Mosquito Fleet

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Mosquito Fleet is a name used for different groups of small ships around the world. In South Australia, from 1836 to 1982, a fleet of small ketches and schooners operated in shallow coastal and gulf waters. In the early days at Geraldton (now Innisfail), the Johnstone River had a sand bar at the mouth and other shallow channels that kept large ships out. To move sugar from local mills, shallow-draft steamers and lighters carried the bags out to meet larger ships offshore. These small vessels were known as the Mosquito Fleet.