Jervis Bay

Archaeological evidence at Burrill Lake, 55 kilometres south of Jervis Bay, shows Aboriginal occupation dating back 20,000 years.[6]

Jervis Bay was sighted by Lieutenant James Cook aboard HMS Endeavour on 25 April 1770 (two days after Saint George's Day) and he named the southern headland Cape St George.[7][8]

In August 1791 Lieutenant Richard Bowen, aboard the convict transport ship Atlantic, part of the Third Fleet, sailed into the bay and named it in honour of Admiral John Jervis, under whom he had served.[7][9][10] In November 1791 Master Matthew Weatherhead entered the bay aboard Matilda, which had also been part of the Third Fleet, in order to undertake repairs to the ship.[9]

In mid 1797, survivors of the wreck of Sydney Cove passed through the area on foot, while undertaking an arduous trek of 600 kilometres in an attempt to get to Port Jackson (Sydney) – only three of them completed the journey.[9][11]

Explorer George Bass entered the bay on 10 December 1797 and named Bowen Island.[12]

The Point Perpendicular Lighthouse in 1899

Alexander Berry's takeover of land in the Shoalhaven displaced Aboriginal people who were moved in 1822 to Wreck Bay. Smallpox and syphilis significantly reduced local populations.[13] A separate population of Aborigines, who settlers called 'the Jervis Bay tribe' - the Wandandian people[14] - remained on their traditional lands on the bank of Currambene Creek (near Huskisson) and around St Georges Basin, until well into the 20th century.[15][16][17][18]

In 1841, the private township of South Huskisson on Jervis Bay was founded as a seaport and terminus of The Wool Road.[19] It was renamed Vincentia in 1952.[20]

Whaling was conducted in the bay in 1912 and 1913. The vessels involved were the factory ship Loch Tay and her two catchers Campbell and Sorrell.[21]

The land now comprising the Jervis Bay Territory was surrendered by the state of New South Wales to the Commonwealth Government in 1915[22][23] to provide a seaport for the new Federal capital under construction at Canberra, which would be Australia's only inland capital.[24]

In the late 1960s, Australia's first nuclear power plant was proposed for the area, and a site was prepared. However, the project did not proceed.[25]

Hyams Beach, a white sandy beach

Significant areas of the Jervis Bay natural environment have been established as protected areas, including Booderee National Park, Jervis Bay National Park and the Jervis Bay Marine Park.

Some 158 km² (61 sq mi) of the land on both sides of the bay have been identified by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area (IBA) because the coastal heathland supports the largest sub-population of the endangered eastern bristlebird, isolated from other sub-populations.[31]

Jervis Bay has been recorded as having the whitest sand in the world.[32]

Recreational boats at Huskisson

Jervis Bay is known for recreational fishing, kayaking, paddleboarding, sailing[33] and scuba diving, with tour operators departing from Huskisson and amateurs using boat ramps at bayside towns and camp sites. Popular diving sites include The Labyrinths, Gorgonian Wall, Point Perpendicular, a submerged Fairey Firefly aeroplane, scallop beds, Middle Ground, Ten Fathom Reef, and Bowen Island.[34]

Jervis Bay is also known for whale watching, because whale migration, both north and south, can be observed as the animals pass the entrance to the bay, frequently entering the sheltered waters to rest. The majority of whales sighted at Jervis Bay are humpbacks, which migrate along Australia's east coast from June to November. Southern right whales are also showing a slow but steady increase in recent years as they re-colonise former habitats, having been extensively hunted in the 19th and 20th centuries. Other species sighted have been false killer whales, orcas, minke whales and, on one occasion, a blue whale.

Tourism in Jervis Bay is one of the most important avenues of income for many of the local residents, with many businesses orienting themselves towards it. The Jervis Bay Visitors Information Centre is at Huskisson, and is part of the Lady Denman Maritime Museum and Gallery.[35] Local council-managed visitor information centres are at Nowra and Ulladulla.

The first commercial aquaculture licence for an area in the bay was granted in 2015, for an enterprise which started growing blue mussels. They also found abundant Angasi oysters and scallops growing on the lines which they dropped at first, but the industry focus is on the blue mussels, which have a high ratio of meat to shell. The first full-scale commercial harvest of blue mussels was scheduled for November 2020. The potential of growing seaweeds for commercial use is also being explored, and Shoalhaven City Council is investing A$2.3 million to develop a wharf, boat maintenance facility and other infrastructure needed to service the industry. It is hoped that the industry will create up to 1,000 jobs.[36]

Jervis Bay experiences an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification: Cfb), with average maximum temperatures varying from 16 °C in winter to 25 °C in summer tempered by sea breezes. The highest recorded temperature is 42.1 °C in January, and the lowest 4.7 °C in August. Hot summer evenings are often relieved by a front of rapidly moving cool air known as a southerly buster.

Rainfall is fairly evenly distributed throughout the seasons, with a bias to the first half of the year, due to prevailing easterlies. Short high intensity rainfall events may happen at any time of the year and can lead to local flooding. Jervis Bay also experiences thunderstorms during the warmer months bringing lightning, heavy rain and occasionally hail. With an annual rainfall around 1,200 mm, it is wetter than other areas in the South Coast due to its exposed eastward location on a peninsula facing the Tasman Sea, thus making it more susceptible to moist easterly flows. Yearly rainfall is influenced by the El Niño-Southern Oscillation.

• Australian Capital Territory
• Beecroft Peninsula
• Booderee National Park
• HMS Jervis Bay
• HMAS Jervis Bay (AKR 45)
• Jervis Bay National Park
• Jervis Bay Territory