Laggers Point is a headland on the

Mid North Coast The Mid North Coast is a country region in the north-east of the state of New South Wales, Australia. The region covers the mid northern coast of the state, beginning from Port Stephens north of Sydney, and extending as far north as Woolgoolg ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

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 ...

. It is the end of the north pointing peninsula which is the eastern side of

Trial Bay Trial Bay is a broad bay on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia. The bay faces northwards and extends from Laggers Point in the east around to Grassy Head to the west, past the town of South West Rocks and the Macleay River mouth. ...

. The beach on the inside of the bay is sheltered and the National Parks and Wildlife Service operates a popular campground there. A

surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suitabl ...

wave is known to break across the sand, but it's not highly regarded.

Nat Young Robert Harold "Nat" Young (born 14 November 1947) is an Australian surfer and author. Surfing career Born in Sydney, New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New Sout ...

in his ''Surfing & sailboard guide to Australia'' rated it as a dubious kind of wave in mega southerly conditions.

Trial Bay Gaol and breakwater

In 1861, a plan was formed to construct a breakwater off Laggers Point to make Trial Bay a harbour of refuge for those ships too big to cross river mouths. Further plans included the idea to use prison labour for the construction, with a prison established specifically for that purpose. In 1877, work on the gaol commenced and in 1886, it was proclaimed a prison and inmates moved there. The breakwater they worked on was to extend some 1500 metres out into the bay, built from granite blocks quarried from the nearby hill. Heavy gales caused damage to the structure as it progressed over the years. In 1898 and 1899, new wings were built on the prison, suggesting work was intending to continue, but in 1903 it was abandoned. Apparently, the prison was costly to run and didn't fit with ideas of

penology Penology (from "penal", Latin ''poena'', "punishment" and the Greek suffix '' -logia'', "study of") is a sub-component of criminology that deals with the philosophy and practice of various societies in their attempts to repress criminal activities ...

of the time. About 300 metres of breakwater had been built, and it had shoaled up the bay considerably. A wharf had been built inside the breakwater in 1898, not meant for public use, but which ended up used regularly by passenger ships which could not navigate the

Macleay River The Macleay River is a river that spans the Northern Tablelands and Mid North Coast districts of New South Wales, Australia. Course and features Formed by the confluence of the Gara River, Salisbury Waters and Bakers Creek, the Macleay River r ...

mouth. Today only a small section of the breakwater remains, about 50 metres, and nothing of the wharf. In 1915, the gaol was reopened to hold German wartime internees. Most were single men of some education and included officers of the German Army Reserve. A rumour went around in 1917 that a German landing party planned to free the men and when a German raider the SS ''Wolf'' was seen in 1918 the men were moved to the large camp at

Holsworthy Holsworthy is a market town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Torridge District, Torridge district of Devon, England, some west of Exeter. The River Deer, a tributary of the River Tamar, forms the western boundary of the paris ...

outside

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

. This was the last use made of the prison and it was stripped and fixtures sold off in 1922. Today, it's open to the public, operated as a heritage site by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

German monument

Four internees died during their time in the gaol and in 1917 their compatriots built a monument up on the hill for them. Supposedly, during that building communication with the SS ''Wolf'' took place, though that would seem unlikely. The monument was destroyed by vandals in 1919, probably provoked by anti-German sentiment. It remained as a pile of stones until in 1959 funding from the West German war graves commission saw it rebuilt by the Kempsey Rotary association. Laggers Point page
at

Geoscience Australia Geoscience Australia is an agency of the Australian Government. It carries out geoscientific research. The agency is the government's technical adviser on all aspects of geoscience, and custodian of the geographic and geological data and knowl ...

References

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External links

* For photos of the area see th
South West Rocks Photo Gallery
* For photos of Trial Bay Gaol see th
Gaol Gallery at the South West Rocks Photo Gallery

Trial Bay Gaol
– NSW National Parks Headlands of New South Wales Mid North Coast

Trial Bay Gaol and breakwater

German monument

References

Further reading

External links