Jervis Bay
Jervis Bay (/ˈdʒɑːrv[invalid input: 'ɨ']s/ or locally /ˈdʒɜːvəs/)[1] Pronounced: Jar-vis[2] is a bay of 102 square kilometers[3] on the south coast of New South Wales adjacent to the Jervis Bay Territory. HMAS Creswell is located between Jervis Bay Village and Greenpatch in the Jervis Bay Territory.
Geography
Jervis Bay has to the south Greenpatch; Hyams Beach, and Bowen Island in the Jervis Bay Territory. In New South Wales, it has Vincentia to the west; Callala Beach, Callala Bay and Hare Bay to the north, and Beecroft Peninsula which has been used as a bombing range for the Royal Australian Navy.[4] To the south of Beecroft Peninsula is Point Perpendicular.
Jervis Bay is bordered by (in order from north to south) the NSW towns of Callala Bay, Callala Beach, Myola, Huskisson, Vincentia and Hyams Beach, and the Jervis Bay Territory developments of HMAS Creswell and Jervis Bay Village.
History
Jervis Bay was named after Admiral John Jervis in 1791 by Lt Richard Bowen.[3] George Bass entered the Bay when he surveyed the South East coast of Australia in 1797.
Jervis Bay has been officially recorded as having the whitest sand in the world.[5]
In the late 1960s Australia's first and only nuclear power plant was proposed for the area, and a site was prepared. However, the project did not proceed. PRONUNCIATION OF JERVIS BAY
YOU SAY JARVIS, WE SAY JERVIS
(From an article by Alan Clark in the South Coast Register, Friday 5th August, 2005)
“Jervis Bay is a major attraction in the Shoalhaven district, popular with local and visitors alike, but the pronunciation of Jervis has been a topic of debate for generations.
But just as some surnames are pronounced differently by branches of the family in different areas, the subject of ‘Jervis or Jarvis’ is regularly raised.
Jervis Bay was named in 1791 by Lt Richard Bowen after the British Admiral, Sir John Jervis (1735 – 1823) who is best known for being in command of the British fleet at the Battle of St Vincent in 1797.
After that battle he was created an earl, to be known as Earl St Vincent; but earlier in his career he had served alongside Captain James Cook at the siege of Quebec in 1759.
During 1928, Mr Jervis Manton wrote to the Speaker of the House of Representatives (Sir Littleton Groom) about the growing inclination in Australia to mispronounce the name of Jervis Bay.
He claimed to be descended from the original Jervis and asked the Speaker to do what he could to maintain the correct pronunciation ‘Jervis’.
When controversy raged on the subject during 1972, the State Member for South Coast, Jack Beale (who was also Minister for Environment Control) sought to have it clarified by the Geographical Names Board of NSW.
While not giving a definitive answer, the GNB’s response in January 1973 was that once a place name had been established in this State, it’s pronunciation would be determined ‘by popular usage’ which said it was ‘Jarvis’.
However, during that month Shoalhaven Shire confirmed a previous resolution that the correct pronunciation was “Jervis”.
In the meantime, developer Warren Halloran who, with his father before him, had taken great interest in the history of Jervis Bay and perpetuated the names from the Battle of St Vincent in Vincentia street names, decided to go to the source.
He contacted the then current Viscount St Vincent in England who advised that the family had always pronounced the name as it was spelt, “Jervis”.
Viscount St Vincent provided Mr Halloran with an extract from the family tree that showed the large overlap between generations which made it almost impossible for the pronunciation of the family name to change.
While working in England in 1998, South Coast Register journalist Alex Arnold was corrected by a former Royal Navy man who was adamant that he should be saying “Jarvis” Bay.
Two newsreaders asked about this subject both favour Jervis, but for different reasons.
Graham French of Radio 2ST said he had been guided by former colleague, the late Greg Toohey, who he said had been “obsessed with it”.
Toohey’s research led him to believe it was Jervis Bay, and French followed suit, although he had occasionally been corrected by naval people.
Former ABC television newsreader, Richard Morecroft who now lives in the vicinity of Jervis Bay, agrees.
He said he had been guided by the Standing Committee on Spoken English (SCOSE), although he believed it to be the preferred pronunciation rather than mandatory.
This was borne out by Irene Poinkin, SCOSE’s language researcher who did admit it was a “sore point”.
She quoted the BBC Dictionary of Pronunciation that indicated Sir John Jervis would haven pronounced his name as “Jervis”.
Although the Royal Australian Navy favours “Jarvis” for its vessel, HMAS Jervis Bay, according to Ms Poinkin, when there is doubt the spelling takes precedence.
So Jervis it is!”
Further to the above article, it should also be noted that at 11.30am on April 6th 1992 at the Declaration of the Jervis Bay National Park by the Australian Environment Minister, the Hon. Ros Kelly, MP at Greenpatch, Ms Kelly, in her role as Minister for the Crown, confirmed the pronunciation of Jervis Bay as being as it is spelt (not Jahvis)…Eyewitness account of Tom Phillips, Tourism Manager, Shoalhaven City Council. (File Number 11259)
Geology
Jervis Bay formed as a drowned river valley 15,000 years ago at the end of the last ice age.[6] The bay took its present appearance around 4000BCE after the sea levels had risen 120m and as sand dune barriers created the southern peninsula.[7] Much of the rock in Jervis Bay is part of the Sydney Basin sandstone formation, aged 280-225 million years old, although lower areas are overlain with Tertiary-era sediments.[7]
Several features at Jervis Bay have been used as evidence that the Australian coast has experienced many giant tsunami prior to European colonisation.[8]
Environment
Some 158 square kilometres (61 sq mi) of the land on both sides of the bay has 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.[9] The Jervis Bay natural environment is protected in the Booderee National Park, Jervis Bay National Park and the Jervis Bay Marine Park.
Recreation
Jervis Bay is a well known recreational fishing and scuba diving destination, 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 Fairey Firefly aeroplane, scallop beds, Middle Ground, Ten Fathom Reef, and Bowen Island.[10]
Jervis Bay is also known for Whale Watching, placed such that the migration, both north and south can be observed as they pass the entrance to the Bay, frequently entering the bay to rest. The majority of whales sighted at Jervis Bay are the Humpback whales, which migrate along the east coast from June to November, however other species on occasions such as Southern Right Whales, False Killer Whales, Orcas, Minke whales and on one occasion the Blue Whale are seen.
Tourism
Tourism in Jervis Bay is one of the most important avenues of income for many of the local residents, with many businesses orienting themselves toward tourism in and around Jervis Bay. The local Council-managed Visitors Information Centres are located at Nowra and Ulladulla. The Jervis Bay Visitors Information Centre is at the Lady Denman Heritage Centre, within the museum buildings. It contains a wealth of knowledge for visitors to the area.[11]
See also
- Jervis Bay Territory
- Australian Capital Territory
- Booderee National Park
- Beecroft Peninsula
- Jervis Bay National Park
- HMS Jervis Bay
Notes
- ^ Macquarie Dictionary, Fourth Edition (2005). Melbourne, The Macquarie Library Pty Ltd. ISBN 1-876429-14-3
- ^ The ABC Standing Committee on Spoken English A guide to the pronunciation of Australian place names. Angus & Robertson 1957. pp. Pg 61.
{{cite book}}:|pages=has extra text (help) - ^ a b The Jervis Bay Region 1788 to 1939 an Emptied Landscape. Lady Denman Heritage Complex. 2007. p. 1. ISBN 0 9586447 3x.
{{cite book}}: Check|isbn=value: invalid character (help) - ^ The Jervis Bay Region 1788 to 1939 an Emptied Landscape. Lady Denman Heritage Complex. 2007. p. 53. ISBN 0 9586447 3x.
{{cite book}}: Check|isbn=value: invalid character (help) - ^ "Gazing onto the world's whitest sands". Sydney Morning Herald. Jan 1, 2006. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
- ^ Jervis Bay Landscape and Geology, NSW National Parks and Wildlife.
- ^ a b Geology and Geomorphology, Wreck Bay Aboriginal Community Council.
- ^ Bryant et al, The impact of tsunami on the coastline of Jervis Bay, Southeastern Australia, Physical Geography 18 p.440 (1997)
- ^ "IBA: Jervis Bay". Birdata. Birds Australia. Retrieved 2011-07-13.
- ^ "Jervis Bay". VisitNSW.com. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
- ^ "Lady Denman Heritage Complex". Lady Denman Heritage Complex. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
References
- Scuba Divers Guide to Jervis Bay, Tom Byron
- Barker, A. 1996. What Happened When. Allen and Unwin. ISBN 1-86373-986-6