Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
Image: Turning the first turf for the Sydney Railway, 1850. Lithograph by W. Harris. State Library of NSW collection. In Australia, a company to build one of the first public railway lines in the colony (now state) of New South Wales (NSW) was incorporated. The Sydney Railway Company was put into place to develop a... Continue Reading →
After three years of restoration by the South Australian Maritime Museum, the steam tugboat Yelta was relaunched for use as a floating museum for purposes such as sightseeing cruises. Yelta, which had been built in 1948 at the Cockatoo Island Dockyard in Sydney, operated in the waters of South Australia from 1949 to 1976. The... Continue Reading →
Construction on the Eyre Highway in Australia was completed with the permanent sealing of the South Australian section of this route with bitumen. This final section was the stretch of highway between South Australia’s border with Western Australia and the South Australian town of Penong. A ceremony to commemorate the event took place near Wigunda... Continue Reading →
In a major triumph, the Australian racing yacht Australia II won the America’s Cup. Australia II represented the Royal Perth Yacht Club of Australia. The America’s Cup defender, the New York Yacht Club, had held the sailing trophy since 1851. Australian sailor John Bertrand served as the skipper for Australia II, and he and his... Continue Reading →
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 →
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 →
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 →
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 →
The Story Bridge in the state of Queensland in northeastern Australia made its public debut. The 2,549-foot-long structure, spanning the Brisbane River and connecting the northern suburbs of Brisbane with the city’s southern suburbs, is the longest cantilever bridge in Australia. At the time of its grand opening, the Story Bridge – measuring 79 feet... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 