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LOCATION AND HISTORY OF CLUB
Port Fairy - Jewel of the South
West......
Popular local
legend attributes 1810 as the year when the sealing Captain
James Wishart sailed into the river and named the area after his
cutter, "Fairy", but historians consider the year more likely to
have been 1828.
There appears no
doubt however that sealers and even some whalers frequented the
area before the first Bay Whaling Station was established at the
mouth of the river in 1835.
Yet while the
harbour was always known as Port Fairy the town, as it developed
from 1843 under the auspices of Atkinson's special survey, was
known as Belfast until a special Act of Parliament renamed it
Port Fairy in 1887.
A fishing port
famous for its crayfish and abalone and located in a farming
area - sheep, cattle, dairying , potatoes, Port Fairy teems with
history, particularly in its many historic 19th century
buildings ranging from the simple to the magnificent, of wood
and limestone, rubble and basalt and bluestone.
Port Fairy is also
famous for the only major mainland colony of the Mutton Birds -
the short tailed shearwaters. After a round journey of
almost 15,000 kilometers to and from their wintering grounds in
the northern extremity of the Pacific, and via New Zealand and
Japan, the birds return to Port Fairy each year to nest in
burrows on Griffith Island and along the foreshore.
Whilst still a
viable fishing port and farming area, Port Fairy has become
renowned as a tourist destination and it and the surrounding
area has much to offer.
The Port Fairy
Belfast Lions Club was chartered in 1977 by the Macarthur and
District Lions Club of which the then President and guiding Lion
of the new club Lion Joe Bourke is still a member. Since
its charter the Port Fairy Belfast Club has been extremely
active in the community. The club has been involved in
almost every facet of community service, and has raised many
thousands of dollars for community and other worthwhile welfare
projects including district and national Lion efforts.
IN APPRECIATION
Lionswap the ISP
provider for Lions Web Sites has been set-up by the Lions of
Turkey (MD118). Work on the programmes/script used to compile
Web Pages has been the work of Dr. Enzar Tore of the Canakkale
Lions, also of Turkey. The Lions Club of Port Fairy-Belfast
consequently displays the national flag of TURKEY on their site
as a sign of appreciation of their work/efforts.
