After Freemans Bay was created along the harbor in the early 1840s, the area quickly became the “wrong side of town.” The slum was filled with rancid-smelling industrial plants and shipyards plus the morgue and city dump together with plenty of crime and prostitutes. It was appropriate named after James Freeman who was described as a disgustingly immoral scoundrel. In the early 20th century, the Harbour Board dredged the Viaduct Basin to handle cargo. The venture failed. During the 1990s, the waterfront was extensively redeveloped as Viaduct Harbour. It is now an oasis of high-priced apartments, stores and restaurants overlooking moored yachts and pleasure boats.
