'The inquest into his death actually says Charles Yelverton O'Connor made his death by his own hand while in a state of mental derangement caused by worry and overwork. 'In 1895 there's an occasion where he took time off work and maybe it was a harbinger of what was to come. The engineer had many health problems, including cirrhosis of the liver from excessive alcohol consumption it was also believed he suffered mental illnesses. 'There are several theories someone forgot that they'd extended the pipeline from Coolgardie to Kalgoorlie, someone forgot to turn a valve, which cannot be the case because he killed himself almost a full year before the water arrived.'ĬY O'Connor never got to see his engineering wonder at work, the pipeline was finished in 1903 and he died in 1902. 'School children still tell me that people were waiting at Mt Charlotte, water didn't arrive, CY O'Connor killed himself and then two days later the water arrived,' Diana said. 'But what is definitely not true is that he killed himself because the pipeline failed, that's what everyone believes.' 'His latest biographer says he was bipolar and had manic depression and killed himself in a state of depression. The latter engineer was of course O'Connor, who on March 10 1902, shot himself as he rode his horse into the water at Robb Jetty, south of Fremantle.

The former engineer was Hodgson, O'Connor's second in charge, whose reputation was damaged due to his believed involvement in his colleague's death after the pair had a falling out. 'At the opening the Minister for Works at the time said the scheme in many respects was a sad one, it had ruined the reputation of one engineer and been the death of another,' Diana said. Education officer Diana Frylink is visiting schools with a representative from the Water Corporation to shed some light on the myths surrounding CY O'Connor's suicide.Ĭharles Yelverton O'Connor was an Irish engineer, well known for the construction of Fremantle Harbour as well as for the pipeline that still brings fresh water 530km from Perth to Kalgoorlie, known as the Goldfields Water Supply Scheme.

Board to Death by C.J. Connor