Historian solves mystery of concrete pillars unearthed at Sydney beach

A local Sydney historian has uncovered the mystery origin of a set of concrete supports that emerged from the sand at a popular beach following storms four years ago. 

In July 2022, a dozen concrete pylons were removed from Coogee beach in the city's east after becoming exposed by rough surf conditions.

The supports used to make regular appearances following large tidal events and were believed to have held up a pier that stood on the beach 100 years ago. 

But Ashley Kingston, who is vice president of the Randwick & District Historical Society, said the pier used cast-iron screw pylons, not concrete.

"They basically had a long piece of cast iron that had an attached thread and they were screwed in with an electric winch," Mr Kingston said.

The concrete supports actually belonged to two shark towers and a support tower for a shark net that covered the southern half of the beach. 

Mr Kingston said archival photos showed the base of the towers was supported by cylindrical columns that matched those found on the beach four years ago.  

"As far as I know it's the first shark tower in the world,"

Mr Kingston said.

"At some point, the flattened concrete part either eroded away or was taken away and the cylindrical bases were just all that was left."

Randwick Council removed the concrete piles in 2022 because they were moving around in the sand, presenting a hazard to beachgoers. 

The piles now lie in a council storage depot. 

Coogee's shark tower and pier era

The first shark observation tower was a galvanised steel tower on a concrete base supported by concrete piles built in 1922.

The tower could be manned by a lifeguard and was equipped with an electric bell to sound in the event of a shark sighting. 

As well as the tower, a shark-proof fence was built (although it collapsed before swimming season) and a rescue boat was procured. 

These measures were taken up after a series of shark attacks, including two fatal encounters in 1922 at Coogee. 

This tower made way for the Coogee pier, which facilitated the construction of a new shark net, while a tower was built behind the surf club on the southern headland. 

This net outlived the pier, which was dismantled by 1934 owing to financial failure. The net was supported by a tower on the beach, which also featured the columns that Mr Kingston believes were retrieved from the beach four years ago. 

Another shark tower was erected on the beach in the 1940s but was eventually removed. Reporting at the time suggested it was too flimsy and lifesavers refused to use it. 

The shark net collapsed in 1945 and was never replaced.

The shark towers themselves were far from a silver bullet for preventing shark bite incidents. In 1925, a teenage lifesaver had his leg bitten off by a shark in front of the tower while the bell was ringing after the shark had been spotted.

Familiar tales of shark mitigation 

Mr Kingston says his dive into Coogee's history felt familiar with recent public discussions about preventing shark attacks at Sydney's beaches.

In June this year, Leah Stewart was taken to St Vincent's Hospital in a critical condition after being mauled by a white shark while swimming at Coogee. 

In January, 12-year-old Nico Antic died in hospital after he was attacked at Vaucluse, while later that month Andre de Ruyter lost his leg after a suspected bull shark attack at Manly Beach.

The attacks prompted an expansion of a drone surveillance program that now covers 72 beaches along the NSW coast. 

But back in the 1920s the suggestions were far more macabre, Mr Kingston said.

"There were suggestions of bombing and having tags on them where they're going to put baits out that would explode," Mr Kingston said.

"There were people who did deep sea diving … they were going to go out with a knife and single-handedly take them down."

Enduring pier myth

Mr Kingston said he understood why the concrete was mistaken for belonging to the pier, as it had been done in previous reporting of the columns' surprise unearthings as far back as 1975 in the Sunday Star. 

The pier began construction 100 years ago and promised to have a full-sized theatre for 1,400 people, a ballroom, cafe and accommodation for 400 people. 

But these bold elements of the pier never made the final structure and the pier was taken down eight years after being built. 

Mr Kingston said old photographs suggested the shark nets were actually more popular than the pier, even though it cost money to access either facility and the Great Depression had just hit. 

"The shark net's full of people and the pier's practically empty," Mr Kingston said.