Snapshot

The fishing boat Snapshot, registered in 1901 as no.83, left Fremantle on the 11 June for a fishing cruise north of Rottnest Island. She had only just been purchased by her new owners, and was well known in the Fremantle fishing fleet.

Onboard were two Greek brothers and the owners of the boat, Julius and Vasilio Valandis, and an Italian named Luigi Senni.

A storm passed over the coastline on, or around, 13 June and no traces or reports of the boat were received, until wreckage of the boat was found by a passing fisherman ashore near Hamersley House, Wanneroo beach about 22 miles north of Fremantle the following Sunday, 16 June 1901.

It was presumed the ship had either struck Wanneroo Reef, near Little Island, or had been driven onto the shore. The Police reported finding some fishing lines, frying pan and other small articles nearby, but there were no traces of the missing men.

The search party postured that a live body could have washed up onto Little Island, situated nearby. On 29 June, the Police boat, Penguin, was sent to search Little Island, but its tender was unable to get through the reefs to search the island. Further searches were made up and down the coastline from the scene of the wreck, without finding any further evidence.

On 21 July, a body was found on the rocks at North Beach, by William Harris. The body was not clothed, with one leg from the knee down, and one arm missing. The body was very much decomposed, but was later thought to be that of Luigi Senni.

Despite multiple adjournment’s, Dr. E. Black, district Coroner was unable to find a person to definitively identify the remains of the body, and the final verdict was announced as “body of an unknown man, who was found on the North Beach, near Trigg’s Island, on the 23rd July last – Found dead”.

Senni was a native of Ravenna in Italy, and had arrived in Western Australia onboard the barque, Raglan Castle, in March of the same year.