INTOMBI, a rare piece of Western Australia’s maritime history, is one of only a handful of original luggers still afloat today.

She was built in Fremantle in 1903 by Chamberlain and Cooper Boatbuilders for Broome Pearling Master, Penn Blick.

INTOMBI is Zulu for ‘young maiden’.

She worked the rich waters off Broome, sailed by her Pearling Master and indentured Asian diver and crew, throughout Broome’s pearling heyday. 

INTOMBI later became part of the legendary Streeter and Male fleet.

Like a number of other early boats she was rebuilt to bigger dimensions on the Broome foreshore in 1929, illegally using indentured labour.  Her increase in length of approximately 16 feet during the rebuild was subsequently not recorded with the Australia Shipping Registry for the next 55 years!

In the 1930’s as the pearling industry declined, INTOMBI sailed south and adapted to life as a line and crayfishing boat.  For the next 50 years she worked the waters of WA.

In 1979 her pearling configuration was restored during an extensive refit by lugger enthusiast, Tony Larard and she enjoyed a brief stint pearling once again.

In 1981 she became a family pleasure boat sailing from Darwin and South-East Asia.

In 2004 INTOMBI was purchased by Ryan and Amy who restored her with the help of family and friends over the next 18 months.  Ryan and Amy commenced tours with INTOMBI in Broome in 2005.

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