The Anniki was built in Cairns in 1958 and was one of the last Torres Strait pearling luggers ever made.
The Cairns-based Pearl Lugger Heritage Fleet recently bought the Anniki after the group restored its sister ship, the Antonia.
The Anniki was built because commissioning owner Jack Zafer found he had a spare engine after building the Antonia in 1956.
The Anniki worked in the Torres Strait right up to the turn of the century.
The Anniki's next venture was fishing for crayfish and her final duty in the Torres Strait was when 1,000 people lined Horn Island wharf to watch her carry the Sydney Olympic torch from Thursday Island.
"One of the purposes of our organisation is to try and salvage or rescue as many of the remaining Torres Strait pearling luggers and mission ketches that we know of," he said
Mr Smith is still to decide if partial restoration will be undertaken in Darwin so the Anniki can sail to Cairns, or if an extra $50,000 will be spent on road transport
"And [so] people can experience the excitement of a Torres Strait pearling lugger
Mr Smith said that of the 1,000 or so pearl luggers built, only 12 remained
"In the late '80s and '90s you could go to the Torres Strait and buy any number of luggers for $1," Mr Smith said
Northern Territory Museum curator Jared Archibald said luggers were integral to the pearling industry in northern Australia
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