A well was dug at the bottom of Osnaburg Street, (now Bridges Street) and a small landing completed. This was funded by the colonial government, and was for the landing of passengers and for cargo.

24 ships, including 2 men-of-war, called into Albany. Imports included salted meat, flour, beer and spirits, tobacco, rice, oils, sheep and cattle.

Exports included 44 bales of wool, 1,000 seal skins and "three packages of natural curiosities".

28 ships called at Fremantle in the same year.

Pilot John Laurence Morley was appointed Acting Harbour Master in 1937 whilst Belches was away. Government resident Sir Richard Spencer disapproved and appointed his son, Edward to the position, resulting in two Acting Harbour Masters dealing with ships' masters, while Morley continued his piloting duties. The death of Spencer in 1839 eased the tensions.

John Morley was a former sailor with the East India Company and one of the first settlers in the area, building many houses including Wollaston House, and Patrick Taylor Cottage in 1832.

The first Town Jetty was completed at the bottom of Osnaburg Street, (now Bridges Street), originally to be 130 yards (119m) but was reduced to 75 yards (68.5m) for financial reasons. It was built by Dunn and McKail for £100.

It was used by the P&O Company from 1853 to establish a coaling port at Albany, but this caused so much damage that the jetty partly collapsed and was then only used to ferry passengers and luggage to and from ships. It was demolished in 1877.

In October 1840 a new pilot, Shakespeare Hamilton was appointed. He was assisted by Captain C.I. Biomson. Harbour Master Belches departed in 1845 and Hamilton became Acting Harbour Master.

A stone building on the foreshore was acquired to be the first Albany Customs House, complete with "two small cannon framing the door"

Pilot John Morley was drowned in March 1840 along with the son of former Government Resident Richard Spencer, Hugh Seymour Spencer, after their pilot boat capsized off Ellen Cove.

With no pilot at the Port, ships had to enter slowly, using a lead-line up forward.

Pilot Shakespear Hamilton was acting Harbour Master 1846 - 1852

A public meeting in 1849 voted in favour of building a town jetty at the foot of York Street as the Osnaburg Street jetty was inadequate and too far from the town centre.

Work was commenced in 1850 by a syndicate of Albany merchants. Winter rains washing down York Street buried the jetty piles in silt and the project was abandoned.

The first P&O contracted mail steamer, the ‘Chusan’ (663 grt, screw-driven 80 HP steam engine, rigged as a 3-masted barque) with Captain Henry Down in command, delivering and collecting West Australian mail arrived on 23^rd November 1852. She had sailed from England on 15^th May, arriving in Melbourne then Sydney, where she left on 31^st August bound for Melbourne (again), Adelaide, Albany and Fremantle. She would then leave there for Jakarta and Singapore. She was received in Albany with gun salutes and a reception on board. The Harbour Master, Shakespear Hamilton had died at the age of 45 only 2 weeks prior to this arrival.

The ‘Chusan’ was sold in 1861. However two more ships with the name ‘Chusan’ serviced the Albany route (the 2^nd built in 1881 of 4,636 grt and the 3^rd built in 1950 of 24,215 grt).

Albany was well positioned to service this function as it was the first safe port for many ships from Europe en route to Melbourne and Sydney with the added feature of taking on bunker coal.

The British government awarded a mail service to the Australian Royal Mail Steam Navigation Company (ARMSNC, later ARM) from England to Sydney, Melbourne and Albany. Their ship ‘Australian’ (built 1852) arrived in Albany on 20^th August. Mail was delivered from Albany to Perth by pack horses, taking 6 days. The company had various problems and the mail service was cancelled. The ‘Australian’ was sold in 1857 to the East India Co.

P&O were to take over the service in January 1853, but they started sooner...