Boyds Tower was commissioned by Benjamin Boyd and originally designed to be a lighthouse. After the Government rejected the proposal of the private lighthouse, Boyd changed tact and built the Sydney sandstone tower for whale spotting. The tower gave his whaling ships a strong advantage over other whalers in the area.
Built in 1847, Boyds Tower is a large sandstone tower on the southern head of Twofold Bay in Ben Boyd National Park. The top of the tower bears the BOYD title, and boast several viewing points. The ground floor of the tower is open to the public and is well worth exploring.
Boyd was declared bankrupt soon after completing the tower and left Australia for the Californian goldfields. Boyd died in the Solomon Islands in 1851 whilst hunting game.
"Ben Boyd's Tower is watching -
Watching o'er the sea
Ben Boyd's Tower is waiting
For her and me." Henry Lawson (1910)
The bottom floor of the tower is open to the public via a 1.2m wide sandstone door frame.
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