This month in the Shoalhaven in 1822 was very important as it was the very beginnings of white settlement in the area. On June 21st, the Scotsman Alexander Berry arrived at Coolangatta to become the first white settler in the Shoalhaven District. His vessel was the 15 ton cutter “Blanche”.

On June 23rd he made a note in his diary about “Shoalhaven Hill, Cullingatty” which was later to be known as “Mount Coolangatta” - the hill that dominates Shoalhaven Heads. The aboriginal word means splendid view, fine view or good lookout.

On June 25th Hamilton Hume and three men were left by Alexander Berry on an isthmus to build a hut and cut a passage (across the sandspit).  Amazingly and with the tools available then, it only took Hume and three men twelve days to complete the 209 yard long canal. It was actually Australia’s first canal. The river itself cut the canal wider and deeper and dredging many years later opened up the Shoalhaven River for steamships and the coastal trade.

Another notable event took place on June 1st 1870. The Paddle Steamer “The Coolangatta” was refloated in the Shoalhaven River after it had been washed 75 yards inland by the floods of April 23rd-26th of the same year. She was released into the river at 9pm and the scene was lit by bonfires and tar barrels and was witnessed by a large crowd including scores of small boys.

The Coolangatta was recorded as the first tourist vessel to operate on the Shoalhaven River taking holiday excursions over the Christmas/New Year period of the same year. Fares for the day trip were 2 shillings for adults, children half price.