Isabella Paddle Steamer 1912 Model Boat Kit – Modellers Shipyard (1008)

The Isabella Paddle Steamer 1912 Model Boat Kit is manufactured by Modellers Shipyard offer historically accurate ship model kits which are faithful interpretations of the original vessels. All kits have highly detailed English building instructions which will guide you throughout the whole construction process.

All ship model kits are double plank on bulkhead construction and only use the highest quality parts. Most kits have an optional extra DVD set demonstrating techniques to build the relevant kit.

The kit is plank on bulkhead construction with laser cut board. This ship model kit comes complete with all timber, rigging cord, and wooden and metal fittings. All parts and fittings are of the highest quality. It Includes 12 sheets of detailed instructions with extensive colour photographs.

Isabella-Paddle – Instructions

History of the Isabella Paddle Steamer 1912

Paddle steamers and riverboats formed a vital part in opening up the inland of Australia. The inland river system of the Murray, Darling, Lachlan and Murrumbidgee formed a network to connect inland communities across the Australian states of New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia. Paddle steamers have been plying these inland waters since 1853 travelling along the river system from Goolwa at the mouth of the Murray to the inland towns of Bourke on the Darling, Wagga Wagga on the Murrumbidgee and Forbes on the Lachlan.

Paddle steamers opened up the inland of eastern Australia allowing goods such as wool and wheat to be transported along the rivers to the inland ports of Echuca and Goolwa and then for transfer to the sea ports of Port Elliot, Adelaide or Melbourne. These same paddle steamers then transported cargo needed for these growing inland communities.

Life on the rivers was hard for the owners, crew and often families on the paddle steamers. Droughts often stranded the boats for months on end. Floods brought their own hazards with fast flowing waters, poorly defined river banks and submerged tree snags made navigation difficult and often dangerous.

The Isabella Paddle steamer 1912 is typical of the working boats that plied the river system in the late 1800s to the early 1900s. Working boats like her towed cargo barges up and down the rivers, servicing the needs and providing vital links for the inland communities to the outside world.