissioned a similar ferry called the ''Magnet''. In 1909, Hayles was granted creek-front land in Townsville to establish a permanent ferry terminal to assist in the operation of the Magnetic Island ferry service. In 1922 Hayles established Hayles Magnetic Island Pty. Ltd. and was appointed the Chairman of the company. In 1924, the company expanded to

Cairns Cairns (, ) is a city in Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. The population in June 2019 was 153,952, having grown on average 1.02% annually over the preceding five years. The city is the 5th-most-p ...

and established a regular mail and cargo service between Cairns and

Cooktown Cooktown is a coastal town and locality in the Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia. Cooktown is at the mouth of the Endeavour River, on Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland where James Cook beached his ship, the Endeavour, for repairs ...

. The company also established a Darwin office the same year and provided services for mission stations, lighthouses and remote settlements along the Victoria and Daly rivers. Hayles family business continued to expand, offering fortnightly Cairns to Green Island services from 1928 onwards and in 1936 the company introduced

Brisbane River The Brisbane River is the longest river in South East Queensland, Australia, and flows through the city of Brisbane, before emptying into Moreton Bay on the Coral Sea. John Oxley, the first European to explore the river, named it after the Go ...

cruises in Brisbane, Queensland. The

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

had a serious impact on Hayles' business with vessels in his fleet requisitioned by the Australian military. Eustace Robert (Bob) Hayles was one son who became involved in the business.

References

* 1843 births Year of death missing British emigrants to Australia {{Australia-business-bio-stub