Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
Professional cyclist Sara Carrigan was born in the Australian town of Gunnedah. She began her cycling career in 1996 when she was only 15. Over the next decade or so, Carrigan established herself as a formidable cyclist in major competitions both within and beyond Australia. One of her biggest achievements took place in 2004 when... Continue Reading →
On New Zealand’s South Island, a railway between Christchurch and Dunedin made its official debut. “The opening of the Dunedin and Christchurch line, the great event of connecting the two commercial cities of the South Island by means of the iron horse, was consummated today,” announced the Wellington –based Evening post in its coverage of... Continue Reading →
A new lighthouse made its formal debut in Western Australia. Woodman Point Lighthouse (originally called Gage Roads Lighthouse), which is located on Woodman Point in the City of Cockburn, was built to help safely guide vessels sailing into the area’s large and busy port of Fremantle Harbour. “The light will be visible from the bridge... Continue Reading →
Just a few days after Australia entered World War I on the side of the Allied powers, the 350-fooot-long passenger steamship Grantala (an Aboriginal word for “big”) was requisitioned by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) for military service as a hospital ship. Grantala, which had been completed and launched by Armstrong Whitworth Company for the... Continue Reading →
The Otira Tunnel serving the Midland Railway line within the central part of New Zealand’s South Island was officially opened. The tunnel, which runs under the Southern Alps between Arthur’s Pass in that mountain range and the township of Otira, took approximately 15 years to build. The debut of the Otira Tunnel was hailed throughout... Continue Reading →
On Australia’s southeastern coast, a new lighthouse made its debut on the headland of Barrenjoey in the colony – and present-day state – of New South Wales (NSW). The first light for the sandstone structure was kerosene-fueled. The Barrenjoey Lighthouse was built in response to longtime demands for stronger safeguards for vessels, particularly the steady... Continue Reading →
More than 16 months after leaving Abu Dhabi, the experimental solar-powered monoplane Solar Impulse 2 completed its first-of-a-kind circumnavigation of Earth by returning to the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The innovative aircraft had been one of two built as part of a privately financed aviation project in Switzerland. The Swiss citizens leading this... Continue Reading →
In New Zealand, Bean Rock Lighthouse in Auckland’s Waitematā Harbour made its debut when keeper Hugh Brown lit a kerosene lamp in the new structure. (Brown served as the lighthouse’s keeper until retiring in 1890.) Bean Rock Lighthouse had been built in response to ever-increasing maritime traffic in this area of New Zealand; one of... Continue Reading →
After several years of being a popular fixture of the local transportation scene, a ginger-and-brown dog named Paddy passed away in New Zealand’s capital city of Wellington. “Friend of Sailors and Taxi Drivers,” proclaimed one of the headlines announcing his death in the next day’s edition of the Christchurch-based Press newspaper. Widely known as Paddy... Continue Reading →
The full-rigged sailing ship Netherby, with 413 passengers and 49 crew members on board, ran aground and sank off an island coast in turbulent Australian waters. The shipwreck resulted in ambitious rescue efforts involving several means of transportation. Netherby, a 944-ton vessel of the Black Ball Line, had been built in the British city of... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 