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DAWES POINT BATTERY~~ ARCHAEOLOGICAL r

EXCAVATIONS 1995

DAWES POINT, THE ROCKS, .

. VOLlJME f lNTROt)tJCTION & IIISTORY

SYDNEY COVE · AUTHORITY ·

A. WAYNE JOHNSON 199X

SYDNEY

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VOLUME 1: INTRODUCTION & HISTORY

Volume 1:

Volume 2:

1.0 2.0

3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

Introduction Site History

Site Investigation Post-Excavation Analysis Site Conservation Bibliography

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CONTENTS

1.0 INTRODUCTION DRAFT

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1.1 Author ldt.·ntification

1.2 Aclmowledgrnents 5

1.3 Location 7

1.4 Ahh•·eyiations used in Text 7

1 A Historical Surnrn:u·~· R

1.5 Prnious Site Assessment H

Ui Statement of Significance 9 The Importance of Place 9 CommunitY Value of the Place 9 Understanding the Significance of the Place 10

Archaeology I 0

I. 7 Preyinus Worl< HI

2.0 SITE HISTORY 13

2.1 Eora 13 Traditions of the Coastal Eora People 13 Archaeological EYidence of the Fora People in The Hocks 13

2.2 Dawes' OhsenahH·~· ( 17HH-91) I..J First Obsen a tory ( 17RR-R'J) H

Second Obsem1tory ( 17X9-'J I) 15

2.3 Powder Magazine (17H9-JHI9) 16

2.4 Signal Station ( 17911) 1 H

2.5 Ccmete•·~· (l7HH- Ul32) 19 The Colony· s First Cemetery.., 19

Burial of Executed Prisoners 21

2.6 Ratte•·~· (1791-IH19) 23 The Artillen· Officers 2J

Dawes ( 17RR-91) 2J The Absence of an ArtillerY Officer ( 17'l I-17'J')) 25

Abbott ( 1799-1 RO I). Barrallier (I XO 1-2) and Rdlasis ( I X02-1) 2G Minchin (I RO.J.-1 R09) 2X Abbott (I R09-IO). OYens (I R I 0-1 I). Primrose ( I X I 1-12 ). Cameron (I X 12-I.J. ). Gill (I R I.J.-17). Druitt (IRI7-IR22) 30

2.7 Fnmcis G•·ccnwa~··s Wnrl<s (IH19-211) 31

2.H RattcQ' (lH211-IH56) 32 The Artillery Officers and Superintendents of Ordnance (IX7~-2R) 32

OYens (I R22-25) and DumaresfJ (I R2(,-2X) 31 Office of Public Works (I ~QR-11 ). Colonial Architect's Office (I R\2-1 R.J.R) :n

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George Barney (IR3'i-IR.fl) Gordon (IR-fl-IR-fR)

Colonial Architect· s Department (I X-lX-)

2.9 Ro~·al A11iller~· (1856-18711) The Royal Engineers and Lieutenant-Colonel George Barney· s Works

Upper Battery Lower BatlerY Powder Magazine Guardhouse Officers· Quarters Residence Barracks Ancillary Buildings(")

2.111 Colonial Defence (18711-l'JIHI)

2.11 Prh·ate Residences (1911-f-1924)

2.12 Wate1· Police Station ( 19119-1924)

2.13 Dawes Point Tractor Schnnl. DCJHlrhnt'nt of Rt'JHltriatinn ( 1918-1924) Southern lnfill Building

2.14 Harbour B.-idge (1924-1932) Upper Battery ( 1925) Dorman and Long Offices ( 192--l--1932) Greenway Guardhouse Rear Wings ( 19H-.~2) Cable Trench ( 1925-30) Piers ( 1926) Other Works (I 925-:1-f)

2.15 The Pari< (1934-1995) Sen·ices Da\Yes Point Resen·e Plan or Management. I 990

2.16 Dawes Point and the Dd'enct· nf S~dm·~· (1941-45)

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1.0 INTRODUCTION

The Dawes Point archaeological cxcmations ''ere undertaken in I'J'J'i to inycstigatc the nature of possible remains associated \\ith the human occupation of the site. This report is a summary of the findings of that work. incorporating the history. archaeology and research questions addressed of the site.

1.1 Author Identification

The greater part of the text of this report \\as \\riltcn by Wayne Johnson. \\ith some text by Louise Zarmati. Research was undertaken by the authors \\ith assistance from a number the Yoluntcers \\ho. inspired by the history of the site. sought out other ayem1cs of information and pa.~sed their findings on.

1.2 Acknowledgments

The Dawes Point archaeological cxcayations \\ere made possible lw the assistance of the following people. and particular thanks goes to the yolunlcers "ho g;n c up I heir om1 I imc to assist in the excayations

Archacolo~ists

KcYin Barnes Mark Dunn Matthew Kelleher

Work Expcl"icncc Students

Monique Beaudoire Robert Brewster Guadalupe Cincencgui Garth Douglas Elizabeth Elwell Andre\\· Fairley Benjamin Gibbons L;mren Hutchins Belinda Mendez

\V;I\ nc Johnson KarYn l'vlclcod Maclaren North

Sarah McNultY Tina Safaris Hannah Scolt-Young Matthc\1 Simpson Nick Stc\\arl Flise St0kcs-Biakc I rene Tripp Salh Watson


Volunteers

John Alexander Edwina Andrc\YS Craig Barker John Barron 1\ianrccn Barrmy John Basscll Lydia Bell Samantha Boulton Melanic Bnmton Ian Burns Gac Callender Matthew Campbell Celina Ching June Clark Shcrryn Clinton Lorelei Cooke Jacqueline Craig Kylie-Marec Daley Trent Darby Kntia Davis Basi I Dewhurst Amanda Dodson Margaret Dodson Ste,·en Dodson Samuel Duyker Pierre Duykcr S•1san Duyker Samnntha Edmonds Steven Ellis Justin Engels

Geoff Bailey Ham· Bate

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Bnan Fit~:gerald Josephine rreame Karen ( i;l\ nor-Sperig Chari ie Guiness Denis Hackett Rolfe Halter Steyen HaYes Wend~· Homschck Valerie HumphreYs Andrea Hunter YYonue luall Colin Johnstou Celia Joues Michael KellY Shanuon Kennech -Clark Georgia Koutt.~ Alcxamlra Kontts Anne l.ecnlier Rae Leonard Jim L.ibb~ Shann MackeY L,·dia Matthc\\s Trisha McDouald Ken McGuffin Andrew McMcchan Rod l\1ouutford Dorothy Ng Sha1111 O'Dmer 13 ri gi It e Oi I zi ngcr Rebecca Pagan

Susan Omkcr Natacha Cinilbaud Cat hv Kelman DaYid Lake

Tony Panlton Anna Payne Theresa Perc;. Frank Pnn·is Ruth Rayc William Reid Andrea Richardson Patrick Richardson Kristen Schubert Peter Searle

Lee Seer TonY Simons John Skidmore Dan Slater Leila Smith Tom Stimson Rmce Stubbington-Mitchcll Rhonda Shlhbington-Mitchcll Ron Sutcliffe Emma Thompson Rcnjamin Tinker Carlos Torres Pat Tunks Bctlv Wade Peter Webster Louis Wickman Brad Wood Ann Wright

Colin Bertram Gerard Brandsen Alan Cadogan Bob Clark

Kate Monntstcphcns lise Wmst

Victoria Barntclis and Ro~·al Austntlian A•·tiller~ Historical Socict~

Major General John Whitcl;m. A.O .. C.B E. Colonel Ralph Sutton Greg Scott Peter Webster


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1.3 Location

The site is located at D;mes Point. at the southern end of George Street. bounded by Lo\\er Fort Street. George Street and Hickson Road. The Rocks. Jt is currently D;mes Point Pari<. created in 1912--l to landscape the area bene<1th the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Dmres Point Park consists of a fairly nat area beneath the carriageway of the Bridge approach. sloping steeply down to Hickson Road on the northern side in the Yicinity or the Bridge pylon. and gently to the same road on the north-eastern ,o;ide Retaining \\ails e.'\ist on the e<1stern side (Hickson Road) and adjacent to Lo\\er Fort Street

1.4 Abbreviations used in Text

ADB l-IRA HRNSW

Australian Dictionary of Biography Historical Record,, of Anst ralia Historical Records orNe\\ South Wale.<;


1.4 Historical Summary

A comprehensiye history of the site. incorporating the archaeological results. is found in section 2.0 of this report.

Prior to the arriya) of the Europeans in 17XX. the peninsula nm\ known as Dawes Point \Yas part of the territory of the Bidgigal. a subgroup of the Eora people of co;J.~tal SYdJicY To them the point was known as Tarra. howeyer little physical or documentary eYidencc sun·iyes of their presence at the site.

The earliest known European occupation occurred soon afler the arri,·al of the First Fleet in 17XX when Lieutenant William Dawes of the RoYal 1\larincs established an obsen·aton on the point He named the peninsula Point Maskelyne after the Astronomer Royal. at whose behest D;mcs had accompanied the neet The point soon after became knmm as D;nres· Point from r>awc~· occupation. Dawes left the colony late in 1791. his obsen·atory falling into disuse.

The site \\as utilised for military purposes from 17WJ \\ith the constmction of a powder maga1.inc. In 17lJI a gun battery \Yas established here. laying the foundations for the O;mcs Point Hattery which \Yas to surYiYc until 1925 when the site \\aS utilised for construction of the SHine' Harbonr Bridge. OYer the l.lll \Cars of the batte~Y··s existence there \\CIS a steady stream of imprm cmcnt.~ to the site \\ith the addition of buildings. facilities and armaments.

The construction of the Harbour Bridge swept away all of the buildings and installations 011 the site bctwccll llJ25 and 19.12. The current park \\aS created after the completion of the Bridge and by the late 1930s fiyc of the cannon from the battc~Y were reinstated close to their original position as a reminder of the former b<JtteD The park has since remained rclati,·clv unchanged.

1.5 Previous Site Assessment

Up Hnlil 199) assessment of potential remains or D;mes Point Rail en had been made in I hrec separate studies. These assessments state the follo\\ing:

I. Environmental Partnership Ply Ltd ( 1990) Da\"l:es PoiJ~t Reserve PI.<HLof l'vla_nug~mc:J1L "The conslmction of the Bridge commenced in I <J2:'. necc.~sitating the demolition oft he former D;mes Pt Batte~Y· and associated buildings The five ..t2 pounder guns. (arc likcl~· to be) the only stm·i\ ing remnants of the D;mes Point Ballcn ·· (l 2 ..t)

2. Higginbotham. E .. Kass. T. Walker. M. t I 1l 1.1 I) The Rocks and Millers Poiilt Arcltacologicnll'vl!m<lliS:Ill_Cl!l

PI1m"' Assessment of condition· Partly disturbed Basis for Assessment: Substantial disturbance to BatterY caused by the constrnction of the

SYdney Harbour Bridge by I 'Jl2. bnt this distmbancc may be localised nnh to small areas

3. Thorp. W. ( 19lJ..t) Qaw~s_P()int_R,cscn:c. Sydnc:y. ( p ll) • the potential archaeological resource could encompa.~s eyidcncc of the development of this site. principally for military purposes. from 17XX on\\ ards

• that the demolition. general construction and earthworks <llld site mmcmcnl caHscd by the constmction for the Sydney Harbour Bridge in this resen c is likely to have. in parts. completely rcmoyed that archaeological evidence a11d in other parts distmbed it. particularly the more fragile cHltural deposits.


• it is impossible. ho,,e,er. on the basis of the ;n ailable e' idence to categoricallY state that all archaeological eYidencc has been rcmm ed from the site due to those processes of demolition and constmction carried out from 1925 on\\ards.

T~st trenches excayated by the author in February I 1JlJ5 reYealcd a potentially high rate of sun·iyal of remains of the battery. this assessment leading to the comprehensiye e.-;ca\ at ions which form the subject of this repor1 1

1.6 Statement of Significance

The Importance of Place

One of the fundamental reasons for consen ing places is that the~ contain information that documents. photographs. drawings. film or Yideo do not there is no substitute for the c\pcricnce of Yisiting the actual place. The insights \Ye receiYe from an actual yisit to a place arc cliYersc. subtle and not m ailablc from any other sonrcec.

D<nYes Point is considered a significant J>lfl(e in the hi.~ton of Australia. it is one of the places where the Aboriginal and Enropcan people first came into contact. it is the place where the first scientific work in the colony was done: it is one of the major place.~ in the dcfenshc strategies of the colony In its later Years it simply became a recreation area. \Yell-appreciated for its picturesque YiC\YS of SYdncy·s spectacnlar harbour.

One of the great tragedies of our history is that it \\as considered necessarY lo sacrifice this historically significant place lo build one of the world"s most outstanding bridges When the S~dney Harbour Bridge was constmctcd the site was leyelled and the buildings \Ycre destrmcd

As one social commentator said of D;mcs Point in Jl)/'i. on the eye of the dcslmclion of lhc site for the building of the Harbour Bridge. ·. another pregnant som cnir of bYgone limes \\ill disappear ... it "as along this shore that the political. scientific. militarY. industrial ami commercial life of the commHnitY came into being·'

The excayation of Dawes Point bY the Snlnc' Cme 1\.uthoril\ ha.~ prm·ided I he opportunitY to reclaim a piece of 1\.Hstralia·s lost heritage and restore the place to a position of importance in hislor~

Community Value of the Place

D;mes Point has a great Yalue to mam differcnl groups of people in the conHminil\

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to the people who Jiye in The Rocks: mam still remember I he Old Rattcn and its buildings: some played there as children

to those who ha\·e personal and sentimental allachments to I he place: the descendants of many of the people who liYed. \\Orkcd and died at D;mes Point ha\c contaclcd the Sydney Cm-c Authority and expressed their support for re-claiming this important place in their familY history

to the Aboriginal people of SYdney as a place \Yhcrc an c.-.;an1plc of peaceful cultural exchange bet\Ycen their ancestors and Europeans took place- this i.~ probablY" here William D;mes and a young Aboriginal \Yoman called Patyegarang taught each other their lang11agcs

1 Johnson. AW. and Zarmati. L (IIJIJS) Qa\\es Point Baller}. The RocksJhstQJ:y.Pxs:)iiJ_li_J!(!IJ._Arc!meQIQEl ~nd ~9SCarci!_I?_9_Sigi1. Report Prepared for SC !\. 2 7he Jllnstrated 13urra ( 'hartcrlw Marquis-KYle and Walker. I 1Nl. pp. I O-Il ' "Old Clnun· ,)\·riner .l!orning //em/d. 11 .. l I 'i

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i I j to the people of SydneY as a place where I he fi rsl European sctllers I iYcd and worked ·

• to all Australians as it is the site of the lirsl scientilic station in the colonY-the obscJTalory built by Lt . William Ormes. II is also the site of the first permanent military defences of the colom- the batter~·

Understanding the Significance of the Place

D'mes Point is important as a place bec;m~e or \\hal happened there. A study of the background history of Dawes Point has helped ns to understand "hat makes I his place special \Vc kll(m 1rhr it \\as chosen. holl' it \\as used. 11-/w nscd it. 1rhen theY nsed it and how its nalnrc and function changed m cr time. The built stmctures in and around which these eYents .look place h;n c been demolished. yet the stories of the people and the cycnts thcmscJycs h;n c been preseryed in the rich document an and photographic history of the site

D<mes Point is signilicant because it was the place "here

• the lirst obscnalory in the colom ( 17XX-17'JI) \Yas buill h\ Lieutenant William D<mcs and the lirst astronomical obscn·ations \\ere recorded

• the battery. pari of the harbour defences. \\as buill itt 17') I The battery. \\ ith its guns and .. Oagslaff from which the Union Jack \Yas nmm from sunrise to sunset· 1 "as a \\cll-knmm Sydney landmark from the earliest days of the colony to the mid-I no.~

Archaeology

Archaeological C:'\CaYation ahrays inYoh cs some deslmcl ion or i rrcyersible change to the site Deposits accumulated oyer the life of the site arc e:'\ClYalcd and I he infonnation the\ rcycal on the site's nsc. usually in the form of artefacts. arc remoYcd from the site. The c."ClYation,<; al D;mes Point primarily sought to rclllO\'C the post-1925 deposits from the site. principall.\· the lill deposits associated with the demolition of the Battery and c0nstmction of the Harbonr Bridge The site ami its buildings had been cleslrmcd by the Harbour Bridge conslmction: the little that remained \\as cmwcd oYer lw soil. then lnrned into a park. Archaeology has been used for the purposes of retric,·ing "·haleycr CYiclcncc remains from the prc-Harbonr Bridge period. In this \\ay the site can be consen·ed and interpreted fm: public Yisitalion. thereby restoring D:mcs Point to its place of importance in the history of colonial Nc\\ South Wales.

1. 7 Previous Work

Interest in the site of Dawes Point Batter~ has been maintained h\ the SydneY Coye Authority and the Royal Artillery Historical Society since the establishment of the AnlhoriiY in IIJ70 In the Authority·s S_c:hemc:JQUb.f! RedcycloQment of_~J:dneY C:~:s: in I '170. Dawes Point Rcscnc is noled as a .. site of historic interest .. and. as a public resen·c. was outside the area of the planned recleYclopmcnl ;

As early as May 1971 officers of the Authority were collcclin).', historical information about the site. and particularly the 4.2-pounder cannon located in the rcscnc. ori).',inally mounted at the battery" It \Yas the intention of the Authority to .. examine the feasibilil\ or restoring these Jiyc guns in their original setting in

I Ibid. ' Sydney CoYc Rede\ elopmcnt Ant horiiY (I '>70) Scheme lor the RcdcYcl<mmc_ntoUly<lJ.!C!.Y (.'on::. 5 ()(, r, Dawes Point Resen·c Precinct: Sydnc~· Cm c AuthoritY lile RFO-ll·lO I 0 I. Letter from Lieutenant Colonel R M. C Cubis. Australian Army Eastern Command to Colonel W 1\ S Whyte of SYdne~· Coyc RcdeYelopmcnt AuthoritY. I May 1971.

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order that it may create an interesting historical ctisplaY and lomisl attraction.·· The immectiate intention \Yas to have one of the guns in readiness to lire a sainte at the opening of the Opera House planned for October of thnt year.

In his reply to a letter from the E:-;ccnliw Director (Colonel) D 0 Magee. Major General K. MackaY. C. B .. M. B. E. e:-;pressed the hope thai the batten ··could be restored as it appears in old photographs .. R In a letter of R August 1973 to the Execntiye Director. Lieutenant Colonel R (J Deegan of the Ro~·al Australian Artillery Corps confirmed that the arm~ would ··restore 1\\o of the guus to firing condition prior to October I 971,··. Due to a number of reasons. including disagreements with Council. the cannon \\ere not ready by the opening of the Opera House. although proposals to fire salutes for festive occasions \\ere pmsned.

In June 19?..1- Bill Wh~·te. the Anlhority·s Administrative Officer. penned a minute slating that his aim \\Onld be .. to restore the Battery to the e:-;tenl shm\n in some of the photographs taken about 19oo·· and that it \\as .. essential that it be open lo the public and that children can romp oyer the guns \\ilhont any real damage being caused .. 9 Although representations \\ere made to various State and Federal bodies for funding and other assistance by both the Authority and Svdnev Council. the neccs.c;an funds could not he procmed. and arter April I 976 no more \\as heard of this proposal 1

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In I9R I Bill Whyte again put fotward proposals for the reconstruction of the BatterY. On Ill February he \Hole to Major General Jolm Whitel<m. Colonel Commandant of the RP\al Australian Artillery. suggesting it be put forward as a Bicentennial project. Major General Whitel;m. at that time in the process of establishing the Royal Australian Artillery Historical SocietY. promptlY replied "ith details for the rcconst ruction of the gun carriages. and the support of the Royal Australian Artillery 11 Wlnle made some approaches oyer the ue:-;t year to the Bicentemtial Authorit~·. although the project ne\ er appears to ha\c gained their support

The Royal Australian Artillery Historical SocietY carried the proposal slightlY fmther in I 9R5. They produced a submission to Sydney Council and the Opera House Tmsl for consideration as a project for the Bicentennial programme. Their project called for the commemoration of Mrs Maequaric·s Point. Dawes Point and Fort Macquarie Batteries \Yilh cannon and landscaping to gi,·e some idea of the batteries· settings 12 Again the proposa I was nnsuccessfu L

South Sydney and Sydney Councils next took up the proposal in I <JXX. commissioning a Plan of Management for Dawes Point Resen·e. This stemmed front the Department of Planning and Snlney Council"s Central Sydney Strategic Platt. a directiYc of \Yhich \\as the identification and conseryation of heritage itemsL' The Plan (produced in draft form only). reiterated "hal had been preYioush said in the earlier documents peppered with basic inaccuracies in much of the historical informal ion 1 1

One of the Plan· s slated objectiyes was to ·interpret the historic significance of Dawes Point Resen·e through reconstruction of the original Batten· and obsen a ton. rcfmhishment of the cannon carriages and proyision of information boards. ··This mts proposed to be done yia

!.bid. (Colonel) D. 0 Magee. Executiye Director. Snfney CoYc RedeYclopment Authority to Major General K. Mackay. C B .. M. B. E .. H Q Eastern Command (Australian Amt\ ). J(, MaY 11>71.

~ J.bjg .. Major General K. Mackay. C. B.. M. 13 E . H () Fast em Cntnrnand (Australian Army) to Colonel D. 0 Magee. E:--;ecntive Director. Sydney Coye RedeycJopment Aut horil\. X June I 973. 9 Ibid .. Minute. ll June 197-l 1" Ibid .. Town Clerk. Sydney City Council to SecretarY. SYdney Coye RedeycJopmenl Authority. 15 April 1976.

11 Ibid .. 17 Febman· 19X I. 12 R~yal Australian. ArtillerY Historical SocietY ( 19X5) ProR_osal lor Conuncmoration of!::!i§1Qr_ic~rWJ9II FortificatiQtl§, __ Svd_n~Ic 13 Environmental Partnership PtY I .td ( 19')() Draft) pa\\es Point ReserYePianof Mam!g<::!n<mt Report prepared for South SYdney Cit\ Council and Snlne\ CitY Council.. 2. I 11 For exm~ple: ihe o-pening page ide.ntifi~s th~ fiye cannon in the park as .. originally installed in 17RR··. Page 13 misquotes Wyness ( 1%5) in saving theY .. \\ ere mamtl:tclttrecl bY Walker Company. Tipton. England in I R5J and I R5~ ... The appcndicised Historical Summan then giYes the date or mamtfactnre or the guns as I R52 and IR5J. In fact. each gun is clearly marked \\ith their date or mamrfactnre: one dated Jx.n and the remaining four IX~-l.


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• '·ll sculpture courLconstmctcd south of the hatter~ It \\ould he a .~culptural recognition of Lieuten<1nt Dawes and his inOucnce on astronom\ and meteorology. Features \\ould include a reconstmction of his stone telescope plinth. proyisiou of seating. area lighting. displaY trees and historic payemcnts. Disabled acccs.~ \\Ould he prm ided

• ... a sandstone \\all \\ould he constructed (to) renect the cnn cd ''all of the battery ... J;

The Authority com·eycd its general endorsement of the Plan \\ith a few amendments to trcescapcs and retention of vistlls in particular. The report remains in draft form and also appears to haYc been shcJycd . for the time being at least.

The next development came in the form of an historical deYclopmcnt studY of the George St North area by Philip Thalis and Peter-John Cantrell in 19<J.\. This study produced a number of detailed maps of the area. rednmn and scaled alike. It allmYed the plans of the Battcrv to he overlaid with the current Park layout. thus more closely identifying the locations of potential archaeological remains Jr.

An application for an Excavation Permit was made to the Heritage Council. of NSW in November 19<J-!. by Wendy Thorp on behalf of the Roads and Traffic Authority to monitor the e"C:l\ at ion for electricity suppl~· to the South Pylon of the Harbour Bridge from Hickson Rd. as \\ell as the installation of a substation at the foot of the Pylon.

Thalis and Cantrell's plans of the site \\ere used bv the AuthoritY to determine a route "·herebY electricitY cables co~Jld be laid so as not to impact upon the potential archaeological resource. Since the c"tcnt of resource was unknown. it was decided to site the cables appro"imatch one metre ont from the \\estern side of the south pylon of the Harbour Bridge The ensuing trench reyealcd that the e.'\C<l\ at ion for the p~·lon roughly coincided with its footprint. and that there \\aS probahh little impact 011 the snrrou11ding areas 1

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The following January. the Sydney Coye AuthoritY applied for an F\GI\ation Permit to the Heritage Conncil of NSW to excayatc test trenches in the YicinitY in order to ascertain leYels of preservation or the potential archaeological resource. 1

R The test trenches rc\ealcd a high lcn'luf snryi\·al across the site. particularly of the Battery itself. In YiC\\ of these results an application w;1.~ prepared \\ith a detailed research design for further excavation: the subject or this report 1

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1' Enyironmental Partnership Pty Ltd ( JtJlJ() Draft) Dawes Point Rcsenc Plan ofl\1an()_gylllCJ!I.. 5.2-3. Jr. These plans arc lodged with the Snlnc\ Cmc Anthorit\ 1

- Thorp. W. (I<J<J-1.) Q_<_m~J~o_iiit Rcsenc, Sydney. Report prepared for Swine\ Electricity. 1 x Johnson. A. W. ( I91J-l-) Arc:huc_olo_gical AsscssmC!_ll D;mes Poiut BattcrJ~, For SCA 1

'J Johnson. A. W. and Zarmati. L (I <J<J5) D<t\\es Point Batten. The Rocks.Histmy,Prcl_it_uiil<_liJ Arc:l_l<l9Qi9E}. ()ndRs:.~<l!gJIDc:si_gll. Report Prepared for SCA.


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2.0 Site History DRAFT

2.1 Eora

The Aboriginal people \\ ho liYed along the coastal area of S1<lne~ \\ere called the Eora. Their word for the peninsula of land "·hich we now call D:mes Point was ·Tarra· and it was part of the territon· of the Bidgigal group of Eora people.

The earliest \Hillen cyidcnce which "e haw ah0nt 1 he Fora ""s recorded lw members of 1 he First Fleet '' ho recorded their obsen·ations in their lellers. diaries. journals. official records and paintings.

Some of the Eora people. like Bennelong. learned to speak. as well as read and \\Tile. English. One young Eora \\oman called Patyegarang became friends" ilh Lienleuaul William D:mes. The~ learned lo communicate: she taught him her language and he laugh! her lo speak and read English. Dawes recorded the Eora \Yords and their English translations in his notebooks \\hich sBniye todaY IIi.' records of their conyersalions sho\\ thai they were keen to explore and understand each other's cBiturc She told him that she was happy to learn from him because he gaye her food withonl her eyer haYing to ask.

Although Patyegarang got on \\ell \\ith D:mcs. her allilude to the Rritish \\as qnile clear. She told him lhatlhe Eora people \\·ere angry because the colonists had sell led on I heir laud and they \\ere afraid of their guns. The record ofPatyegarang ·s feelings proYidcs liS \\ith an insight into I he attitudes of I he some of the Eora people lo the British selllcrs. Dawes himself recorded I heir feelings

'117n· are the Mack 111<'11 m1gr\''J .11ecf1/1.1'<' til<' ll'hite 1/lr'/1 un• sr•tllr•rl hc•rc•:"

Traditions of the Coastal F:cwa Pt>ople

Modern scholars ha\c been able to usc the \Hillen clc.,criplions of' the coastal Aborigines by the British to reconstmct some of their traditions and rituals of a group of people "ho had ncycr been exposed to British inOuence.

Recent research indicates that there were al lc:J.sl two separate tribal grmrps in the SYdney area. those n·l10 liYcd on the coast and I hose \Yho liYcd inland. II seems I hal there was nol much contact between I he 1\m groups. The coastal people did not hayc the same yocahul:m as the inland people. and there docs nol appear lo lwYc been nmch exchange of resomccs.

The first obsen,crs said that the men of the coastal group lnoked different to the inland people because they were missing a front tooth (I he right incisor). which "as rcrH<>\ eel during initial ion. The Eora people had special pathways for lraYCIIing in their area and lhe.sc patlmay.~ 1\ere kepi clear for case of rnoYemcnt. The British colonists often used them for I heir own journeYs

The Eora arc often shmm in the early landscape paintings of Sydney. but it is difficult to knon for sure \\he! her the artists n·ere painting real Eora people or simph pulling them into the landscape for effect. The paintings of tl1c First Fleet artists often show the Eora in canoc.s and fishing

Archaeological Evidence of the Eora People in The Rocks

Before the British sclllcmcnt in 17XX. groups of the Fora arc knmm to haYc inhabited The Rocks area. A campfire. which was radiocarbon dated lo ahnnt I :'00 AD. "as nncm creel dming cxc:lYalions in Cumberland

20 William D:nycs. 17lJO (?'''l?'l'l"''''l'l'')

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1-l

Street. In it were the remains of a meal consisting of schnapper and rock oy.~lers AI the fool of the cannon at D;mes Point "ere large flat stones said to haYe beennsed In the Fora for baking \\hole fish.

2.2 Dawes' Observatory (1788-91)

First Obsenatory ( J 788-89)

ln September 17XG. after the decision was made to send the First Fleet to Botany Bay. Second Lieutenant William Dawes of the Royal Marines contacted Neyil Maskel\ ne. the Astronomer Royal. Dawes offered to join the colonial expedition in order to make astronomical ohsen ancc-;. specificallY to test Maskclyne·s prediction that a comet \\ould return in 17XX and be Yisiblc first in the Sonlhem Hemisphere. Maskehnc arranged for the Board of Longitude to approye an astronomical project for Dawes and to lend the instmments to the Fleet.

The First Fleet landed at SydneY Coyc in .JanuarY 17XX. and b1 Angnst 21 Da11es had established a \Yooden obsen·atory on the \\estern point of SydneY Cow. "hich he named Point Maskclyne22 The point \Yas subsequently named after D;mes

The obseryatory \\as located a short distance from the encampmellt. Southwell explains . . ·I ,\ fr. /Jmres, lieutenant of' marines, and f//su f/slrnnolllr'l', ll'hnsr· ohilities in thrtl science are such that he is

1111da the direction of' till' lloarr! of' I ongiturlr· !iw the J'lll'l'""' o/mf/king sOli!<' si11grt!ar ohscrl'!ltion1· ll'hile

in this countn·. to e(f~ct 11·hiclr h,, has a \'rtlrwhle s<'lt o(illslrrtl!lenls, and m1 nhs<TI'rttoiT is el·ecter('

In 1788 Captain Watkin Tench says that the Obsenaton is.

... nearh· c0111f'leled, and u·lwn fitted Ill' 1rilh the te/es('f>/'<'.1' ond •>llw1· aslrmlofllical instrun1ents sent out hr the /3oarrf o( rongit11rfe. u·i/1 rt{(ri/'1/ II c/e.lim/>/e l'l'tf'('(f/ fi·mn t/w /is/il'SS/Il'.\'.1' o( II C!IIIIJ> <'l'<'ning O/ /'or/

Jackson. ( )ne of' the J>rincil'a/ IWI.I'r>IIS Jrhir-11 ind11r'('(/ l!tr· /?orml to grail/ this IIJ'f'lllntus 11'111', /iii' the

purpose of'enahli11g Ueutenunl /lmres. o/th•• 111!1/'ill<'.l'. 110 1rho.1·r• rw·e if is int/'1/.l'l<'d) to make ohsel'l'alions

011 a comet u·hich is short/\' <'Xt>ecterlto nt'l"'ilf' in tft,· sou/Item hr'lllist•IH'I'<';'.

Dawes chose an exposed sandstone outcrop 011 the "estern side or the coyc as the site for the Obseryatory because it would proyide a solid foundation for the mounting or the instmments. especially the quadrant 2

'

By April 30. I ?XX Da\Yes sent a sketch (Plate -.;)or the completed noodcn Obsen·aton to Maskehne2r. He

saYs.

I han', notu·ithstmuling ll'ilh the ossislr/111'<' nf (inu· lllarill<·l· of Ill\' mm f'm'll' and three or(i){(l' co/1\'ic/s

H·lwn the Uow/71111' has allmred 111<'. cleared a !'oint of lo11d o( II'<'<'S, mul r1111 noll' gelling on as fi1st as

possihle u·ith m1 ohsermton· uhic!t I /wf>e H'ill lw ''""'1"''/ed rrnd tlw ins/l'llfll<'llls in it h1· .!ulr sonwtinl<'.

7/Jis has !WI hmrel'<'l' /)('ell dmw H"ilhorll a good deal of 1111' r>\1'11 a111l Ill\' S<'l'l'mll.\'' l•odih· /ahor/1' 1r!tich s!w/1

1rhe11 1/ecessan· he clreer(itllr <'1111'/ored in the sanl<' cmiS<' Tlw situation slmck me ul first sight to he so

rligihle and all the 1/ece.I'.WIIT nwterials so cofl\'<'llientlr of hi/lui. that 1 did not hesitate a 1110IIH'III to

detennine on setting ahout a 1"'171/ml<'lll one rtf once r1 sketch 1ri// 'rll'lllnn• tho11 \l'nlds:·

21 Dm id Collins ( 17X9). AIJ~Ac~Qtlnt_o_Uil_c English_ Colony_in Ne11 SQ!ItiiJVales. London .. Vol. I. p. 15. 22Dawes to Maskclyne. 17 Nm ember. 17XX. The Board of Longitude papgs. cited in Satmders (I <Jl)O). p. 77 21 Tench. W. (17XX) SYdnes·~ F'jrst_Four Years. pi IX. nG. H Tench. QIU:i! .. p. 72 25 Saunders. s ( 1990) A~trQIIOIII) in Colonial New South Wales. llllpllblished PhD thesis. UniYersitY or Sydney. p. 77. 20 Letter from J);nyes to Maskclyne "it h description and sketch of obsen at or\. O;mcs · s correspondence. 1786-92. Greenwich Obseryatory. cited in Pawcs·s 1\.feteorological Joumal. edited by Robert .1. McAfee. 19XI. pp. I (,-17. 2 7 lbid. Cited in S Saunders. p. 7X

I

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)'i

no 1\ ,-~:· Huntcr·s lirst map of Sydney Cm c. (Plate :x) .·~dated March 1. 17XX already ~!lfSi*f p'f tlf ObscryatorY.

By the end of April 178X Bradlc\· had detennincd the latitude of the ObserYaton to be ·:no52'10" bY three meridian Clltitudcs of the Sun with the astronomical quadrant and the longitude to be 151 o 20' by one hundred and scycnty-six distances· .:c" Hunter took one hundred and thirl\ distances and calculated the longitude of the Obscn·atory to be within one mile of Bradlc~·· s ligmc"'

Dawes was yery careful to build on a solid foundation in order to support the quadrant. He chose a large outcrop of either country rock or an c:xtremch large floater as the foundation for the whole quadrant room This choice meant that the Obscryatory \\as split-lcYcl as the lower. larger room was butted np to the rock supporting the higher quadrant room. The quadrant \\as the most important instmmcnt in the Obscn·atory and \Yas used to Clsccrtain local time. latitude and longitude. and to rate clocks. It needed an unmoyablc foundation so that it could \YOrk efficiently. The positioning of the quadr;mt was therefore a major determining factor in the siting of the Obscn at on· on the western point of the ('<we" here an exposed outcrop of rock could be found .11

Dawes also proYidcs a good description of the st ructme nf the building. The dimensions of the lo\\cr room were gi 1 en as sixteen feet long by twch c feet "ide .

... / hm·e golllll e.rceeding good stone r·111 info the !iw111 of o /Tiisll'lll/1 •>f'm1 oclogolltli ji\'l"lll11id 11hose hose• is

2.5 fi and lop 1.5(i this is to l•e !'laced on Ill<' celllc'l' o/1/1<' nclogol!rli mo111s 11/UIIht! qttadmnl on the loi> of' if. The roo( is to 111111 arm111d on three or r11ore rollers. . I stair r·asc• of conllmtnicalion he!lreen the lfJi/WI"

and !olt'er roo/11, and the i>roposed f>lace(iw the llslronomical dock. '/'he roo(o(//re /o\1'<'1" room is to hi' so

conslntc/ed and to make good againvl the side o(/hc• Ill' Per mom and tlw ridgl' o( if is to f,c sert'ral inc/it's

he/mr the lop o(lhc q11adrant' ·'

During the lirst \\Cek of July 17RX D;mcs mmcd into the \\oodcn Obscnaton Ry the beginning of August he had all the instruments on shore. unpacked and li:xcd ready for use. including the quadrant ''and bY the lirst \Yeck of August had begun to search for Maskclme · s con1ct' 1

•

The Obscryaton· also sen eel as the col om· s nlcteornlo~ical station. ObserYations of the temperature. airpressure. rainfal.l and winds \\as collected ai1d sent back t(; England "

The astronomical clock was considered one of the most important instruments in the obscn·atory. The clock \Yas built by John Shelton at a time when the Board of Longitude \\as patronising clockmakcrs to produce eyer more accurate timekeepers. Maskclmc ''as himself hcayiJy embroiled in the bitter contrmcrsy bct\\cen mechanised time-keeping and ast ronomicalh measured time.''· Shelton· s "as a pendulum ciClck. highlY accurate. shmYing hours. minutes and seconds. It \\as used to keep either sidereal or local time and it \\<lS

necessary that this clock be lixcd firmlY Dawc.s \\Tote to Maskch nc in 17RX telling him that he had 'li:x · d Ycry firmly the clock in a niche on the solid rock on Satmd;n. (,th September" ·'-

Second Observatory (1789-91)

In Jnh· 17X9. just one ~·car after D;mcs had mm cd into the Obscn a ton. Dm id Collins \\rotc that.

2R Sun·cycd by Captain John Hunter and inscribed. ·The posilion of the encampment & buildings arc as they stood 1st. MarciL 17RR ·. in W. Bradley manuscript. .Jomnal 17X<,-n. rcprodnccd in McCormick ( 198R). p. lX . . 29 Dawes to Maskclync. 30 April. 17XX. the Board of Longitude Papers. cited inS Saunders. p. X.J.. 10 Ibid. 11 S. Saunders. p. R.J.. 12 Dawes to Maskclyne .. 10 April. 17XX. The A nard of I .ougitndc Papers. cited in S Saunders. p. R 1. 13 Ibid. p. R7. 3.J. Ibid. p. 100. "'Chisholm. P M. & Tooth. T (19XX) The D;mcsObser\'ator}. 178R-17Jl. p21 '" Sobel. D. ( 19% ): .L_Q!!gitudQ.. ,-Chisholm. P. M. & Tooth. T ( 19XX) p21


71u• ohS<'I"\'tT/011' fmi/ding' 1. ll'hich \1'(/,\' crec/ed 011 ll/1/' {irs/ fa11di11g f>eing(i11111rf S1110ff and iiiCO//l'elli!'ll/, as

II'<' II as /(11' the purpose o( ohser\'illg (/,\' !i ,,. the residence o( r i<'llle/la/lt fJ!III'es a/ld the reC<'f>tirm o( the

astronomical instruments. the s/one-cullel·s l'<'gmT fWef><ll'ing stone to cnnstmcl mwther, the 111a/erials (ill'

ll'hich Jren•limnd in al'lllldancc ""the Sf''''· lhe II'<'S/f>oint n!the r 'nl'l'_,v

This eYidcnce. together \\ith Dawes· letter to 1\:taskeh ne helm' indicates that a second. more substantial Obsen·atory. possibly of stone. \\'as nuder constmction in I 7WJ to replace the original \\ooden one.

In April 1790 Den Yes \\Tote to Maskeh ne saYing t hal he had mm ed to a comfortable house and that the instnnnents \\ere \\ell mounted \\ith the clock and the quadrant being particularly \\ell-fixed He mentioned the security and ne\\' locations of the instruments in detail. \\ith special reference to the quadrant. claiming.

i(could\'nll see il ... (\'llll \l'ollld think 111111) if co11fd ""'he h<'ll<'l' {i.l'l•d'".

It is nnlikcl~- that the first building was demolished prior to the coll.';tmction of the second. and so for some time the two buildings may haYe stood together If one adds to this the pomlcr magazine also nnder co11stmction in 1789 (sec 2 3) then it is possible that for some short time three lmildings stood at the point.

Most yiews of early Sydney from 1788 to I X I 9 clearlY shmY <Jnh one building on the site. as \\ell as the Oagstaff and the guns mounted on the Ratten· 11

. In general the site appears on the right hand side of the numerous depictio11.~ of The Rocks as Yiewed from the eastem side of the Cme. It is possible that the topography of the site docs not allmY a complete picture from this angle. T\\o Yic\\·s haYe been located \\hiclt clearly indicate 1\Yo buildings. Plate X. painted hy Le"in around IX 13. shows two buildings placed perpendicular to one another. 12 The one on the left is the ,<;;nne as that shm\11 in other YiC\\S (Plates X-XX) \\hich \\ill be discussed in 2.3 and 2(l On its right is a structmc. possibly rooness. located slightly further dmm the hill and oriented north south. the same orientation of D:mes· first obseryatory. This may possibly be the former obscrYaton· or else some other unrecorded huildin~ The other ,·ie''. of 17'JX-I XOO. (Plate X) is seen from Kirribilli. althm;gh it (along with others from this sourc~) 111a\ be of dubious accmacy. 1.

1 A third \'ie" may

also depict this building (Plate X) 11 Painted in I XII) it shmrs :1 sentry on du1\ on the north side of \\hat appears to be a north-south oriented building at Dawes Point

A 1793-.J. \'icw of SYdney (Plate X) is titled ... taken from the Flagstaff. opposite the Obsenator~ ... suggesting that this building \\as certainly still standing at that date. and was still knmm bY this name. 1

' It is most likely once Dawes left the colonY in 1791 the function of the building changed from an Ohscn·atory to a guardhouse as the whole area was dedicated to defensiye and militan pmposes Depictions of D;mes· Point indicate that this single building mts replaced in I X I <J and lw the castellated guardhouse designed by Francis Grecnmn. Archaeological C\'idcncc suggests that this building became the basement of Greenwa\'·s guardhouse (sec discussion bclo\Y)

2.3 Powder Magazine (1789-1819)

'" Febmary 17X9 Collins recorded

3X D;mes to Maskclyne. 16 April. 171)11. The Board of l.ongitmlc Papers. cited inS Saunders. p. Ill .19 D. Collins. An Account of the Fnglish Colon\ in Ne\\ South Wales (London. 17X9). Vol. I. p. (,(. cited inS Saunders. p. 112. -JO Ibid. pp. Ill-112. -J I Sec maps and paintings in appendi.-.; from McCormick. T First Vic'' s of Australia. 17XX-1825: a HistorY of EarlY SYdneY 12 Le\\:in . .John.(c ix 1.1) Fish Catch and Dawes Point. Snh1e' Harbnm Art Gallery of South Australia 11 McCormick ( 198X) Disci1ssed on p27(J-7. . . 11 McCormick (I !JXX) Plate X 7. -J5 British Museum. Watling Collection. 17 Reproduced in l'vtcCnrmick ( I<JXX) Plate 20.


IX

some degree of accuracy that the stone mmld ha\c been situated some" here around m1ist height in this room after IXI9.

In IROI the magazine was C:'\tensiycJy repaired or cycu rebuilt Captain Abbott wrote that he had

.. crmsf17tcled a durah!e stone hrri!ding (iw 11 magazine !iw grrlif">ll'rfer'"

A fe\\ \Yeeks later he described the mag;v.inc as

an exce11ent sfmrr fmifding, 2-/ (i•ef h1· /8 (i•<'l, di1·ided info /1rn fl/''"·fmmts- a fJmrrfer-room and a (iffing

mw Thr mtffs o('this lmifrlirrg are 3 !i•el thir1, II is nmrlr finished''

In March IX02 Goycrnor King wa.~ able to report tot he sccrctan lin the colonies that

a fine magazim• and a s/orerno11r at rfw {lutterr 1 had hcL'II) linil·!wd and that mason1· (\\·en:) rccorrstrTTcling

the hatten· at 1Jmres l'oinl (sec helm\ I ':

The I ROo muster of inhabitants of the colonY lists 1\ 1art in HaYdon t Hayden). com ict. as the ouJy gm ernment sen·ant employed at the pmrder magazine." .

2.4 Signal Station (1790)

The signal station at south head was in alignment with the signal station at Dawes Point

Collins, J, 76 [ 1790] 7he flour ll'hich had !wen /mmxht.fimn Fnxlund did not sen•e llllfch heyond the hef;i111Jinx (!/ this month. and that imported fimn the ( 'atJ<' noll' SlffJfJiied its place. J~·,.e!J one hexun to look fonmrd with !111fch anxiety to the arril·al of supplies fi-mn l•>'ngland; and as it \l'os reasonah/e to conclude that el'eJy d(~J'

might hrinx them on the coast, ( 'aptain Hunter. accompanied hy A,fr.fYOJgan, the swgeon (~fthe Siri11s, and Afr White. ll'ith six nr eixht seamen. hm•ing chosen a spot proper for their fllrTJH!Se, erected a flagstaff on the south head rl this harbour, ll'hence. on the ap1}('amnce of a ship in the r!fjillg, a signal might he made, as ll'ell to com·ey the ll'ished-for mformation to the settlement, as to ser1·e as a mark for the stranger. A11 h11t ll'as /milt jr1r their accommodation, and this little establishmentll'as ofsuch importance, that oll!· walks \l'ere dai(J' directed to a .\pot ll'hence it could be seen; tl111sfond(r ind11lging the del11sion, that the \'eJ:r circumstance (llooking mtifrn· a sai111'o11ld hring o11e to l'iell'.

See also McCormick, First l'iell's, p 43 'View of Entrance of Port Jackson looking down the llarbour from Maskelyne's Point', ca. 1790.

From Sydney OhsermfmJ', by James Semple Kerr, p 9 In .JamWJ}' 1790, Phillip ins/meted a flam! t}(frfr fi'mn HMS Sirius to erect a flagstc~fl 011 South Head to XII'C admnce noftce of arril·ing l'cssels. It is shmm

"'Abbot! to King. 12 August I RO I. HR;\'1' 1''p I X I '

1 Abbott to King. 21 August IROI. HRA''''''piX~ '

2 King to Portland. I March I R02. HRA '1''' 1pp-11l'VJ "M!IS~t:_o_[('Qmi~!s_,_)[O(, AONSW (original held :tl Public Records Oflicc. Loudon. HO 10/37)

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17

1'l1e magazine ~11 the l'oinl 111~~~~- hcing ('(}11/(1/etcrf. the f'Oll'rler lw/onging lo lhcOi:t:~~\1'~ fr11~~ed sa(c/1· lf'IIh/11 !IS ll'a/ls. ,,~ r

In October 1925. while demolition of buildings on the silc \\as being carried out to build the southern approaches to the Sydney Harbom Flridgc. a stone 111arkcd 'R/R 17WJ' \\as found in the internal stone wall or the old military building (Plate X) 1

- In a leHer or I 'J Feb mary I!J2o. Kathleen Flu tier. Secretary to the Chief Engineer of the Harbour Bridge describes the stone to the Principal Librarian of the Public Librar~ of New S:mth Wales.

(It \Yns) prohahh· part of the first. ()f, ,.,,,Talnrl'. f>r'illg afil'f'll'fll'!fs incorpomll'd ill thl' .\ !ilitarl' huifdings.

11-hich consisted o/fimr rooms 1rith stone \l'(rffs nmrfl' tfrrec ((•e! thick It ll'as di.,·cm·ered at a holt/ the centre

of' the lmifdiny, in the ll'lrff o( tfre room marked on the f>frrn as the \'on-( 'om,.' room, the inscrif'lhm heing

cm·ercd lt'ith plaster.

The great thickness o(fhe stone ll'(rffs o/tl1is f>art o(lhr• huifding f>i'll\'l' that lfrer ll'r'l'e n(a IIIIlCh ofder t\'f"'

than the other r>ortion ll'hich 11'!1.1' co/1.1'/l'llt'f<'d of h1·icf, - 111!1111' o/ lfrl' llf'icks hei11g marked lt'i//1 a broad

a/'I'Oit' and others 1rith l'cn·irms old hrickmake1·s · ·,uu·ks1'

Butler bclieyed the 'R/R 17X<J- stone to ha\'(~ been part of Dawes's nb.~enaton and that it \\aS incorporated into the Greenway Building. hmrcycr. it is cquallr possible that it \\as part of the original magal'.inc construction. built in that year. which may account for the thickness or the \\ails Fmther questions can be posed: \\as the stone moYcd or \\as it in its original position''

Butler records an important piece of information that could girc a clue to the stone· s origin. and the earlY phase of site occupatio11 She says that the stone \\as discmcred in the \\all or the "Non-Coms· room" (NonCommissioned Officers) The internal dimensions of thi.~ room_ taken from the I 1) II plan (Plate X) arc approximately 7 metres bY .J.. 7 metres. In imperial terms this equates to approximately n feet by 15 reel 5 inches. Abbott reported in IXOI that the dimensions of the maga;inc \\ere 2-1 feel b~ IX feet although it is not staled whether these arc internal or external mcasurcmc111s. Gi\Cn that the \\ails arc recorded as three feet thick. it may not be a coincidence that these t\\O sets of dimensiPns arc so similar. and hence the "NonComs· Rvom" may be the site of the 17X'J mag;vinc

The archaeological excaYation failed to find ;lnY dclinitc trace of Grecm,ay·s building or IXI<J. as \Yill be discussed in 2.7. In this area ho\\cYcr there \\as clear cYidcncc that the bedrock had been roughly worked to create a fairly lcycJ surface. This surface is approximateh I :'i metres belmY the ground leYcl of Grcen\\ay·s guardhouse. and so it is unlikch· that Grcen\\aY \\onld ha\'C norkcd the bedrock bcl"orc raising the lcycl. It is also clear in photographs of the BatterY that a door Jed from the firing platform to a passagc\\'ay or room beneath the Grccn\\ay guardhouse (Plate X) Dming the exc:n al ion remains of the threshold of this doorway \\ere identified. along \Yith a bitumen path leading from it tP a brick and stone pa,·ed area \\hich would h;l\'c been located beneath the guardroom of the guardhouse (Plate X) No plan or description of this room has been located. and the bricks used in its construction appear to be conlcmporan with or earlier than Grccn\\·ay·s work The extent or this paYing corresponds prccisch \\ith the dimensions or the guardroom. adjacent to (cast of) the "Non C'oms--· room. It is possible that the 17X<J maguinc. rebuilt in I RO I. was built on the site later occupied by the "NonComs ... room. The ground lcycJ for this building. before JXI<J. \\as therefore the \\orked bedrock uncm crcd in this Yicini1y. If in its original place. the 17X'J .~tone \\ould then hayc been placed some 10 feet aboYc the 17X<J-1801 ground lcyc) At this time. or at lca~tll\ IXI'J. an e~tcnsion \\as made to the cast. corresponding \Yith the area of the guardroom

The stone is recorded as being round approximate!\ (J5 feet abmT sea Jcycl 1" According to the plan of I 9 II the

height of 1 he noor here "ould hm c been a round (J I feet abm c sea lc1 cl (Plate X) and so it may be deduced "it h

1' Collins. D. QlHiL p.J-5

1- The stone \\as found 12W feet Fast and I (J"i2 feet North from Trig Station E at the Time Ball Staff of

SYdney Obscryaton· and about 65 feel abm e ~ea IC\ cl 1iK B-utler to Prin~ipal Librarian. Public I ,ibran of Nc" South \Vales. I 'J Febman I 1)26. cited in S. Saunders. pp. II.J.-115. 1'·' K. Butler to Principal Librarian. Public LibrarY of Nc\\ Sonth Wales. I 'J February I 'J2(J. cited in S. Saunders.

pp. II.J.-115.


)()

clear~)' in a contempormy hut 1wecise l'efl, i11k and lt'ash Tieu· ofl~'nttwlce of Port .Tacksof/ looking dmm the flarhour fi'rnn Afaske~l'fle 's !'oint. A second flagstqfj'was su b,,·e£11/ef/t ~I· erected on Afaske ~me 's (/)awes) !'oint to permi I tll'oway signalling (.\·ee Collins. II, 15). Roth ll'ere destroyed hy lightning strike in a single storm in .Jmwmy 1799 a11d reconstmcted.

Lcsueur"s map of 1X02 (Plate X) describes the building here as a ·signal house· ('Battcric du Payillon des Signaux: sec 2.-l) ' 1

.

On Lesucur·s map of IX02 (Plate X) he describes the building here as a ·signal house· ('Battcrie du P;nillon des Signmtx·) ''.

2.5 Cemetery (1788-1832)

The Colony's First Cemetery?

There haye been numerous suggestions as to "here Snlncy · s dead \\ere bmicd prior to the establishment of the Sydney Burial Ground. on the site of the cmrcnt Tmm Hall. in 17'>2. In 17()0 12-1- deaths "·ere recorded among the conyicts landed from the Second Fleet This cycnt amplified the need for a formal burial ground for the srtt lemcnt.

A comict woman wrote on I~ Noycmbcr 17XX that the dead \\CIT buried .. at the c;.;trcmity of the lines .. (\\here) there is a place called the church-\ard ... interpreted as the line.<: of tents along \\hat arc nm\ Cumberland. Gloucester and Harrington Streets. the site in 17()7 of St Phillips ( 'hmch 'r· The lirtnrc Gm ernor King \\Tote of a drmmed Marine being bnricd ncar the flagstaff on 21 June 17XX. the flagstaff at this time probably being situated near what is nmY Macquaric Place at the southern end oft he Cm c.'·

It is eYident that bmials often occurred on priyatc propertY. and in fact the Snhrcy Bmial Ground had been the place of interment for its omrcr Captain John Shea three years before it m1s chosen for that general purposc.'R Mausolea \Yere constmcted for some of the prominent families of the settlement not too far from the centre of the tmm. The surgeon John Harris built a familY tomb on his property at Ultimo. no\\ the site of Sydney Technical College. \Yhere he m1s buried in llol\X. Likewise l,icutcnant-Coloncl George Johnston \\as hmied in IX2J in a Yault designed by Francis Grccnml\ on his propert1 at .1\nnanclalc '"In I X2'i it \\as proclaimed that authorised burial grounds had to be at least one mile from a to\\11 or township. ;mel \Yerc the onl~· legally recognised burial places (,1) Eycn in the late I X-W.~. the bodies or former Prm ost Marshall William Gore ( 17G'iIR.t5). his \\ifc and daughter remained unintcrrecl at their property Artannon ... their corfins (lying) under palings·· (,1

Fmther cyidcnce for the nse of a site in The Rock<: for bmials e\ists in the discoycrY in Bethel Street IX71 of the headstone of George GraYcs. dated I tl July 17XX''.: Bethel St "as only created in·, XG I. just I 0 years before the stone· s "discoyery .. close by the morgue "hich had stood 011 the ,<:itc from at least the I X30s 0

' It is perhaps smprising that it m1s not noted before I X71. It is possible that the headstone \\<IS brought here from else\\ here: although giyen the abundance of building stone in the area it \\onld hardlY seem ncccssar~·

5~ Sec 'Plan de Ia Ville de SydneY Capitalc des Colonies Anglaiscs. Am Terres Australes· by Lesueur. McCormick ( 19XR). p. %.

55 Sec 'Plan de Ia Ville de Sydney Capitalc des Colonies Anglaisc.~. Au;.; Terres Australes· by Lesueur. McCormick (19XX). p. %. '"Cobley. J. ( 19Xtl) SydnQJ:__C::Ql'9_178_X. (Angu.~ and Robertson). p7.-tX. ,- King. 21 June 178X. !:I.RfiS.'.Y. 2. p'i7rl. 'R Sharpe. A. (19X7) Stt9_<:;!s_of_Qid S_yclHey. (At rand Pt\ Ltd). p 17 '

0 AQ_l3_, 1788-1 X 50. George Johnston ( 17(1-l-1 XJ\ ). Vol. 2. p22 r,n Fraser. B. (eel 19R3)The_M_m::_grJarie Book or EYc[lts. tMacqnaric Library) Health. pHS. Presumedly this did not relate to existing burial places. 01 A~. Vol. I. William Gore ( 17(,5-1 X·l'i) IronicallY Gore Hill named after him. is predominantlY the site of a cemetery ""Bertie. C. H. (1920) JheStory ofOidGeorgc St .. pX "' Possibly the headstone had been a curiositY kept bY the morgue''

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II II II II II I

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20

Another headstone was noted built into a \\all at the rear of C<tnlphelr s warehouse in I X 75 '' 1 This belonged to the gnwe of John Jones. "a worthey··. \\ho died in 17'>2 ,,, Both reports of the find (IX75 and 1907) make the assumption Jones was a marine. there being t\HJ In that name <trri' ing \\ith the First Fleet. one of whom died in 17XR. the other stillli\·ing in IRO!Jr.r, Another John Jones. a conyict on the First Fleet \\as stillliying in 17!JI in Sydney but disappears from the records. Yet another com ict lw this name died shortly arter his arriyal with the Second Fleet on 1-t. July 1790r.- Little else is knmm of him although it is unlikcl~ that a headstone \Yould haye been erected oyer his graYe. particularly as he "as one on more than one hundred from the Second Fleet \Yho died in the ten \Yeeks follmYing its arriYaL

The stone was reported to haye been used a<; coping for .. the \\all at the back of the \Yharf. which enclosed what \YC knew as Campbell's garden ... r.x This \\all is dearlY indicated on the IX57 Water Board plan (Plate X) The wall was the boundary bel\yeen Campbell's propertY and that oft he shipwright Robert Cunynghame. Though now demolished. the m1ll follmYed the line of the northern bmmdan of the loni1er Mining Museum I Power Station. Cunynghame · s properly was hounded on its northern .side by D:mes Point rcscn c. The wall was certainly in existence by I R25 "·hen it \\as the subject of a legal" ranglc bet\\eeu Cnnynghame and Campbell('"

Campbell's property \\as first leased to Captain Henry \Vatcrhow;e for 1-t. years in 171)9. Grimes· plan of I ROO (Plate X) shows the leasehold "ith Waterhouse in posse.<;sion The Tmm aud Country Journal. reporting the find of the headstone in IX75. stated that

a pari o( .. (TJ'aferhollse ·,.! land \l'rJS //serf for rl lillie r1s r1 h11riol grn1111rl (iJI' the marines

and sailor,,, etnploycd on the nlen-o/-ll'rTr 011 the sfrrtio11 .. -o

Campbell leased this property for 1-t. years ou II August IXO-~. it being granted to him on 29 June IXI-l -, Robert Cunynghame·s property to the north. a rclatheh small bloc!< of nat Janel. \\as not. hmYe\-ct. subject to a lease until I RXX. The fact that it was not incorporated into the Waterhouse property in 171)9 or Campbell property in I RO-t. or I X 1-t. ma~· be an indicator I hat it had been resen ed for some other purpose. possibly a cemeten·.

The Second Fleet suffered a particularlY high mortalitY rate "ith -l05 deaths out of some 1000 conyicts embarked. 2RI of these died on the Ymage. the rest on arri\al in Sydnc~. among \\hom the con\'ict John Jones.-:

Writing on I July 1790. the Judge Adyocate Dm id Collins. records

1i1e mefnnclwf\' scmes \l'hich closed the last monlh !lf'f"'!lred Ill/changed rttthe heginning ofthis 7llis

moming gmemffl' opm<'d ll'ilh !he attendrlll/1' o(lhe sirA f>rrs.l·ing (iWJIWIIIfr hackmrrds and(iJI'\rards

fi·nm !he lwsf'ilallo !he I'II!Tillg gmmulll·ith the miwmhle l'iclims o/1/w nigh!.-,

(, 1 Australian Town and Counlf}~)QllJ'Il<!!. 20 Nm ember I X 75. pX.W. also Forde. J. ( 1907) ··old Sydney ... by

'Old Chum·. The Tmth. 17 No\'ember 1907. article no X. 1'' I~Th:IT!!_and (:_g_lll_l_l!}:__lour_Il()l report transcribes the inscription as ··sacred to the Memory of John Jones who departed this (life. .. ?) 1792. a \\orlln. ·· Forde. "rit ing .12 years later relates the inscription as reading .. Here lieth the (body?) or John Jones. a \\Orthey. \\ho de parte(d) this life the lOth {")" The actual date Oil

the stone is therefore called into doubt. The current location of this stone is unkmmn. r,r, Gillen. M. ( 19R9) The_EoundQJ:S Qf;\ustraiia .. (LibrarY of Australian Histor~ ). pl9X. r,- Rc\'. Richard Johnson ~tuie~I__Regisl~!- St Phillips Parish . reported in Cobley. l ( I9XO) SJ'_dncl_C_Qy~J}_l:\2: ZL Angus and Robertson .. p23X. r.R Forde ( 1907): QJ.Lci_t. (,"Wentworth Office Account Bool<. I X25. ;\ 7511 pHI_ Mitchell Libran. -o A_t!S1m!imt_T.91'l!_<l!l~L~Qlii!!ryJoui'_Jl(IL 20 No\ ember IX75. pX:W. No other account exists to Yerify this claim. made R7 Years arter the arriYal or the First Fleet -

1 lnscrib~d on plan (Sun·eyors Notebook'') SB 'I V2 relating to Campbell's claim for compensation for resumption of Cumberland St north. II January I X ~2. The same plan indicates that George St "as reseryed from the I RO-t. lease. nnming through the Campbell propertY as acce.<>s to Danes Battery. (SC;\ HP ~X2) -

2 Collins. D. ( 179Rl: Ar_l!\cccmut ofthe English Colony in Ne'' South_\Vales Facsimile edition published b~· the Royal Australian Historical SocietY ( 1975). pp99-l 00 -~Collins. D. QP ci!. piOI

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21

This could suggest that the bmial ground was rclati,·ch close to the hospital. born out bY Eliza Walkcr"s reminiscence of the I R~Os-.lOs \\here she states that the first bmial ground \\as opposite the Commissariat Store. \Yhich \Yonld hmc been the site of the llospitalnntil lXI(, 1 This site. she says. \\as not in usc for Ycry long when another burial ground .. m1s opened somewhere between the Barracks and Soldiers Point ... By the "barracks .. she \\·as referring to that at Wynyard. and Soldiers· Point is marked on contemporary plans at what is now the bottom of Erskine St on Darling Harbom.

Another unknown '·cemeter~ .. e\:istcd 011 the North Shore f01 those 1rho died 011 the ships of the Second Fleet. The Chaplain. Richard Johnson. records

some of' the unhaJ>pv people dil'd a(ier tlw shit>s came into the hurhmtr, he(iwe !her could[,,. taken on shore- part o('thesr had hem thrmm into tit<' harhr~ttr. ..II) too{, r111 or·crtsiolt 111 represent this to !lis Hrcvlfenc\·, in COI/SerJIIencr o( 111lich imnll'diate orders lf'r'l'<' sent on hoard that those 1rho dir•d on hoard should /w carried lo t!te "l'f'osite shore and he• huried .,

ln sun11nary. \Ye hme no clear e1·idencc that a ccmctcn did C\:ist i11 the D;mcs Point 1icinity in the first years of the settlement. By the I R20s hmre1cr. some condemned priso11ers arc know11 to ha1c been buried here. a practice extended to militar~· in I Rll.

Burial of Executed Prisonet·s

Executed prisoners h<l\ c traditionally been c.'\cluclcd from consecrated cemeteries. usually being buried in prison grounds. such 11as the case \\ith Ned KellY in 1\lclbourne in IXXO Records for the Old Sydney Gaol. which operated from 1797 until I R~ I. arc scant. and ccrlainh no records of interment ha\'e been located

In IR07 n woman who confessed to the mmder of her newborn infant. and herself dving a few days later. was interred "at the place of execution .. r, E\:ecutions at this time did occm at the Gaol on the corner of Esse\: and George Streets. but at no other time is it sHggestcd that e:xecntcd prisoners were bmied at the Gaol site. Ccrt<1inly no human remains were encountered dming the e\cayations at the Old Sydney Gaol site in llJ71)

Other gallo\\s \\ere set up in other P<lfts of SYdneY such ;1s f'astlercagh Street and George Street. at the suuthern e\:tremity of the tm1n. -x ·

On 5 Febmary I R2 7 George Worrall. com icted of the mmder of Frederick Fisher at Campbclltmm (of Fisher's Ghost fame). m1s hanged and his hoch .. burned in quicklime at what \\as then knmm as 'Slaughterhouse Point·. but better known as Dimes Point .. -, It is not clear fron1 this account \\·hcther or not Worrall was actually executed at Dawes Point S~dney Gaol \\as. at this time. some half a kilometre to the south of D;mes Point. on the site of \\hat is no\\ the Regent lintel. and \\as generally the site of e\:ccutions The question then remnins: \\·hy was Worrall's body brought to Dimes Point for disposal and to what e\:tent \\as this the general practice of the time?

From the IRJOs e\:ecufions \\'ere carried out at the ne\\11 erected Darlinghursf Gaol. The militan· execution of PriYatc Thomas Brennan at D;mcs Point \\as. howeyer. an exception.

-1 Walker. E. ( 1930) "Old SYdney in the ·Fort ie.~ ... J_omnal of the RoyaL;\llstratiiiiL!ii~QrjcJ!llio~ic:ll .. Vol I 6.

p2')7 -, Re1·. Richard Johnson to Mr Thomton. August 17'>0. reported in Cobley. I (I ')RO) S.J:fi!~}:_Cm:c_l11t9_-2<L Angus and Robertson .. p26-~. -r, S1..<tnev Gazette. I~ June IR07. ppl-2. -- Burritt. P ( 1979): Qid_S.J~ducl Gaol The 1979 Rescue E:'\cn at ion For Heritage Council of NSW. Building acthities subsequent to the gaol's demolition in the IR~O.~ had distmbed much of the site. The archaeological inycstigations concentrated on a lancmn created around the time of the gaol's demolition. sited in the gaol y·•rd. 'xBerfie. C ( 19J(J) "Old Castlcreagh St reef " ln Journal of the RoYal A.ustraliantlistQ!i~al SIJ_<::i9!.J:. Vol 22. ppS.t-5 -

9 Forde. J. ( I90R) "Old Sydney .. by ·Old Chum·. The Truth. 2R June 190R. article no JR. The "slaughterhouse .. was established at D;mes Point bY I X2 \ and moYecl to Glebe Island by the I R50s.


n

The Execution h~· Fidng Squad of Prh aft• Rn·nnan, I S32.

Dawes Point \Yas the site of a tragic eycnt in Australia's milit:m historY. the execution of Priyate Thomas Brennan. At dmm on Thursday. April 5. 1Xl2. a subdued cnmd of Sydney·s inhabitants gathered on the rising ground of Da\Yes Point to \\itness the execution hY !iring .~quad of the young soldier.

Some days before. Priyate Thomas Brennan. pf His 1\·tajesty·s I'Jth Regiment of Foot. the Dorsetshires. had been tried by court-martial and found guilty of attempted murder Rrennan had allegedly !ired a loaded musket at his superior. Sergeant Millwood. at Emu Plains.

The public neyer found out \\hy Brennan acted so rashh. but in keeping \\ith the harsh military code of the time. he was sentenced to death. The dcci.~ion \\a.~ confirmed lw the Commander-in-Chief. Gm·crnor Bomkc. who had only recently arriYcd in the colonY.

T:1e following account of the execution has been adapted from the report that appeared in '/he .',:nine\·< lazette two days later.

n}(' tin! /'(1\'S of .Hill arc fir/ling "" lillc'S of 01'/IIC'rf lrr>r>f>S f'!ll'flding ill /ianuck Srf1/l71'<' (lim!' 11'1'11\'171-d

Square). /ire/11/{/// is (',\'COrl!'d fi·onJ rhe gurrrrf-hm!Sc' "" rhc fil'ill,l!. \'!fi!Od lfe is 11 good lookillg 1'!1711/g 111!111 of

ru·mll'-1/rree, \l'<'llring lire red cat• and jor·kel of hi1 l'<'!~illl<''''· I fe had 1·errerf in till' regillle/11. since

ndo!C'scenc<' a11d conducls lrimse/(u·irh tire colllf>OSI/1'<' """ rfignilr o(llis 111ilirarr /raining

:II six o'clock tire 1rlro/c garrisonnum·l1es o(/silenrlr ill slu1r Iiiii<' t•ossing our o(tlw harmcks tlrrouglr tire

norlh gale. 71w hand o(Brennan ·_,. regilllc'll/. rlw 3'Jth. dun not t•lor Tlis col/ill is carried h1· ,,·n·c·ra/ o(his

(i·imds. 711<T an•liJ!/ml'<'d h1· the• r·ondc•mned 111m1 ll'ilh file fWiesl. 1-!tllll'r lherrr, ar his side. The main hodr

o(II'OOpS fiJI /011'.

!'Ire procession mows slmrlr alo11g rhe rocli1· s11r{i1n' of! '11mherlulld Srn·er. lr crosses the nor/hem e11d of

( ieorge Street rlwn 011 lo the ge111ie grrrs,\'1 slorw hel11'c'c'n I lm1·r•s 11al/crr and rlre 1mlers of SrdiHT ( 'm·e.

.\'ear to the lmtlress 1mll o(/he holle!Y is the gat>ing lll<~lllfr o/n li·eshlr d11g grrn·e .

. lm11nd this Sf'Ottlre main hodr of lruops (i11m a llll·ec·-sided srjlltll'l'. fitcing immnls. i'11e /'l·i.WIH'r is take11

into tlrf' hal/err ll'here Ire changes (i·om Iris mililm'l' 11nifimn ir1lo 11 11·lrite shirr. lro11se1·.,· a11d cap. 71Jis is tire

clothi11g trnditimralll· 11'01'11 hr cri111inals al "" c•xeclllic>n

Rremwn stands rJ1rieth· u·ith !rands tied 1rlri/c• rlrc dmrh uw·mnl is rmd lwfiwe rlw croml. lie• is then taken

to the grm·eside 1rhere he is foincd hr /•(r!IIC'r l'hern lhe1 /r,,//1 k11ee/ heside tlw collin and lwgin to f•rar.

u·hile tlrl' hand o(the 39th 1'/m·.\ the mntll'nfirl 111111' uf the dealh "''"-cl'

Rre1nwn Jll'lll'S 1rith lh<' pries/ li>r alnwsl an 'tw11r i'he connna11ding office'/' m1nmnu·cs rhar the lim<' li>r

exec11tion has mTi1·ed. /~'ather Then'\' emoli<>nallr erllhmces r/w condc•lmwd 1111111 and /cares him knec•ling al

the grm·eside . .-I s!'rgeanl p111ls the• 11-hilc• C!lf' m·er lin'II!Jan 's <'l'<'S

Six of the lm•lrc men in rhe (iring sq11ad adnrnced ru 11·irhin len nwlres n( rh,• kneeling 1111111 Togl'lher !her

raise their g11ns. The co/1//ll!lllff is gi1'r'n, rhc'l' (ire. l'hc· sntnld of rhc gllnshurs echoes ac/'11,\'S the harho11r.

Rremwn fit/Is dead on hisfi1ce info I he r·o(/in .I lo11d sigh rise's !h>lll rhe cmml. /•(rther 7'hc'l'!l' appmaches

and ll'itlr hmred lrerrd reads the lmrial serriN·.

The l>and noll' lakes llfl its J>nsirion ll!'rn· rhc• nortlwm c·nd of rlrc• hull<'l'l' muf again hegins lo plar tire death

march. 1'l1e regimen/, in coh111111S o((imr. !lrarc/1!'.\' dell'<' /n· rhc hodr and l'"l'S rlreir n•sj>ecls to lhl'ir dead

comrade. Some ll'il'e rears(i·o111 rheir <T<'S.

lrhilr the li)(}tsleflS o( rlw soldiers firde info rhc dis/once• and rlw onlookers dis!'erse, 11 small i>arlr o(

conllndesfi·om his rl'gimrnl hurl' tire dead 1111111 1rhen• lw lic•s. "'

The final episode in this tragedy takes a hi;.arrc twist. In the dark of night. follmring the execution. Brennan·s body \\as secretly dug up. Just as they \\ere cam ing :ma\ the coffin from D;nrcs Point the body snatchers were

Rll '/?'1'1'1'/'/?

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d;s~uebod They dccidod to hide the coffin nc"''" in the shipn•ock of"" .11/igat<w. '~~~EJ;;oof•ont opposite (where Pier One is todaY)

ft remained hidden until Sunday afternoon \\hen some children\\ ho were pla~·ing in the shipwreck accidentally stumbled across the ·coffin containing the boch TheY immediate!\ informed the police of their grisly find and the coffin was carried back to its former grm·e under Danes Batten The bod\' \\aS cmwed \\ith quicklime and reburied and a guard was placed at the hmial site to IHe\ent the hndy being stolen agaiu

Brennan had sen·ed in the regiment with some of his friends since their youth. Some thought he had been \\Tongfully accused. perhaps eyen set up. He had died bnl\ ch and to many of his comrades it "as shameful that his body should not be buried on holY ground Hrennan·s friends n-cre the prime suspects. but they ncre nc,·cr charged. It was thought that theY had intended to re-bnrY him in a proper cemeterY.

2.6 Battery (1791-1819)

In March 1788 the colony·s artillery ordnance \ras unloaded fmm the transports. consisting of tno brass 6-poundcrs. fom iron 12-pounders and t\m iron(, pounderss 1 To these may· be added the armaments of the Siri11s and ,C.,'upplr. at yarious times mm eel on-shore before finally being landed permanently \Yith the demise of each shipg2 OYer the next few years these pieces nere moyed around the C'oYe before most of them came to rest at D:mes Battery. forming the genesis of the Rat ten

The Artillery Officers

From 1788 until 1828 there exi.<>ted the position in the cnlom of Fngineer and Artillery Officer. This post was generally held by a member of the militarY. nho in most cases \\as not familiar \lith the use of artillen·. this being a skill usually reserYed for members of the RoYal ArtillerY The early correspondence between the first goycrnors and the Secretary for the Colonies is full of requests to .~end toNe\\ South Wales someone competent in the usc of artillen· to train Yolunteers and infantnmen in the usc of the guns. This request nas neyer granted and the colony had to make do. It \\Ould appear that of the carl\ Fngineers and Artillery Officers. only Bcllasis. occupying the position from 1802-.'1 and Minchin (IXtU-10) had had .substantial e\perience \\ith artillery

The incumbent of this office was also responsible for mcrseeing puhl ic \Yorks. and defences naturally came into this category.

Dawes (1788-91)

In April 1788 GoYernor Phillip discharged D:mes from his duties as a marine officer on the Siri11s and ordered him to the position of Engineer and Artillery Officer Phillip needed D:mes· skills to help \Yith the siting and construction of the fortifications of the settlement ~·

RossR 1 \Yas not pleased with the appoint men f. and men !.ions that.

... the suhaltems o(lhe detachlll<'lll are in no shoJW refi,.,. 'd J,,. his foining 11s."

Likc\Yise. Dawes himself did not nish to perform all the duties required for lw job. He complained to Maskelyne that they preycntcd him fron1.

~~Collins. D .. gp_ci! .. plo x: The Siri11s was \\reeked at Norfolk Island in l7lJO. whilst the Sl!f'PII· m1s decommissioned in 1798. x.1 Collins. D .. pp cil,. p20. ~ 1 Robert Ross was commandant of marines. lie "as appointed Lieutenant Gm ern or in 17R(, and was therefore second-in-command to Arthur Phillip X' Ross to Stephens. I 0 July 17XX. /IN \,\'If. I. Part 2. p 17} cited inS Saunders. p. 7(,,


aflmding to the ohsen·aton· so much as .\'0/t \l'mt!d e:qwcl, & as I \l'ished. I soon (inmd that almost the 11-hole o('mt· time \l'as to he e1111'lored in lmsitwss, 1'<'1'1' di{(c'/'<'111 ittdeedfhnu t!tat o(mt Hngineer and ( J(ficer o(".·lrtillerr, hut lt'!tic!t I 11ns ordered to do in C!l/IS<'If1t<'IIC<' o('doing t!tose duties; \r.

On 2 February 17RR Da\Yes had Yisited the French encampment at La Penmse and fmmd that they had already constructed a stockade \Yith two small guns as a defence against attack from the Aborigines.

In July 17RR. six months after establishment of the English settlement. there \\ere still no substantial defences to protect Sydney CoYC. On July I..J. Ross complained that he \\:tS concerned \\ith the possibility of an attack from 'the Indians· whom he did not belicYe \\ere.

!Ita! harmless, inof(riiSi\'e race tlte.l' /{(n·e in general hcen l'l'll/'esmted to he 1-.

On the same day Tench commented that.

.·lmidsl our puhlic lahmtrs. that 110 {iwtified f!Osl, or 11/ace of sr•curill'. is rei lwgun, mm· he a matter of'

surprise 11

D;mes had been responsible for constmcting the first Rritish fortifications in the colony in April a small redoubt on the east side of the cmc.~" It is clear Tench. and Ross ldt this fortification useless. Perhaps as a result of the complaints from Tench and Ro.~s. in JulY 17XX D;mcs constructed another small earthen redoubt around the nagstaff at the southern end of Sydney Coyc ncar \rhat is no\\ Macquaric Place. It contained t\\o of the iron gnns. possibly the <i-pounders mentioned abm c."" This \\ork \Yas completed in No\'cmber. Dawes· labour coming from a group of conYicts \\ho. formerly being employed at the hospital. \Ycre suspected of stealing alcohol from the hospital stores.

In December 171)0 \Yord arriYcd bY the Dutch ship /r'rmksn/11/wrd. from Ratayia. that a dispute had arisen between England and Spain." 1 Tencit records.

/'laced out o(reach o{rtllack. hoth ht· l'<'lllr>lr'II<'.I'S ond insiy,nificrnlr'l', IIIII' onlt· drt'ad lar lest/hose S1tpplies intended(iw our COIIS11111f!lion, should he Cllf>lured. ,\'ot, hmrr'l'<'l', to lw .fimnd Iota/It· llllf'I'OI'ided, in case m1

e/H'111l' should Of'lwar. a hall<'l'l' \1'(/S f!lanned nem· the enllmlc·e o( Sl'rlll<'l' ( 'm·e. rmd other lin'lllidahle

fJI'<!parations set ml.fi)()/.

Collins states that the battery at Dawes Point \\as commenced the following Jnh:

!11 the heginning o('lhe month, the stonr'-1111/S>>II, ll'ilh the I"·'OI!Ir• 1111der his direction, fwd 1H'g1111 11'orking at the ll'esl f)()inf o( thf! co\'e, 11'11<'re the gm'e/W11' f1111'f"',l'<'d Clfnsll'llcling out o( the ror·k 11 .1'/)(J/ lrhen'on /o place the guns he longing to the st'lllr'111<'111. 1rhich \1'(/S to 11'<'<11' 1/w llf'f"'rn·mlc<' of a \l'ork. The llag.\'/a((' 11·as to he placed in the same situation.

0

~

From this statement it is clear that the rock on the site had to be JcyciJed some\\ hat. and that the battery \\as to haye ·'the appearance of a \\Ork .. By "work .. an eartlmork is probablY meant. that is. a defence \Yith earth piled in front of the guns to absorb any return-fire c:-:plosions. Fiyc cannon were taken from HMS Sirius to defend the position. ~3

The \mrk \Yas completed in August 171) I. Collins records au accident occurring dming the installation of the cannon:

Dawes to Maskelync. 17 Nm ember 17XX. The Bnard of l.ongituclinal Papers cited in S Saunders. pp. 91-92.

Ross to Stephens. lOth JulY 17XX. /f!?..\S/1. I. ii. 171. cited in Tench. fti 1). p, I IX)

xx Tench. W. Ql!..C:i! .. p. 72 RCJ Collins. D. QP_fi! .. p20. ''"Two more guns arc shmm in an early Yic\\ of (Joycrnmcnt llnusc set up in front of the building. Sec McCormick ( 19XX). Plate I X ( 171}2) 91 Collins. D. 9_p_ci!. pll9. and Tench. \V. op cit. p217 "c Collins. Q]LCit. pl:ll). ''

1Robert Bnrforcl. Description of a YiC\\ of the Tomt of SYdneY Nc\\ South \Vales. II

I I I I I ·I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

2'i

71w pi at/om• "Mel• hod "'"" cone/me ,; ng "" ',,. ,..,. '' /'c ,; n• ,c/occ' lone• ,9,~ ~Er the reception o(thc cm1non. th1'." li'CI'e 111m·ed thither rrhnlltlhc middle n(thc IITOII!h (August 1791 ); in doing ll'hich. a trirmgle ll'hich 11'11.1 murle ,,,.e of, rTol !wing properh· secured.

slipped mulfidl upon a conl'ict (an o\·er.I'CITJ. h1· ll'hidr accident his thigh ll'as dislocated. and his hoch· much hmiserl. l fe mrs taken to the ho.lf 1itrrl ll'herc. (iwtrmate/1' . . \ fr White

immediatel\:reduced the luxation °1 .

Follmring a dispute with Phillip in Dcccmher 1790 D;me.~ fell out off;nonr with Gmernor.'" His application to remain in the colony was rejected and he was ordered to lcaw \\ith the Marines in Noycmbcr 1791. As a result the Obseryatory fell into disuse and the "hole of D;m es Point \ras rescn cd for military purposes. Collins recorded in December 1791 •

71Te platfilmr at the \\'est t'oinl of !he 1 ore 11'1/S r ornJ>Ic/l'rl in !Iris /lllln!IT. lire llagstnf/ had

heen fiJI' some time erected anrf !he cml/71111 t'lm erl "" !Ire pl!ll(imn .I cni'J'III'Ill 's g11ard \l'as

also mormtl?rl rlail\' in the hrlilrling ll'hirh !Tar/ !wen 11serl as 1111 11h.1·en·nton· hy Ue11tcnanl I Ja\l'cs <Jr.

Although Dawes was the colony's engineer. there is the possibilitY that it \\as his superior. Major Robert Ross and not Da\rcs \\ho \\as responsible for the construction of the bat1cr~ at D;mes· Point. It seems likely that after D;mcs left on the expeditions to explore li1rther inland Ross \\as placed in charge of the constmction of the third fortification on the \\estern side of the settlement ( 'crtainh thcr \\ere Ross· initials and not D;mcs· that appear on the foundation stone of \\hat is identified as the J7XlJ magazine (sec 2 3) D;mcs· explorations occurred in December 17RlJ. August 1790 and April 17lJ I although in each case he \\as gone for less than two \YCeks.

The Ahscnce of an Artille•·~- Officer (1791-171J9)

The NSW Corps and GoYCrnor lfuntcr

With the departure of the marines in J7lJ I and the rctum of c;mcrnor Phillip to England the follo\\·ing year. the colony came under the mlc of the Ne\\ South \Vale.~< 'orps lasting until the· appointment of Gm ernor Hunter in 1795.

During this time there \Yas no o1.1e in the colon\ experienced in the usc of artillerY. the New South Wales Corps being a body of infantrY. In the period from 17lJI-J7lJX there arc Yirtualh no mentions of the battery in the official records. In Fcbmary 179.1 Lieutenant .John Macarthm was appointed inspector of public works. "hich would h;wc made him responsible for anY of the repairs or additions to D;mcs Point BatterY,,-

When in May 179R the ship S11ppll' \\as withdr;mn from scn·ice Its commander. Lieutenant William Kent. and crew \\Crc assigned to shore \mrks. constructing a1nongsl other things .. a half moon b<ttiCIT on the cast point of the cmc .. on the site of Bcnclong's hut. This hattcn \\a~ \mill bet\\cen Nrl\embcr and December in 179R and m1s mounted \Yith some of the guns taken from the ,\'"!'I'll·""'

91 Collins. D. QP_cit.. pl-l5. 9

' On December 13. 1790 Phillip ordered that D;mcs participate in a punitirc expedition against the Aborigines who were accused of killing Mr. M'Entirc. Phillip's gamekeeper. D;mcs objected on religious and moral grounds and initially refused to go. He later relented. informing Phillip that ·he \\as sorry that he had been persuaded to comply with the order· (Gm crnor Phillip ((l Lord flrcm ill e. 7 Nm·cmber. J7lJ I. 1/R.\SW I. Part 2. p. 5-l(). 'J(, Collins. D. QP_C:il. pi 57. 'r Grose to Dundas. J() February J7tJl. HRNS\V. 2. pll ''R Collins. D. op cit.. pp lJ7-R. too.

I


Kent was most probably responsible frll· works undertaken at Dimes Point at this time. referred to in the Statement of Works executed for the year up to December 17lJX."" The document reports that

(hricklrr\'ei'S) lmilt a chimenr and l'l'f'llired the magazine gurmiiHmse . . . en·cted 11 hal/err at 15enelong 's Point, . . pointed and lrhi/('\I'IIS!wd tht• /ill'li/inrtinn at llrnres ·!'oint"

In May 179X Gmemor Hunter wrote to the Duke of Portland stating the necessity of establishing a 1111111ber of redoubts for the defence of the settlement. in' ie\Y of the state of war \Yhich at that time existed bel\\een Britain and France. He requested arms and amnHmition. as \\ell as an engineer. stating ~hat it \\as his understanding that William Dimes \\as to be appointed to the position'"" In Jam1arY 17!J!J Under Secretary King \\Tole to Hunter informing him that that the follo\\ing ordnance had been sent

Sl!\'<'11(\' 17111.1'(/IIC'ts cO/llfl/eal ll'illi 1111\'rJII<'IS and. lc('Ofl/l'<'lll<'llts

7711'<'<' 1rhole harrels o(( ;1111/'0m{er 1ritli 11/'f'l'l>l'l'iale 01/anlil\' of/la11s. !'lints and ( 'artrid[;e l'aper 7\ro Hrass Six-l'oundrrs ll'ilh ( 'rn.,.iages ( 'r>mplen/ 11

'1

In April 17!J!J the Duke of Portland ordered a further four iron !.~-pounder cannon and ammlmilion from the Board of Ordnance and had it dispatched in the \\haling yessel 1/'a/ker ''' 2 Portland fell it unnecessary to appoint an engineer. leaying the decision up to Colonel Paterson. Commander of the NSW Corps. to appoint \\homeyer ·'be judged most competent to that scrTice "'"' In other \\ord.". this was to be an officer to be appointed from the NS\V Corps and not a member SJI'Ihe Rmal ArtillerY

Ahhntt (1799-11W 1), Barrallicr ( 1 Rll 1-2) and Bdlasis ( 1 8112-J)

Captain Edmlfd Abbott ( 17(,(,-1 XU) of the Ne\\ Soul h Wales Corps m1s subsequently appointed engineer and artillery officer \\ith responsibilitY for the batteries of D;mes Poi11t and Georges Head'"' Abbott. \\ho had originally arriYed in the colony in 17!JO. had hee11 imalided bach to England in 17%. He appears to ha\'C been the right person. in the right place at the right time "hen llnn1er· s letter to the Duke of Portland arriYed in 1799 requesting the sen ices of an engi ncer. It is probablY no coincidence there fore that Abbott returned to the colony on the Walker in Noyember 17'J'J. the same ship that wa.s carrying the amJmmition and ordnance. and in the company of Colonel Paterson.''" Abbott \\as confirmed in the position of engineer and artillery officer on the first day ofKing·s gm-crnorship. 2X Septernhcr IXOO In hi.s first official report on the .stale of the colony's defences criticised Dimes Point Batter~ saying that

The hatten· consists of 10 guns and I! emhrasT!I'<'S limned of sir •II<' and eorth miserahlr f>llt together, H'ith a fHTI'OfWt o( llreln' inciii'S, os 11111ler, ond a hn•lfst\l·ork four fi·et !imr inches high, the 11'1101<' in such a slate that mmn· parts n/lhc \I'OI'k (iii/to f>ier·es 11'11<'11 the g11ns are /ired'"''

Gmernor King relayed this report to England. adding that the

halfen· 011 the \l'est side o(Sn/ner ( 'm·e, fl<'ing cor1slmcted ll'ilh .1'/r>ll<'S, is """' (idling dmm anrl(i/ling the emlll'asures, and must he immedirttelr taken do\1'11 In f>re\'<'111 ill' l•eing totallr useless in case it should he \I'Gitled, as it comnw1uls the 11'11111e fl/'f'I'Oacli o!the 1/(/rhorn· llf> to tlw se/1/ement. 'n-

Abbott was giYen the task of imprm ing the batteries and in I XO I Gm-crnor King was able to state that Dimes Point Bal1en·:

has heel/ tw·onstntcted and is 11011' Ulf>uhle o(annoring 11111 · rr'ss.·ll· 1rilh d/i'c/ 101

""Statement of Works. December I?!JX. ~JRf\JSW Vol i. p52/ Jon Hunter to Portland. 25 May 17!JX. HRNSW Vol.<. pli>X-9 '"' King to Hunter. 31 January 17!J!J. I-IRA I (II). p2-n 1"

2 Portland to Board of Ordnance. 2(1 April 17'>'J. W~NSW \'ol. \. ppo)(,-7. '"'Portland to Hunter. 5 Nmember 17'J!J. HRNSW Vol \. p7.l) '"'The battery at Georges Head \\as under construction in March 1Xtl2 HR.A I. Vol. Ill. p-I-3X-1).

'";Collins. D. QJJsl! .. pl!J3 1""Return of Guns and Stale of Batteries. I October I XOtl. HR/\ I. Vol. II. p(J(JX. w King to Portland. 2X March I XtHl. HRA I. Vol II. p(,J '> -


27

<.:' . ~1 \ Charles GrimeS plan of s,dne,. snn"ed in ""' IXOO. ''""" ""' hat:\~~sides of" o·cct,mgle with" b•1ilding. presumedly the guardhousc-cum-po\\dcr magazine (Plate xYc_irimcs· plan has prm·cd c-.trcmely useful in accurately locating the features marked on il 11 111<1\ therefore be more than coincidence that the building shown closely coincides with the site of the 17R 1J magazine. and the rectangular ba11cry \\ith an area of \Yorked bedrock to the cast of the later (I R IIJ) breastwork and glacis 1

""

In !ROO Goycrnor Hunter had inslilnlcd lhc l.mal and /\sst1cialcd Corps. soon after called the Lo~·al Association. The Associnlion was a Yohmlccr militan force consi.~ling of free sclllcrs and c-;-con\"icts Abbo11. as officer in charge of artillery. probablY had the task or I raining members of the Lo~·al Association in the usc of artillery at Dawes Point. 11

"

Gmcrnor King informed lJndcr-Sccrclan .John King that 1\.bbolt had resigned. taking effect on 2l Au[!ust IROI. 111 A report on the BalleD· dated lo lhal claY slated the armament ofD;mcs Poinl Baller~· as:

8 X /2{/J 2 X (iff,

2 .r .Jih

fimu<'d <'II harf•elll"ilh glacis""' r!'l finished u:

T\YO days later the General Orders announced Francis Harr;tllicr·.~ appointment to the position \\ilh SergeantMajor Jamieson as his assistant. 11

'

Francis Barrallicr (177l-LR5l) had accompanied Gmernor King lo Nc\\ South Wales in !ROO. Barrallicr had e.,pericnce as an engineer. and it had been inlendccllhal he should be appointed dcpnlY-slln CH)f-gcncral of the colony King initially employed Barrallicr a.~ an archilccl on his :nrh al. and on 2l August I Rtll appointed him engineer and arlillcD' officer follo\\ing ;\bbolt'.~ resignation His responsibilities included the design of For! Phillip and in general the duties of ·Military Engineer and i\rtillcn Officer. superintending the MilitaD· Defences. Batteries and Canon .. or the sclllemcnl Much (lr his lime. hm\C\ cr. \Yas spent c-.ploring the colony and making an allcmpl lo cross the Blue Mountains and on ((, larmary IX02 Licu!cnanl George Rcllasis was appointed Acting Colonial ArtillerY Officcr. 11 1 Rarrallicr resigned oil lJ October I X02. relmncd to England on leayc in May l80l. and ncycr returned to I he colony. 11

'

In JanuaD· 1802 Lieutenant George Bridges Fkllasis ( d I 825) or I he East India Company· s artillery arriycd as a comic! in Sydney. sentenced to 1"1 years for hm·ing killed an opponclll in a duel in Bombay. Within nine months Goycrnor King had granted him a conditional pardon. and on 14 October IR02 he \\as conlirmcd in the position of lieutenant of ·'the Ball cries and Cannon ill I his Sclllcmcnt'· In March I R02 King reported that the stone magazine <llld storeroom at !he Ball en. C(lllllllcnccd lw Abboll. had been linishcd and masons rcconslmcting the BalleD· itsclf 11

r. Lillie else is reported of lhc Rallery during Rarrallicr or Bcllasis·s tenure. Bcllasis was granted an absolute pardon in I xm and lett I he col oilY in August of that year. cYcntually returning to his former position in Bomba~- 11

-

1"xKing to Portland. 10 March IROI.I::LRA I. Vol Ill. p71 1"" This area was cm-ered by the earllmork or the I X I'J glacis and I hcrcfor must predate il Eight bricks aligned in two ro\YS in this area arc of c-;trcmciY carh manufacture and arc possiblY remnants of paYing. 11

" Barrallier. Bcllasis and Minchin certain!\ trained the' oluntccrs in arlillcry use. 111 King to John King. 21 August IROI. l-IRA I. Vol. Ill. pl.JX King·s lcllcr i.~ actually dalcdtwo days before Abbott's resignation. For the official lcllcr of resignation sec Colonial Sccret;m ·scorrcspondcncc. AO SZ'JXX pp5X-IJ. 11 c till-A 1 (Ill) 21 August I XO I. p 184 11

' General Orders. n Augnsl IROI. HEA I. Vol Ill. p4(,2 111 Co)Sq~:;. (:Qrrcc~pcmdqiJCG XX XXX X 11

' ADB Vol. I• Francis Luis Barrallicr ( 177l-l X5.1) 11

c King to Porlland. l March I R02. HRA I. Vol Ill. pp-1 I 8-'J w ADB Vol. l George Bridges Rcllasis (d 18/'i). quoting HRNSW I. 5 and IJRA l-(1


2X

Minchin (1804-1809)

Bellasis· successor mts Ensign and Adjutant William l'vlinchin tc177~-IX21). sen·ing \\ith the Ne\\· South Wales Corps.m Although confirmed in thi.~ position on l:'i April IXO(,_ King had announced Minchin's appointment to Lord Hobart. Secretan· for the Colouie.~. t\\o \cars earlier in dispatch dated 3 NoYcmbcr 180~. stating that Minchin 11 ":

has hem in the artillen· and rJitllli(ied to hare charge• of tmini11g rolunteers to the use of the cmt/1011, afl{/ to

inspPcf the \I'(Jf'ks cmn·ing 011 at tltese l•ol/el"ics

In the same dispatch King added a request for more artillerYtncu .

.1 must respect/itflr Ito/}(' rita! 111.\' ael'lintlion (iw one n/" tll'tJ urtillen· officers. and a small eal"t\' o/men,

mar ({d/undernmr Lords/til'·,,. r·onsidemtion. 1 .·n

In reply to this leiter. the ne\\ Secret an. Viscount Castlcrcagh. had the follm\ing to say of the defence arrangements in the colony:

(The LoYal Association) .. .(imued lor t!te S,.n·ice of tf{(' f?aflc'f"ic•s seems !tight\' /WO/IL'r .... and I !tm·e 110

hesitatirm in ap/>roring the tc'tii/>OIW1". li>t>ointlll!'llt of /insign .\linch ill to instmcl the J'oluntec'l"s ill the use

o(t!te Circ'at ( iuns. 1:

1

No further artillery officers "·ere sent to the colom The artillcry111en of the Lm·al Association "ere expected to ··exercise the cannon at the ballerics .. eYctY SaturdaY frnm one till three p m1~2

Although there arc no records of 'mrk being mtdcrtaken at the batterY at this time. the I XO(, conyict muster lists 2G men and one \Yoman employed at the .. Batlen. Snlney·· 1

., /\II but one is listed as prisoner. this exception being William Welch. an cmancipist "ho ''as probablY the mcr.~ccr. Although these people's trades arc not listed. a study of the later careers of some has sho\\n that in all probability the~ ''ere cmplmcd as stonemasons or quarrymen. The function of the female. l\1argarct l.;mlcr is 1wt known The following list details what is knmm of these people:

Name John Bt1tlcr William Cassidy William Chandler

Patrick Clean· James Conro~· Edward Cuerton (Cureton)

James Dempsey

John 0\Yer (Dwyer)

John Eddington

AITin-tl Ship Atlas(IX1l2) Hercules ( I X02) Coromandcl (I XO:J)

Tcllichcrn ( I XO(,) Hercules (I X02) Glallon (I XOl)

Atlas (I X02)

Atlas (I X1l2)

Coromandel ( I XO 2)

11 x ADB Vol I William Minchin (ci77-~-IX21) 11 " CQL__S_cL__QJ_r!_c.§.Q.Onde!!c;~. Sl7:'i(>. p(,:'i-1' 12

" King to Hobart 3 Nmembcr IXO~. HJSA I. Vol. IV. p-lX:'i 121 Castlcrcagh to King. IJ JulY IXO:'i. HRA I. Vol. V. p.-lX<>. 122 SYdney Gazelle. 2~/l/1 xo~

SuhsctJnent f'an·l·r 12t

Stonemason (I X I X). Coustablc at Sydney Gaol 1 I X I X-21) <'handler's house iu Cumberland Street \\aS the subject of an archaeological c\c;natiou in I!JX!) (Lil~\alc C"\c;n·ations)

Stonemason (I X I :'i ). 0Ycrseer of stonemasons ( lXI(>). Erected the Obelisk in Macquaric Place I I X IX) <hcrsccr of stonemasons (I X 10). worked on the Ron Accord Bridge. Bridge Street (I X II) (hcrsccr of quarries (I X I~). Chief Constable. i\ ppi n ( I X21)

121 MtJstC-LQLQJl;Yict~,_l-~l_(i AONSW (original held at Public Records Office. London. HO I0/.17) 121 These details arc taken from the inde"\ to the Colonial Secret an· s <. 'orrcspondcnce ( 17XX-I X2:'i) at the ArchiYes Office of NSW.


Mnrly (Mnrlogh) Forlnne William Gilmore John Kennedy George Lane

Margaret L;mlcr Charles Lee James Leyerton Brian McCormick John Murphy Dennis Mulloy (Molloy) William Paterson Joseph Pearson Terrence Phillips John Reardon Daniel Reid (or Read)

James Templeton

Edward Thompson William Welch

Atla~ t I X02) Glatt on 1 I XIU l Forl11ne (I XO(,)

)<)

Earl Conmallis 1 I XO I)

/\Oas ( 1 xm l Royal Admiral 1 I XO I). Ganges ( 1797) A1las ( IX02) /\Oas (I X02 l Atlas (I X02 l Fortune ( I XO())

Coromandel (I X02)

Fricndship (I XOO)

Rolla ( I XOl) Glatton (IX01)

Herclllcs ( IX02)

/\Oas t I X02 l rrienclship ( J7<J2)

Stonemason. Worked on lhe columns of Sydney Hospilal (IXI~-15). li\ing in The Rocks (IR20s)

o, erseer of stonemasons (I X I I)

Stonemason. Member of the LoYal /\ssocia1ion 1 IXOX-10). Crealed lhe stone fonl for St Phillip's ch11rch I .ong-tenn Rocks resident ( 1770-l X~<J). shncrnakcr c'<l tanner (I R I R) 1.~:;

In addition. Marlin Haydon (HaYden). also a prisoner is listed as employed atlhe po\\der magazine. Emaneipist Joseph Vaughan is recorded as employed at 1hc Georges I lead Batten lt1s likcl~ that the \\orks at D;mes Point Battery and Georges Head were in order to prepare the sites for nse by the Loyal Association. One of the com icts working al D;mes Point Daniel Reid. \\as himsel r later to join the l.oYal As.sociat io11

In I X07 Minchin submiHed a reporl on the condition of D:mes Point RaUery. describing

7Ju• l'mrde!" cllagazine dm11J'. and unfit to k<'<'/' l',nrdel in. l'h<' l'"mlel" \is\ gl'('(tfil· da111aged (due) to tlw

da111p slate of'the .1/agazine ..

.... . (lhc ordnance),\ lmrnted at I lmi'<'S ·_,. I 'oint !iattel'\' (hut S C!IITiuges llll(itli,. serTice 1- 12 tlrcll·e-pmrnde!"s

awl 2 (iron) six-pounde!"s. 12"

One incident recorded al lhe battery occurred 011 the night or )O Noyember IX05 around 10 or II o'clock at night. The sentry on guard duly. Printe John L:mrence of the NSW Corps. was i1~jnred \\hen he accidentally discharged his nmskel. According to the SYdneY Ci:v.e1te ·the ball and ,d10le conlenls (of the gnn) passed lhro· the palm". resulting in lhe amputation of one ofl.a\\rence·s llngcr.~. 1

,.

Another episode at D;mes Battery did nothing In endcar c;o,cmor Rligh to the soldiers Sergeanl Benjamin Johns recorded:

I \f'rtS one moming it! the 1//0ilth of \rnnnlwr las/ (l X07! "" !he Flatfi'IT ( i11rml a! llrmes' !'oint. !fis J:'xceflet/C\' ( ]m·ernor 13/igh r·on!e t!ll't'f'. ond rrfier looking at the men he asked(iw their flrt/1.\'

one a(ier mwther. and hrll'ing \1Tr>nr1wd the flints ortl. he tlll'r'll' them on the gl"otmd, and said in a

passion that the t/le/1 \f'CI'C not fit to hrn·e r/1'111.1'. 11!11! !lw1 11'1'/'1' a di.lg,.rwe(it! set a111/ no 11se. am/

said a great dral (to) 17/r' in the ,I'm lie \I'll\· rs

This eyent no doubt fuelled lhe mililan ·s gnmi11g oppositio11 to 11ligh. One month aner this report. in Jatluary IROX. Ensign William Minchin accompanied Colonel (~eorge .lohnslon. Commander of lhe NSW Corps. from his eslalc at Annandale and \\as prcsenl at lhe arrest or Bligh at Cioyernmenl Honse. Minchin also arrested

1 :' Karskens. G ( 19<J7) The Rocks Life in Earh Sydnc\ . p Jq_ 15 7. 2(,0 11 2~.

1 :r. Minchin to Bligh. 19 -Ma~c-h I X07. ilRA I (Vl).JJ.I12-' ,- -· SYdne_L Ga~e_!le. H Noyember I Xtb. pI l:R HB-1'-I.S\Y Vol. VI. p.'iX<J.

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I. I I I I I

C:Hnmissarv John Palmer and Prm ost Marshall William (lore. lm al adherents to Bligh. 12" The merchant

Robert Can~pbcll of Campbcll"s Cmc \\a.~ also arrested and placed Hn.der ho11se arrest 1"'

To mark Bligh's ovcrthrmr. D;mcs Point Rattcn staged a twcllt\ or1c gnn ~>alute and hoisted the "Standard of Great Britain .. u 1

Minchin soon after sailed to England. carrying Johnston's dispatches justi(ring the rebellion. returning to the colony the folio\\ ing A11gust. milch to the horror of Bligh ·s \1110 felt that the "rebel" should h;n c been imprisoned the moment he set foot in England. Minchin's term as Artillery Officer came to an end in 1810 \Yhcn Macquaric assumed oflicc as Gmwnor. In that rear 1\tinchin returned to England with the former New South Wales Corps (renamed 102nd Regiment). and g;n e c\·idence at the court martial of .Johnston He eventually returned to the colony as a settler in I X 17.

Gmcrnor Macquaric disbanded the "LoYal Association .. in I X 10.

Ahhntt (1809-10), On·ns (1810-1 1), Prim rust• ( IHl 1-12), Camt•rnn (1812-14), Gill (IRI..&-17), Dntilt (1817-1822)

Edward Abbott \Yas again acting as ArtillerY Officer in IX()<) confirmed by f\1acquaric in a proclamation dated 9 January IRIOL':

Lieutenant John Ovens (I 7RR- I X25) of Macquaric · s 7l rd Rcgi mcnt succeeded to the position of Acting Engineer and Artillery Officer on 2X February I X I 0 folltm ing Abbott's rcsigrrat ion taking effect on that datcL" He reported on the amount of gunptnYdcr used at D;mes Point 111 the t\\eiYe months to lO April I X I 0. giying some indication of the ceremonial actiYities performed bY the for1ilication. ()yens recorded that there had been si:-< royal salutes. each salute amounting to XI pounds of pomkr between the 12 t\rclvc-pounders and 2 sixpounders A further 2.()00 pounds of ponder had been nscd irr sainting ships entering the port. though it is not staled whether these salutes \\ere carried out at Dawes Point Ball en. Georges Head or both. 1

' 1 O\·cns· tenure

\\as brief and he lcfl the colom in October I X II. onh to retum tcu years later" ith Governor Brisbane in the role of aide-de-camp. and agai;1. chief engineer 11

; • •

During the lirst year of Macqnarie·s tcnme the guns of D;mes Point \\ere rarch silent. albeit lired solelY for ceremony. They first saluted Macquaric·s arri\al on .10 December IX09. the return of Rligh to Sydney from Tasmania on 17 January IXIO. the Qnccn·s birthdaY on 18 Jallll:lf\. a sainte to Bligh on the occasion of his oflicial lcaye-taking on 27 April. a salute of I 1 guns to Colonel Paterson on I 1\lar. 1

"' a salute of 19 guns on the linal departmc of Bligh on 7 May. the King·s birthdaY sainte on·~ June and the Prince of Wales· birthday salute on 12 Aug11st.

Oyens· successor \Yas Lieutenant James Primrose of the 7lrd Regimerrt. appointed in October IRII 1'

Primrosc·s term \\as short-liYcd and he re.<;igned the folln\\ing April ( IRI2). granted 12 months Jcayc in .July to attend to priyatc business in Bengal 1 'x

Captain Hugh Cameron also of the 7\rd Rcgin1ent \\as appoirrtccl to lhe positiou on 20 April IR12. scrying until Aug11st 1 R I.J.. 1 3

" There is no record of works at the halt en conducted during this time.

1 c" ADB Vol. I• William Minchin ( 177.J.'1- I R21) 1 '" Stcyen. M. (I %5)• Merc1}(lntCar!lPb~ll. 17(J<J~ 18.J.(J A Study in Colonial Trade .. pI 6 7

1 '1 Bligh to Castlcreagh. :10 June I XOR. !:IRA I (VI). pp520-21.

1 '"SJcl~lGat,&t!~ I.J.Jannary IXIO.pl 13 ' Returns of CiYil and Military Appointments. 10 April I R 10. liRA I (VIII). p\2X. SI~li\C}~()ai'._~te. l March I RIO. 1

' 1 Macquarie to Castlcrcagh. lO April I X 10. HRA I (VIII). plll\

L'·' AQJ2 Vol. I • John Ovens ( 17RR- I R25) 1 •r, Paterson had been acting-goycrnor follo\Ying Bligh· s m erthrow The occasion m1s his depart me for England to giYc cYidcnce on the rebellion .. ,. Svdnev Gazett_~:;. 5 October I R II 13

R ~ol Scc-'-_(:'_QrrcffiQ_ndg~~· .J./1727 pll(J

I I I


.11

~ ,,_ .. .,_ ........ ....., Captain John Mander Gill \\as filling the position of engineer allCI artillery ofliccr by 6 August 181-1-. 1 1" II \\as during his lcnmc thai Francis Grccn\\a~ arri\cd as a comic! and 11as pnllo \\ork improYing the ';uchitccturc of the colony by Macquaric. Within a couple of ~-cars of his arriYal in I R 1-l Greenway \\as envisaging imprm·emcnts to the fortifications or SydneY. commencing nith the relocation of the inadequately secure pmvdcr magazine 111 An etching surviycs from this period sho\Ying SydneY from the battery (Plate X) In the foreground can be seen a soldier and one who is presumed to be the artist. Flagstones form the firing platform on which the guns are mounted. The archaeological exc;"·atious 1mcovcrcd similar flagstones in this area of the battery (Plate X). It is possible that these formed part of I he \\orks mrclerlaken by Ahbol1 in I ROO. incorporated into Grecmyay·s 1819 \Yorks.

Gill resigned in 1817. returning to England in December in the flurri!'l He \\as succeeded in the post by Major George Dnril1 (cl775-18-l-2) of the ..J-Rlh Regiment. \\ho ""·~appointed on n December IRI-1-. II was during Drnilt's adminislration lhat Greenmn redesigned D:mes Point Bal1cry (sec 2 (,) and eonstruclcd Fort Macquarie In I 822 Druitt \\as charged \\ilh embealcment. being stood dmm from his office while <mailing a trial which was never to eventuate. :mel a m11nher of inquirie.~ 11hich general!\ prm-cd inconclusiYe. 11 c

2.7 Francis Greenway's Works (1819-20)

In I 8 I R Goycrnor Macquarie tmned his hand to imprm ing the defences or the colony. employing I he comict architect Francis Greenway for the purpose. Greenway was in 110 naY a mililarY architect or engineer. but as has been seen in the preyions sections. the Colo11ial Secretary had HeYer seen fil to send a compelcnl officer from lhe Royal Engineers to oyerscc the colony's defences. Greem1a1 \\as. hmYcYer. a trained archilect. and the smYiYal of mam of his b11ildings is leslamcnl to hi.~ sl<ill. On the sile or I he present Opera House Grecn\\ay. in I R I 8. buill Fort Macquarie: a square-planned ··castle .. \\ ith circular bastions at each corner and a castellated sr-:uarc tower. In I 819. Greem1a1 \\as giyen the task of upgrading Dawes Point BatterY. continuing the castellated "Gothick .. theme. The new building as originally dcsigued h1 GreennaY \\as to be a much grander scheme but he 11as persuaded to

!mild a sort o(scn'e/1 in thr J>lrrillc'st mrr: 1rith c·mhmsurc·s lr>ll'rtnl' the harhmtr. and /o co1·c·r !he' ll'rr!ls ll'ilh

shingl<'s, as iti/Oll' f1Jll'<'f1rs. making a r·irnt!or glacis forth<' gun,· 11<>11' there rn

Greenway proYided a building plan lo scale and Yisiled the sile an :nerage of lwo to three limes per week. Despite this the final bHildi11g "as disco\ ered to at odds n ith the plans. ''it h the rooOine or the guardhouse projecting aboyc I he battlements 1 11

Greenway's original plans for the site haye not .~uni1cd. and we can only go by contemporary descriptions and illustrations to get an idea of \\hal nas intended The nen building took the f'orm of a central "to\\er" nith two projecting walls. each terminating in a small room. the "hole castellated and producing the illusion. \Yhen Yicwed coming up the harbour. of a grand cast lc

From the archaeological exca\ations it is clear that Greem\m clc\ ated his nen building \\ell abm·e the ground JeycJ of the time to achicyc this effect. The dimensions of the main body or the g11ardhouse. taken from later plans. roughly correspond with the dimensions or the I ROO po\\der magazine It Is quite probable that Grccnm1y modified this building to become the basemeul (lr his guardhouse 1 1' A retaining wall was

m ~Ql_S_~U9.JieMJ_9_ndencc. SZ75R. p:il7. 1 1" r_'ol. S.t::_UQ!!~~..9J!.cicnc~. SZ7:'iR. p:'i 17. 1 11 Ellis. M. ( 1%6) .Eranc~ __ Qre~l!\\<!.L His Life and Times. (Angus and Robert sou). pp-t 1-2. 11c A_Qt;! Vol I: GcQrgt:: __ Qmit! ( 1775'1-1 R..J-2) 1

l.l Francis Greenway quoted in Kerr and Broadbent. Golhick Taste inJhc (_'oiOII} or NS.!'v:. pH. 111 Bormick Transcripts Bm I pp..J-11-..J-Il: EYidence Oil plan :md cnnstmction or D:mcs Batten· I 821: Cnrcton to Bigge 11 ' The discoycn in this YicinitY or the stone marked ·R.R I l7R'> .. when this building was being demolished in 192:'i is further cyidcncc that this may Jraye been I he case Sec di~c11ssio11 in 2 1.


constmcted at the rear of the semi-circular ha1ten. an opening giYing access lo the basement room. The ground lcyel m1s then raised some I. X metres al the f:H;ade of the lmilcling. the natural ground Jeycl being some\\·hal higher to the rear of the building.

Macquarie's improyements \\ere to gain him criticism for the design of such romanlicall~ styled and outdated fortifications. Grce1may himself \Hole of Da\\es Point Ba1ten in lhe . lllstmlirm of 2X April I X25:

J must conli•ss thrse fiwtifications put Ill<' in mind of /Ill' I ·ncle l'ohr mul ( 'orpoml Trim (fi·m11 l'ristram

Shmul1·) in thr gardrn. mmrsi11g themselres lari11g out li>rli/icntimrs ill minialrrre. of no matter of serrice

ll'illr such ideas. J4r,

<TrecmYa\'. no doubt smarting from haYing to alter his original dL~sign l"cll thnt:

in consequence lh<' u-hole huildings u·ith Ill<' nwgazinr• \l'r•rc Sf'"ilerf in af>fll'tiiWIC<' a11d utilitr1r

The Snn·eyor General. Sir Thomas Mitchell. described i( as

mwthrr atlenrJII in the strle o( castellated r ;othic 11 strfe of huifding as iff mlriJ>I<'d to the J'1111'oses of

modem de(t'IIC<', as the atlcr11!'1 a/ its imitation in this inslrJIIC<' is misemhfr n11d r·onl<'111f11ihlr d<'(i•cfil'<' a11d

irregular in itse/(1./

1.

The problem encountered in I XOO. of damage lo the \\all "hen the guns were lired. 11" \\as again reported in

I R21. related by the archil eel Henn Kit chen In ( 'nmmissioncr Riggc 1 '"

2.8 Battery (1820-1856)

As with the preceding period. the 11allen continued lobe under the control of I he Chief Engineer and Artillery Oflicer until the oflice "as abolished under Gmernor Darling in IX29. In that year Darling created the Public Works Department under the control of a C'iYil Engineer. This nmyed the defences fmther from milita~·

control. until the appointment of Captain (later Colonel) George Barney of the Royal Engineers in IR35. Under Barney the Colonial defences linallY receiYed the allenlion thai the earlier gmernors had unsuccessfully sought. This culminated. main!~· through the calah.st of the Crimean War in the 1X50s. \\ith the upgrading of the defences of the iuner harbour.

The Artillery Officers and Superintendents of Ordnance ( 1822-28)

The ten ~,cars following the completion of Greenwav·s guardhouse was a hiatus period for the Balle~'. as indeed for the harbom defences in general Druilt's dismissal in lX/7. s;m his replacement by Qyens \Yho had held the post in IXI0-11 In the General Orders or 2 Febrnarv IX)(,_ Gmernor Darling. in his reorganisation of the colonial administration. announced.

The ,\/ajor of' Hrigade to he charged 11ilh the SIIJ'<'rintelldenn• o/111<' Hat/erie.,·. OrdnmiC<' Stores and ,\ lagazines. as fike1t'ise o(the 'f'efrxraph and Signal Jistahlishmr'llls. 1

'1

In 1829 the oflice of Chief Engineer mts incorporated into the Department of Public Works. and oYer the next decades the natme of the oflice \Yas often changed II \Yas not until the appointment of Captain (later Colonel) George Barney of the Royal Engineers in I Xl:' I hal militarY defences \\ere giyen the same degree of specialist attention as those in other parts of Britain· s empire

1 1'' Quoted in Colonial ( iothick Elit.abeth Ra\ house. I 'J7'J. pI 'J

11- Francis Greenway quoted in Kerr and Broadbent. r inthick '/'n.1tr· in the ( 'nlnnr o(.\,\'11'. ..J..l

I IR Snn'CYOr General quoted in Kerr and Broadbent. ( intllirk raste in the Colnnr of.\ SIT'. ~3. (NB: No date for the S-G·s comment is giYen} 11'JReturn of Guns and State of Batteries. I October I xoo Hf{i\ I. Vol 11. pM,x 1 '0 Bomvick Transcripts Box 2 7 poH 7. Slone \\a lis at D:mes Ball cry displaced by li ring. 13 August I R21.

1 '

1 General Orders. 2 Feb mary I 82(,, HRA I (XII l. pI 52


Ovens (1822-2S) and Dumaa·csct (1826-28)

On Dmitt"s dismissal. the nmY Captain John <hens ( 17RX-1X2'i) "as again appointed engineer by Gmernor Brisbane. for \Yhom OYens "as sen ing as aide-de-camp No \\orks at Dawes Point arc recorded during his tenure. The SvdneY Gazette docs. hmYcYcr. record the celcbratiou ofG11Y Fawkes Day at D;mcs Point Batten· in Noycmbcr Hi24. 1

'2 Gm-crnor King· s request for art ill cry officer~ \\as. ncycr grant~d. hmYcYcr in I X2l ti1crc

arriYcd in the colony a group of Roval Artillcn pensioners. presmnedly yeterans of the Napoleonic Wars. whose expertise in the usc of the guns may h;nc been welcome. No other details of their actiyitics in regards to colonial defences arc known. 1

'3

Captain William Dumarcsq ( 17()1-1 X(JX l of the Stall Corps accompanied his brother-in-law. Gm·crnor Ralph Darling. to Australia in IR25 and "as appointed to the position of Chief Engineer in IX2(J As with OYens· tenure. no work is recorded as taking place at D;mc.~ Point dnring this time. and in fact Darling himself made this claim to the Secretary for the Colonies. the Earl of Rat hurst. in response to Bathurst· request for information on the state of the defence.~ of the colonies

quote that1wlhing had heel/ donr• intweriolfl' /0\'r•ars If!?. I

In a dispatch dated 1) May I X2() to the Colonial Office. Darling \Hole regarding the defences of the colony:

It has not _rei heel/ illl/1.1' prlll'r'l' In molu·" 1'<'1'"''1 1'<'''/'e' ling 1/w rlr·/ell"<'les.,· stole o/ the ( 'ofonr. I shall \l'l'ile Olllhe .l'llhfecl hJ· a11 em-Ir Of>!!OI'IIIIIii\'IIS I r/!11 .1'11/is/ied ( ;lll'r'l'll/11<'111 \l'i/1 11ol !11/olt· so \'lll11ah/e a JIOS\'('.\'siwl to remain mn·longer 1111pmlecled .I single (i'igale ('()11/d i11 u ,.,,.\.short time des/1'0\' the Tmm 1ritlwul the possihilitr alfl/'l'Sl'/11 of't>l'<'l'<'lllillg it 1

'1

Darling did. hmycvcr. request light guns for the Batter\' a rc,, \\Ccks later in his dispatch to the Secretary of 2(J May.'"

Office of Public Works (1828-31), Colonial At-chitect's Office (1832-1848)

Charles Wilson sen·cd as Director of the ne\\ h created Office of Public Works from I X2X to I X.11. Under his direction \\as the Architect and Tmm Sm\·cyor_ Ambro.~e Hallen (Colonial Architect IX2lJ~IXl5) who \\ould haYe had responsibility for foriilications. In a reorganisation of the Departments under Gowmor Bourke. the Colonial Architect's Office (under Hallen) \\a.~ created in the Snncyor General's Department. ()yer the next decades the Colonial Architect's Orricc retained some lc\ cl

)P IX29 \\'C lirst hear of a "'Superintendent of Ordnance .. resident at D:mes Batter~·. receiying an annual salary of £100. 1

"' This may or may not be the same position as Ordnance Storekeeper. a position held by Abner Brmm in 182 7. although no record has been located of his appointment or resignation Brown is mcnt ioned as residing in the three rear rooms of the Grecrm;l\ guardhou~c in a Jetter from Gm cmor Darling to Viscount Goderich in that year. The letter also describes the Battery

:II the \l'esl t'lld of' the ( ;uard Room ore the (}uarter.l' ollntted to .\ lr . ih11er /Jrml'll, the Ordwmce Stor!'keeper, consisting o(three rooms. /'he l'mnl Room is fi(ier'/1 hr 1<'11 (i•el mullll'<'ll'e(i•l'l in h£'ight(iwn the ,,.four to tfte ( '£'ifi11y,. 1/w ,\'lc•eJ>ing Room. "1rhil'h i' the middle• mw" is si.rlr'<'ll hr si.rleett fi'el and eight

1 '

2 SYdneY Gazette I I November I X H. 1 '

3 fu~<in~; Ga--;~t~ 27 November I X2l Cited in Anstin. M .. /he .In//\' ill.lllstm!ill. /.'<..f{J-511 l'r,.fllde to the <iolden J"ears. (1\)7 1)). p. 151.

1" Goycrnors DJl;p_(l_t_c;h~~- Volume 7. pG(,t)

1'r, Darling to Murray. I February IX2(). "Statement or Salaries ... liRA I (XIII). p(1il.

I I I I I 'I I I

I I I I I I I I I I

(i-et six illches/i'rl111 Floor to ( 'eiling. nw 1\itclwn is ,\i'dl'<'/1 "'' (;>rtrt£'<'11 /i'ctond in /wight the S(//1/(' as the

SfeeJ>illg No om. lhf'l"<' is 011<' llilldOH' ill ('({('h l?oo/11. nw \1'/w/e /'<'ff11ires to'"' /'1ft in good ,.,,,air. I;-

Gcnq~c Barnc.'· (1835- Ul43)

George Barney ( 1792-1 Ro2) seJYed as engineer for eight vcars. residing at Dawes Point at least for the final three years of office. Barncv arriYed in the colom as Captain in the Royal Engineers \\ith his \Yifc and three children on the Hritish ,\'ot·ereign in I X:l.'i. Ramcv made a 1111111hrr of rccommc11dations for the improyement of the harbom fortifications. reporting to the --master-general of ordnance .. in September I X:lo that defences of Sydney were '·in a \-cry dilapidated state .. 1

'' This pmhably led to Gm crnor Richard Bourke· s appointment of Barne~- to the position of Colonial Engineer in I X.l7.

In IR39 Barney made a report on the neccssan mc<l.~mcs needed to address the poor state of colonial defence. Barney recommended the cxpenditme of £)000 on the construction of batteries at Port Macqnaric. Ne\\castlc. Sydney. Wollongong and Port Phillip. 1 '"The I .cgislatiYc Council debated the proposals in NoYcmber \\ith little support for the \\Orks. Within a fe\Y \\ceks the citi1.cns of SnftlcY ;moke to the sight of t\YO \Yarships of the United States nayy anchored in Svdne\ Harbour Although not a t hrcat. this brought home the yulnerabilitv of Sydney to attack 1r,o Work "as begun o-n Pinchgnt (later Fort 11cnison) mid Bradlc~ · s Head in I X-W. Apart f~om some minor \YOrks these improycments \Ycrc generallY not carried out. The Wynyard Barracks. built bY Macquarie. \Yas sold and Victoria Barracks cons I ructcd at Paddi Jtgton between I X-ll-1 X-lX.

As Colonial Engineer BarneY \\as respon~ible for a m•mhcr or ciYil works including the construction of Circular Quay which was commenced in the early I X--Hls although not completed until almost I :'i years later.

It is not knmm nith certainty \\here at D;mcs Point RameY and his family resided. The Australian Dictionary of Biography states that Barney and his "ifc Portia had lhc children whilst the Australian Encyclopaedia giyc the number as six. In any case. the quarters formerlY occupied by Ahner Bronn in I X27 (abm c) in the Grecmyay guardhouse would appear to he far too cramped for a familY of sewn. let alone eight. In addition. the Barney ·s employed at least one scJYant. ad\ crt ising for a housemaid in September I X~2. 1

''1 No other residences

arc recorded at Dawes Point Battery at this stage. It i.~ more likelY that the Rarnc' family occupied a two-storey house at what is now 7-lJ Lower Fort Street. opposite Danes Battery This building n·as extended and incoqJOratcd into the mom1mcntal "Milton Terrace" in I XXO. although it is still clear that the original building is extant in the centre of the rmY.

A sketch of the battery. drawn by one of Ramey's daughter~. supports this theory (Plate X) The Yic" is taken from an elcyated position. roughh the location of the Lower Fort Street house. and perhaps from an upstairs \Yindow. Furthermore. Barney is kmmn to h;nc entertained Gowrnor Gipps 1r.: at the Batten on Australia Day. I X~ I. and watched the celebratory regatta which .~ailed 0ff D;nycs Point. 1

'·'

In I X~:l Barney resigned as head of the RoYal Engineers Department and was succeeded by Lieutenant-Colonel l Gordon. Barne~- continued as colonial engineer until his rctmn to England in IX-l-l. Barney returned to Australia t\YO years later to take up the post of .~upcrintcndcnt of the (soon aborted) Port Essington penal colony in \Yhat is 110\Y the Northern TerritorY. Rctmning to Sydney l~arncv once again assumed the duties of an engineer. oycrsccing the defence works of the I X:'iOs at D;mcs Point and other Svdncy sites.

Gordon (1S43-1H4H)

,,-Darling to Godcrich . .'i No\·cmbcr IX27. ·Report on the 1\lilitan Buildings and Defences--. HRA I (XIII).

p:'ilJ~. 1

'R AQ~ VoL I George Barney (17lJ2-JX(,2) 1 '"Johnson. A. W. ( 1991 ): \YgiJongQilg Harbour Report prepared for NSW Public Works Department. XXXX 1m Bertie. C H. ( 1920): The Ston of Old George Street (I\ tell's Rooks). p'i

tr.J SMH 9 September I X-l2. pl. 1

":> Both Goyernors Gipps (1Rl7--l(,) and Denison (IX:'i'i-(d) \\etc officers of" the Royal Engineers. and so it is interesting to note the attention paid to colonial defence.~ dming the terms of these two gm-crnors. 1 r.1 Australian 2X January I X-~ I.


The economic depression of the I 8-llls had no doubt been largelY responsible for the inactiyitY in carrying out B;uney·s 1839 proposals. Work on Circular Quay certainly halted for this reason and \Yasn·t resnmeclnntil the early 1850s.

On Noyember 23. lR..t-8 Lieutenant-Colonel (lordon. Royal Engineer. snbmitted a report to the Goyernor recommending thnt the defences of the colony be shifted further tcnYard the mouth of the harbour. at Inner South Head and Middle Head. Gordon proposed that the inner line of defences be maintained and reinforced at Bradley's Head. Pinchgut (Fort Denison) and D;mes Point. Da11es· Battery 11as to be fitted 11ith six 5()-pounder guns as.

?'his lasfiU111Wd .1pot is \'CIT (rn'rlltl'llhl\' silrlntcd (ill' dc/i'nr r· IM

This recommendation came at the end of Gordon's tenure. the \Yorks were again postponed until a time of military crisis in the 1850s.

Colonial Architect's Department ( 1848-)

Mortimer Lewis had replaced Hallen as Colonial Architect in IXI'i In IR..t.X Lewis took oyer the \\ork of the Colonial Engineer and assumed the respo11.~ibilities for construction of militar1. Thereafter. until Federation in 190 I) all works of a military nat me 11·ere conducted under the auspices of the Colonial Architect.

An inspectional report of May I R. IR..t.<J described the condition of the BatterY as being

In a f'air stale 1rith the exn'tJtion of the old li'Ork on the I ;tacis and some hreaches on the Sea

Rorder. liTe onlr g1117-crrrriagc here is in good orrler rmrltllr'rc arc no plot(imns !Ill less the solid rock he considered Sitch. ,r.<

In 1853 GoYernor FitzRoy appointed Colonel BarneY to imprmc harbour defences in 'iew of the threat of a European 11ar 1vith Russia. Bamey used LieHtenant-Colonel Gordon's report of I R-lX. 11hicl1 suggested forts at 1\~iddle Head. Inner South Head and So\\ and Pigs reef. immediatelY commencing 11ork on the former.

Two years Inter GoYernor Denison succeeded as Goyemor Britain's war with R11ssia in The Crimea was imminent and Barney was ordered to concentrate on the dc!cncc or the inner harbour for the protection of Sydney. New fortifications 11ere to be constmcted at the i.~land of l'inchg11t (l'ort Denison). Kirribilli Point and the entrance to Woolloomooloo Bay (Mrs Macf(narie's Chair) 1

,, 1\n npgrade of the existing fortifications of D;nves Point and Fort Macf(uarie 11as also ordered. The works at l>;mes Point Batter~ included improyements to the semi-circular battery (subsequent to thc.~e 11orks knmm as the Upper Battery) and construction of the Lo\\er Battery (for field artillery).

On 9 September 1855 Denison 'note to Lord John Russell. Secrl't:m or State for the Colonies of the urgent need for artillerymen to staff the fortifications.

I ll'ish. thcrefiJI'e, to press 11f10I1 .\'Oil!' f.ordshit> //lost stm11glr the mh·isahilit\' of stationing a CO!Ilpanr o(the Royal.lrtiller\' at Snlnc\' !r·-

The request \\'as granted. 11ith the prmiso that the company be fnncled by the Colony. On 20 J11ne Denison \\as informed that the ship Nimrond had been chartered to bring artillerymen and their families to Ne\\ So11th Wales. 16

R A barracks for the Royal Artillery and residences for the Officers 11ere added to the list of necessary buildings at Dawes Point.

I' I Cited in Austin. p.2()3. Austin. I\ f. ( 1979) !he .lrmr in.lltstmlirt. /8./0 )I} !'relurlr· In tlw I iolrlcn ) c'W'.I'. Appendi'\ 17.

1 r,r,NSW Legislatil'e Assembly J 'otes and l't·ocr'edings, IX:'.'i. Vol \. pI 0 ll Jr,- Proce~dingLQfjll_~];:,legltiY~Councjl of]'JSW. 17/II/IR5(i lr·R AONSW: Pioc~git!E,S_9fthe:E'\ecuti1e Council ofNS\V. J/7\J 17111/IX'i(>


\(,

2.9 Royal Artillery (1856-1870) DRAFT

No 3 Company of the 7th Battalion arrived in Swiney in October I R'i() It \\as redesignated No 3 Battery of 12th Brigade in Jut~, I R59. and left New South Wales in FebruarY I 805. (\VIm arriYcd in I R59??'1'1'1'111 t II I) No I Battery of I st Brigade scn·ed in Ne'' Soul h Wales from September I R(,8 until the \Yithdrawal of the British forces. in September I 870 1

r •• ,

The Royal Engineers and Lieutenant-Colonf.'l Gt>or~l' Bamey's Works

L1ttlc documentary eYidence is available for the nature or the "orks undertaken apart from the fc\\ smvev maps and distant photographic vic\YS (Plate.~ X X X. X X X) When the War Office \\as approached for funds for the works. the Nc\Y South Wales gmcrnment \\as flatly refused and tolrl to fund the \\orks itself. As a result. the War Office nrchiyes (nmv held by the Public Records Office) do uot hold records of Barney· s works outside the squabbles over \\ho was to pay. At the same time. hmycycr. defence \\orks in the other Australasian colonies ''ere subject to funding by the British Government. and imprmc1ncnts (even the constmction of lntrincs and we11s) arc wc11 documented in these archives. "ith plans and "atcrcolom elevations and descriptions. 1

-"

Barnev·s report to the Executive Council of Ne\\ South Wales ou n June 185() included the recommendation for the addition of

/)itch and palisade at !>riii'I'S !il!tle!T \'C'f'/11 !lecessr/1'1'. as !l'r•!los seCIII'ifl· of the 11'11/'k

(i-nm assart!!. as fiw its ;woter:fion fi·onl ln'.l'/'fl.l"lr'/'.1". fi·nnl ll-lln/11 if IIIII/' reccil·es

considerahle da111age 1 -1

By NoYember l8'i(i Bamey could report.

Fxcal'(rfing a ditch I 5 fi'et II' ide anrl .i feet deep. on till' northern and eastern faces anrl

enclosing the ll'rJrk ll'ith a pir·ket fence, In fWC\'C/11 frespa.\',l'ers. r1 r·r/ltrse /il!lnd

necC.I',Wll'l'fiw the prcscn·ation o/t!w mwk 1

'

Gmwnor Denison. in the same report. had the J'ollo\\ ing to saY

711e constntclion of the 11olterics hei11g /11111' i11 r1 slrrte of great (i!l'll'llrrlness. and it

llr'ing prohah/e that the g11ns fiw nnning the111 \l'i/1 .lfwr•rfif\' arril'£'.

These works \\ell nnder way. staffing the batterY became a pre~sing issue Even though there had bec11 the perceived threat from the Russian Pacific lleet. Denison raised the prospect of another \muld-be im ader

It is el'idenfll' a matter ofi/1/f'l'l'alil·e IH'CCisit\' that t!te 11/nrle in 1rhich these halferies

are to he /1/mmed shrm/d he rlcr·irlr'lf 011 ll'ilhr>llf rlela\'. 1111rf 1 rl/11 the /1111/'e rmximts ll'ilh

regard to this, as the prospccl of !I'll/' ll'ifh . I nwricn rloes not appear to he so re/1/olc as

I could ll'ish.

In clarifying the position of who "as to pay for the new l(1rt i fication "orks the War Office informed Denison in March 1858:

WJ Montague. R. H. ( 1981) Qress and Insignia of the British Anm iuAustraliaand f'Jew Zea]al!cl, J]7Q~_HEQ. (Library of Australian History). 1 -"Public Records Office. London: War Office record.~ n AONSW PrQC.9~_cli!!gS_oLtll~J:<:xecuthe Council ofNSW. -1/7\J 17/11/lR'i(). 1-c AONSW: E!Q_c~~i_ll_g~_of_tl_lc Executiyc Council of NSW. 1/TP 1711111 8)(,


771er ({fer ,\fajesty 's ( irn·emmenl) conct/1' .. !hal !he r'YJWnse of' !he conslrttcfion 11!1({

maintenm1ce of' ntilitmT li'Orks and h11ildings shr1111rf lw defim·ed hr lite ( 'ofonr. and

consequent!\', thai the h11ifdings. Sllcft as /Jarracks. ,\'lon•s . . I !agrr::incs. &r·. sfto11fd he transferred to !he ( 'oloniaf < irll'emmcn/ 1

.'

By mid-I R59 Denison reported to the Fxccutiyc Council that all work at D;mcs Point Batter~· has been completed. T\Yenty guns had been mountcd 1

.1 and the regular artillery housed at Dmycs Point Battery and Fort

Denison. 1.,

The British warship HMS Iris \\(IS Yisiting Sydney in July or that \Car. Commodore William Loring presented his own estimation of the Harbour dcknccs

,l.,'temnships nmning a/ /0-1 :' knn/s ll'flftfd "mn !he gollnlfct" (h!llt !Jmdle\' 's ffemllo

!Jm1·es Point in /0 min111es f'OS/ six hrtlterie.1·. II is eslinwted thai sel'C/1 ships ll'rmfd he

ll'mTanled to attack them ... (and! ll'f)/(/d he rlllf\' 11/lll'ginrt!h· ef/(•ctil·e .... rr.

Loring's conclusion \\as that there \\as a need to protect s,dnc\ at the heads. \\hich combined \\ith inner dcrcnccs. \Yould be more effectiYc.

1\0 details of Greenway's semi-circular batten h;nc .~uniYcd and so it is dirt'icult to reconstmct its pre-IX:iOs configuration. Certainly the basic plan of flrccm\a\ · s hatter\ \\a.~ retained. largelY unaltered by BarneY· s \Yorks.

The fiye ~2-pound cannon \\ere probahh installed in IR'i7. Their teak carriages bear the date IX5(,, hmYeYer it is known that they had not arriyed \Jy the time or Denison's report to the E:xecutiyc Council in Noyember I R5o. 1

-- Circular tracks for each "·as set into the bedrock in order to swiycl each cannon about a I RO" angle. The gun carriages \Yere centred on a piyot. unlike the majoritY of cannon installed at this time at Fort Macquarie. Fort Denison. Mrs Macquarie·s Point and Kirribilli \\hich moycd on a piyot located at the front of each carriage (Plate X). Photographs of the hat1cn taken iu the .~ccond half of the I 'J' 11 centmy sho" no eYidence of fittings on the breast\\ork in front of the guns for pulleys to manocune them into position (Plate X)

Three blast \Yalls \Yere constructed behind the cannon JJO.~itions. mounted \\ith ga.~ light fixtmes by the time the first clear photographs of the battery appear in the IR70s (Plate X) Traces of the foundation trench prepared for the blast "·ails as well as the iron gas pipe leading to the southernmost \\all. \\ere uncoyered in the excaYation.

It is unsure to \Yhat extent the bre<l.~t,York m1s rcconst nJCtcd. The lower course or stonc\\ork stepped out in front of each of the I X 5o cannon posit ions. probablY to assist "ith acccs.~ to the canuon 1111v.zlcs for loading.

A drain was cut into the bedrock to facilitate better drainage or the batten in I R)(, Details appear in Denison's rrport of that year:

cons/meting an tllufergm/111!1 rfmin to mmpfele dminr1ge of the hattetT ..... (i·om

slope o('thc upper hattCIT- chrmnelfing in rock /8 i11ches deef'. (imning a drain and

co\'ering ditto .\l'ith ro11gh (lagging (, inr/w.1 1hir1i luirl in ntor/r/1' rs

1'·' AONSW ~1722.3. StanleY to Denison. II !Vfarch IR:'iR.

1-

1 That is: fiye ~2 pounders- in the semi-circular upper battery and 15. including 12 pounders in the lo\\er batterY. 1-, NSW Legislatiye Assembly l"oles anrll'mceedings, I R5X-IJ. Vol 2. p 27.

n NSW Legislatiye Assembly l"oles and l'roceeding1, I R5R-'J. Vol 2. p l2. 1-- AONSW: E.tQ.cg_edil!g!i _ _Qf_tbc:J<::xecut!Yc(ouncil of NS\\'. ~/71) 17/11/IX:'i(,

n AONSW: J=>rg_~e~dj.!}g~f_tllg_f:xecutiye Council ofNSW. ~/71/ 17/11/IR:i(,


The drain \Yas re,·caled dnring the archaeological c.\"cm ation.c;. running behind the three southernmost gun emplacements and exiting the battery next to the third. From here it ran under the breastwork and cartlmork and emptied dom1 the slope tmyards the harbour (Plates X-XX~ plan & photo). The drain concurs \\ith the description in Denison· s report.

There is eYidence for other possible drains cut into the rock or the batterY. These arc smaller exe<IYations. pnssibly for narrow bore ceramic pipes. \\hich connect 1\ith the sandstone drain. The trenches arc filled \\ith concrete and. as \Yith the sandstone drain into "hich they feed \\ere not exc;n a ted. T,m of the cmcring flagstones \Ycrc lifted reycaling the main drain to he compktch silted up. Part of the silt \\as rcmoyed. indicating dimensions and details consistent \Yith Denison's report. 1\ spoon drain had also been cut into the bedrock. at the base of the breastwork and follmring tl.<; inner i;1cc

At the drain's exit from the battery an arched tunnel \\as cut into the rock. ~'iOmm (IX inches) wide at the base and the same in height. Dming the Bridge construction in the I •nos the top of this drain collapsed and all traces appear to haYe been remoyed after two metres from the brea.<;tmnk.

Lowe•· Batte•·~·

Down the slope from Grcernyay·s semi-circular \\orks RameY constmcted another defence line kno\\11 as the Lower Batten·. It consisted of a line of cannon. in front of "·hich was a stone breast\\ork \\ith embrasures and earthwork. Piate X is a detail from a plan drawn in IX7'i shmring a capacity for sixteen guns. Late J</1' centnry photographs giYe some idea of this arrangement (Plates X-XX)

Gowrnor Denison requested artillery be sent in his dispatch of 17 September I X(,(). 1-, The cannon arriyed in

I Ro I. the War Office reporting that it \\as sending

() x /(}inch gnns rsnhslilnting fiJI' mmxlrong gtt/ls Hhidt crmtlnl he Sllf'J'Iied) 12 x 3 2 lhs ll'ifh c:orrioges 200 rmmds nf"mwntlltilinll 1wr g111t ;xo

It is not knmm whether all of these gun.~ \\ere inte11ded for Dawes Point In I Xo2 there \\as a recommendation for the ·'rcmoYal of the 32lbs & erection of traYcrse.~ in their place in the lmYer battery·· 1 ~ 1 It is unclear from photographic eYidence to \\hal e.\"tcnt these rccnrnmcr•dalion.<; ncn' carried out

Powde•· M:t~azine

Guardhouse

Office•·s' Quarters

There is some uncertainty as to the elate of construction of the Officers Quarters The building is not indicated on the IR57 plan (Plate X). the photograph of IR'i'J (Plate:\) nor the IR(,'i snney (Plate X) The earliest pllotographic evidence occms in the background of a photograph taken dming the Duke of Edinhmgh·s yisit in

1-" AONSW ~Q!~mial_Arfltilects (__'orrespondence. (,I f<)R) Denison to War Office.l7 September I R(J()

IX" AONSW Colol!_i_i!l_Arc;lJitefi.S (__"orre1>pondence. (J! /(,X(, \Var Orfice. 27 December I ROO. 1

Rl AONSW: !:2Qigl}j.rr_I_Ar:_c;hi_tc;c_ts Correspo11dence. (,2/~2 'i I: I o Jnh I Ro2 This same report records LieutenantColonel Henry· Meade Hamilton as Commander of Troops in NS\V and responsible for repairs to the batteries.


l')

IRoR (Plate X SCP II) The NSW State 1\rclii,cs docs. ho\\C\Cr. hold a collection of tender documeuts. which point to the bnilding·s construction as conm1encing sometime in IX"i7

For a short period in the late I R50s-o0s the Public Works and I ands Departments \\ere combined. The later reorganisation of the departments into separate entities may accmml for the loss of records of public works from this period. The records that do sun·iyc arc lellers from Rarncy to the Secretary for Lands and Public Works regarding the tendering process for the cons! met ion of the Ofricers Quarters and the Kirribilli battery 1

K:

Tenders were called for dcfensiye works at Kirrihilli and the construction of the Oflicers Quarters in IR57. closing on 31 January 183 Plans (their current location unknown) \\ere exhibited at the Engineers Office. located in the Commissariat Store building at Circular Qua\ Although fiye tenders \\ere recei,·ed. only the four unsuccessful tenderer's documentation i.s presened. along with the name onlY of the builder who \\Oil the contract for the Officers Quarters and Kirrihilli works In a lctler to the Secretar~· dated IR Febmary IR57 Bamey announced that the \YOrks \\ere to be canied out 11\ John ll<HlOYan

In lien of the original plans and Donm an· s mm tender. the nnsllccessfnl lender documents possibly shed some light on the nature of the works. summarised as follmYs

Rundle & Gibbons- Cost £7. ~00 and () months to complete.

Roher·t MeJyiiJe. Contractor of ··1 X Victo1n Sl. SYdlle\ ··- cost ffdOO and 7 months to complete. '"Robert MelYille .Inner. Rlacksmith. Frances Street Glcab & Dane! Douglas. Grocer. No -l Victorey Street Sydney .. All hamered work in foundations acording to spesifactions. to be at Reat of £2/9 per pertch of 25 cnbeck !Cet. R. 11vieh ille If Pleat Glass be required from -1/(, to o/6 per foot Acording to Qnalcty renred. R Meh ille.··

Hugh MurJlh~·. Campbell Street- cost ((,_-150 and (, months to complete. '"Foundation work according to specification,<; at £2 per rod of 25 cubic feet. whstitnte plate glass instead of Crown at 5 shillings per square foot··

John McDermott. (J9 Prince Street- cost £I UH\0 ·Tender for building Officers Quarters. Stabling etc at Da\YS Point. SYdnn .. to build and complete Officers Quarters. Gnard Honse. Stabling etc .... excmating in claY and shale 1/- per c11bic yare!: do in Rock 12/(, per cubic yard. lsoding?l and Icn~ling l/- the \arcl square. underground se\\erage <lS specified 7/9 the \<mi. substituting plate for crown glass 7 f(, per foot ··

From these tenders \Ye can get some idea of the scope \lf the tender. and it norrlcl appear from McDermott· s that some works on the Guard Honse mar h;n c been included In an' case. it may be safe to assume that barring delays in commencement. the work "as probablY completed lw the end or I R5 7.

The Officers· Quarters \\ere first listed in the ·"ands DirectorY ill IX(d. although an occupant is not mentioned until Captain Edward Wolstenholme Ward (I R2l-l X(>Ol of the HnYal Engineers is in residence from I Rr,s to IRo(>. Ward is listed Jiying at the Ballen from IR'iR. though no specific location is giYen. It is therefore possible that the building was in existence prior to IX(, I. and nc IIlllS! accept its absence from at least the 1Ro5 snn·cy as a mistake.

Ward had joined the Royal Engineers in I X~~ I and also worked at the Royal Mint. In this guise he was appointed Deputy Master of the proposed SYdney Mint. arriring in Sydney in I R5-l. The follo\\ing year Ward was nominated as a member of the LegislatiYe Council. member of the select committee on Circular Quay and Chief Commissioner of Railmtys. In IR57 he married /\nna Sophia Campbell. daughter of merchant Robert Campbell. at the Garrison Church in \\hat i.~ llO\\ l'vlillcrs Poinl lie sen ed as a member of the Legislati\-c Council from 1Rol-o5. during \\hich time he \\as liYing at the Officers Quarters In IRol. in conjunction nith Major-General Sir Thomas Pratt. Ward published his Defences of I he City of SYdney Promoted to Lieutenant Colonel in IRo-l. Ward left Sydnev in IR(,(,_ later to set up the 1\lclhomne Branch of lhe Royal Mint. In IR70 he

lx: AONSW 51.15R-I. documents 5X/5R"i 1

R.' Q_Qyer)!ment G(]z.~1~- Dec I R57 I Jan I X5X'I''''''''

~-

1 I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

.j.()

serYed on the Bo<Jrd of Defence and in IX7-l \\<IS a member of the rm·al commission on \olunteer forces. Ward retmned to England in IR7(, and died at Cannes in France in nwo . OR AFT Ward's successor as resident in the Officers Quarters \\a.~< 'aptain F. J. W. Purcell. Commander of the Royal Anillery.

Residence

Barracl<s

By I xr,z there \Yere reports of necessan repairs. possihh incomplete work from the late I X 50s. A requisition of I~ Mav 1Ro2 stated the need for

Repairs to(looring n(lrash l!rmse 11/ tlw 11nrrnr1<.1. One chimne1· o11/ ofrepoir. ke1·

li'(/IJ/ed j(w lock (iJr rfon/' o(//w ( ook flni!SC. ,7 flnnrs l'r'.ifllil'erf(ill' /he nook l'ress i11

the .\. (' (Non C'oiJIJllis.~ioncd) ( J(fin•r,, onrl.\ /en \ /.ihmn · 1' 1

Another request \\aS made three \\eek.~ later.

!fed irons latch· /'('f'{/;,.,.rf rcqllil'c rainling. :lor~.,.!//'(' reqllirerl (ill' the store doors.

noh (door knob'') req11ires l'r'f'lli ring rtl I he ,\'erger/111 .\ lairll's (hrorlcrs. 1"

Although only schedules of repair.~. these requests form some of the onlv information about the facilities at the Barracks

Ancillar~· Buildings ('!)

y e~\1"

I R% IR57 IR5R

1X59

I RoO

IX(,(

IRoJ

Greenwa~

Guardhouse Officl·rs Qmu·ters

Capt. Edmml WolstenholnJC' Ward Capt. Edward Wolstenholme Ward Capt Ed\\ard Wolstenholme Ward Capt. Ed\\anl Wolstenholme Ward Capt. Ed\\ard Wolstenholme Ward Capt Ed\\anl Wolstenholme Ward Capt Ed\\ard Wolstenholme Ward

Nm·thern Otlicers Building

lRI AONSW: Co!<mial Archit.Qcts.(orrespondence (,)/107!) Pitt. Hmal 1\rtillcrv. to Colonial Architect l~/5/o2. IR' AONSW: _C_olQ1!icll_A.g;J•i.t9cJsCorrespondence. (,2/12:"2 Pitt. Hmal 1\rtillcry. to Colonial Architect 5/(J/62.


1865

I R(,6

I 867 18(,8

1869 uno

Hon. Col. Ed\\ard Wolstenholme \Yard. MLC Capt F: Purcell

Capt. E. Purcell

Col. E. G. Carthe\\

ll

X-l g111mers ) t rmnpeters

21C- C F. Roberts Lt L. H. Noyes Lt F. W. Nind Lt A. Grubb Ass. Sm. W.E Alston

2.10 Colonial Defence (1870-1907)

1874

1876

1878

18811s

1882

Commodore James Goodenough proposed the British N:l\al Station in NSW be transferred from Garden Island to D:m es Point. an idea at first fayonrabh receiYed by the Colonial Gm ernment \\hich wished to maintain Ciarden !.~land fi1r the ·cmhcllis.hment of th~ harbom·lxr.

Plan of D:mcs Point shmYs a lllllHber of b11ildings on the site. These include the Orficers Quarters. the batten. a barracks. a black~1nith and a stable at the northern end of the site. While on the opposite side of the road a second barracks. a ,unard room and a public baths arc shown

The appearance of a public baths is the first sign that the battery is slipping in importance as a strictly dcfcnsiye position 1

x

The Authorities changed their mind,<; about transfening the British Nayal Station from Garden Island to Da\\cs Point. intending to build a public promenade 011 D;mes Point 1

xx.

A ferry ramp \Yas added on the eastem side of the sea \\all for access to Blues Point (scryice censed April 1911 )(fern operated from there in I X.lO.~ too) A photograph dated 1906 identifies the adjoining sc;m-all and" half a~ the e'\plnsiyes jctt1

The Colonial Goyernment offered D;mc.~ Point to the Admiralty for use as the Nmal Station in exchange for all other lands in the Colony posses,<;ed by the Imperial Board of Ordnance. the Commissariat Store (now site of the MC A) ;111d all lands claimed by the British GoYermnent (including Garden Island) This nffer \\a.~ f;nomahk to the Admiralty and the Colonial Architect \\flS insfrllcfed (O dra)\ lip planS of)miJdillgS required for the SifeiX"

1xr, Goodenough to Pasley. 211 June 187.l (PRO- Admiral!\ JJ(,/X2X- AdmiraltY and Secretariat Cases IX52-l959). cited in '1'1?'1'1'1'1?'1'1?'1'1. p2tl2 lx· Sun·ey of Dawes Poutt Railer\ I X7(, ( AONS\V 1\0 Plan 15-1-5) lxx Commodor~ Hoskins to AdmiraltY .. Ill June IX7X tPRO- AdmiraltY I )(i/X2X- Admiralty and Secretariat Cases 1852-1959) 1

K'! Colonial Secretary· s Minute to Gm ernor of NSW 17 JanuarY I XX2 (PRO- Admiralty II 6/82X- Admiralt~· and Secretariat Cases I X52-1959)

I I I I I I

I I I I I I I I I I I I

12

A change in the Colonial \Jm ernmcHt "ithdrc\\ the offer and iHstead offered the AdmiraltY £50.000 towards improying Garden Island This offer \\as acccptccl 1

''" Dawes Point neycr again features as a proposal for a rwYal base.

18H6-7 Headquarters of the IJefcncc Force in Phillip St. other offices at Da\YCS Battery 1{)

1

1888 Format ion of the Submarine Mining Corps based at ncrrys Ba1 Men quartered at D:mcs Battery for a short (unspecified) pcriod. 1

"

Officers Quarters

From IR70 to I!JOI the Officers <)uartcfs """the home of Captain Francis lli.'\son. president of the Marine Board of NSW and commander of the Col om· s Nm al 11rigade 1

"' The Marine Board \\as created ill I X72 to regulate port actiYities in the Colony and 11as itself replaced hY the SYdney Harbom Trust in 1 !JOO

Residents. I R70-

From the withdr:mal of the British Army in IX70 until about 11JO.Ithe D:mes Point buildings \\ere domestic buildings as well as the Grecm1ay guardhouse \Ycrc generallY used as residences for military personnel. predominantly high ranking officers of the Nc\\ South Wales colonial forces

Af1cr 190~ some of the buildings continued to he utilised for residential purposes \\hilst others \\ere commercial or educational (sec belm1)

Grecnwa~· Guardhouse

Officc•·s Qua•·ters

Northern Ofl'iccrs Building

Year

IR71

IR72 IX?l IRN IX75 IX7o

IR77 IR7R

G•·eenwa~

Guanlhouse

Francis Hixson

Officers Qu:u·ters

Maj. George Airc1

Maj George AireY

Capt. W Spalding

Rarracl<s

Volnntcer Artillery and N:n al Brigade Barracks

N ortlwrn Officers Ruildin~

Capt. W. Spalding Capt Spalding Ll l l R Russell Ll Lc Patomel

Others ( occutJation details unclear)

1'"' Commodore Erskine to AdmiraltY. 27 I\ larch IRR 1 tPRO- Ad111iralt~ I J(,/R2R- Admiralty and Secretariat

Cases 1852-1959) 1 'JI NSW Lcgislatiyc Assembly l"otcs and !'rrweerling,l. I RR 7-RX. Vol ). pI

1 92NSW Legislath c Assembly YQtcs anciProcccdings. I XXI>. Vol ,I pI :'i<J

1 "

3 p_ail}_Tc:Jygr<Jpl_l. I 1) September I !J2.J. p 12

T I Ll

I 1879- Cpl. F. Hixon Maj W Spalding 1.1. A Le Patomcr 8. OTallaghan. RO Caretaker IRRl-3 Cpt. F. Hixon Cpt H. Mcl<cnl'.ie

I Douglas lRR-1- Cpt. F. Hixon 1RR5 Cpl. F. Hixon Col Charles u ALe Patomcr George Stuart.

I Roberts u Nathan Caretaker IRR6-7 Cpt. F. Hi:xon IRRR Maj. Gen J. s 1\faj 11. McKetu.ie w. Holmes

I Richardson 1\fajor Jed Taunton

IRR9 Maj. Gen. J s Maj. ~~ McKetv.ie W. Holmes Richardson Major Jed Taunton Mercantile Explosiyes

Unit

I IR90 Maj Gen. l s 1\ faj. H. McKenzie w Holmes Richardson Major Jed Taunton

IR91 Maj Ge11. J s Maj. H. 1\fcKenl'.ie w. Holmes

I Richardson Major Jed Tau11ton Military StaffOrliccrs

Mess IR92 Maj Gcn J s

I Richard~on

189.~--~- Maj Gen J s Armomy Department Richardson and Store

1895 Maj. Gen. J s Detachment or Lt-Col. H. Permanent Subm;:nine

I Richardson Pcrtnaueut McKeu;.ie Miners 1\ rli lien 1\faj l T Electric Company of

Rlauehard Engiueers. No ..f-.

I Headquarters

Submarine Mining Station

I Armour~· Department

and Store IX% Serg McMillau Maj P B. Walker No -1-. Company. NSW

1\ faj TaYlor Engineers

I 1897 Maj Gen. G A. Maj P B. Walker No -1-. Compa11y. NSW French Maj Taylor E11gineers

IR98 Maj Gen G. A. Flomhanlicr Fitton 1\faj P B. Walker No -1-. Company. NSW

I French 1\laj Ta~ lor Engineers

Capt. l H. R. King IR99 Maj. Gen. GA Corpora I Let herby Maj P B. Walker No -1-. Compa11y. NSW

French Maj. Taylor E11ginecrs

I Capt. J. H. R. King Nelson A. E. Roberts

1900 Capt. Francis Maj Cicn. (; i\ ( ·orporal I .ether!)\ Capt J.H R. King Ordnance Department

I Hixon French Maj. P R. Walker Lt-Col Blanchard Maj Tm lor 1\tcrcant i lc Explosi\·cs

Dept.- V Williams

I No. -1- Electric Co. No -1-. Compan~·. NSW

Engineers- Cpt 1 Nelson. W-0 A.

I Roberts. 1901 Maj Gen. G. A Major Bridge.~ H. Finn No -1-. Company. NSW

French MacLagan E11ginecrs

I Capt. J. H. R. King 1902 Maj. Gen. G A. H. Finn? S Alexander

French Capt. l H. R. King l9<n--l- H. Finn Capt. l H. R. King

I 1905 Brig Gen Finn HQ No. -1- (Electric)

I


t90o-7 Wallace Bro\\11. I'' 1Hf:ut1n Regiment The Fotf.

2.11 Private Residences (1907-1924)

Year Greemnt~· Officers Qm11·ters Nnrlhern Offirers Guanlhouse (6 George StreeO Building (8 George Street) (2 & .t George

Sheet) 1907 Mrs B. A. Burns Dr Roher! Paron

Residentia I chambers Gmt Medical Officer .. Roycroft .. and Vacci11ator for

Snhte\ l90R-<J Miss Mmicl Burns Dr Rober! Paron James Rirrcll

Residential chambers Ins peel or (ienera I of James Flclcher .. RoYcroft·· Chari lie.~

1910- Miss Muriel Burns Dr Rober! l'alon 11.1'. Fletcher& II Residenlial chambers lnspcclor (lcncral or E. \V \Vnodgale.

·'Roycroft" Chari lie.~ 1\ssaycrs James Flclcher

1912 Miss Muriel Burns Robcrl Paton James Flclchcr Rcsidcn1 ia I chambers \V. (i HaYes-Williams .. Roycrofl ..

1913 Robert Paron William Gmbh W. G. H;l\cs-Williatns

191-l Robert Pa1011 1\fl(lrc\\· Tho111 W. (i lla\cs-Williams

1915- i\ nd rc\\ Thom 17 James Flclcher. JP 1918 No I .is1 ing 1919 1920- i\ le.'>anclcr R. Allen. 25 Sle1cdore

2.12 Water Police Station (1909-1924)

Company. Auslralian Engineers.- Capt. 1. Alexander. WO A. Roberts

HQ No . .t (Eicclric) Company. Australian Engineers.- Capt. 1. Alexander. WO A. Roberls

Others (occupalion details unclear)

Milirary Resen·e

In 1909 the Water Police transferred their headf]narlers from Phillip St to the former Guardhouse. Around this lime a balcony was addecllo I he I XoOs hm slorc\ aclclitipn to the (inarclhouse (sec pholos x and x)

The Water Police transferred back 1o the Phillip St Police Stalion on I R Seplember I 'J2.t. yacaling the building for demolition in January I 'J25. 1

"1

101 R<!i.b~Ic:lQE.!~JPI!. 19 September I (JH. p 12.


1913 Water Police Station Robert Paton William Gmbh CitY Council Street Watering W. G Hares-Williams

DI.AEelvatering 191-l Water Police Station Robert Paton i\ nd re" Thom W. G. 1-laye.s-\Villiants Depot

1915- Water Police Station Department of Labour i\ nd re\\ Thom City Council Street Watering

17 andlndustrr (State James Fletcher. JP Depot Labour Branch)

l'JlR No Listing No Listing No l.isting

1919 Water Police Station Onices of Department of Repatriation

1920 Water Police Station ;\ Ic:xander R. Allen. Military Resene Stercdore

1921- Water Police Station Department of /\ lexander R. .!\lien. Militan ResenT

2-l Repatriation- Trades Steyeclorc School

1925 Dept of Repatriation- Alexander R. A lletL MilitarY Rescrye

Trades School Stcycdorc

2.13 Dawes Point Tractor School, Department of Repatriation (1918-1924)

From 1917 until 192-1 the omcers Quarters \\aS leased b~ the Department of Repatriation for usc as a trades schooL knmm as the Da\res Point Tractor School. This was intended as an education facility for the retraining of soldiers returning from the First World \Var. 1

"' Plate \ shows the building immediately prior to its conycrsion. Between 1917 and 192-J. additions \\ere made to the building to facilitate its new usc. This iucluded the constmction of two strnctures adjoining the building. one to the north and one to the south. Only the southern building kll \\ ithin I he boundan oft he exc;l\ at ion

Southern Infill Building

The southern inftll building incorporated the southernmost ron111 or the Orftccrs Quarters and straddled the retaining wall bet\reen the Officers Quarters ami the Guardhouse. crrccti\ch making it split le\cl. The pictorial documentary eYidencc for this building consists of the I !)2(/·r, plan of the site (Plate x) and 1\\o photos: one published in 192-J. (Plate x). and the other taken on 12 Noyemher I 'J2(, (Plate :x) The I CJ2--J. photograph shmrs the addition of a rerandah and doomar on the eastern side of the south room of the Officers Quarters

1,_

The archaeological remains rereal a substantial ammmt or architectural information about this building. illustrated in Plan x. 1

''X A major entrance to the complc:x is .situated on Lmrer Fort St. from which one passed through an opening in the sandstone retaining \\all to a night or:\ concrete stairs. A steel pipe handrail is still eYident. situated on one·s right ascending the .stairs. At the top or the stairs is a small concrete and bitumen p<wed area leading to a yerandah formerlY supported on timher posts. From here one entered "·hat appears to haYe been the foyer of the Trades SchooL at the inftll het\\een the former Oflicers Quarters and the retaining \rail.

The lloor of this foyer \\as originally timber At some stage het\\een 1917 and the bnilding·s demolition in 1932. the lloorboards \rere rcmm·ed and a concrete noor poured bet\Yeen the joists. o\·er a base of furnace waste. Nails \rere left in the joists. being hammered dmm so as not to protmde too much aboye the Jerel of the concrete lloor This created a fairlY rough lloor. and it might be expected that a fmther finish. such as heayy matting. \rould haye been placed mn this.

1 '" Australian ArchiYes. Canberra. A2-tR9/20/)) :'i 1

J<>r, Although dated 192<1. the plan slHms the Gnardhmtse marked .. Water Police ... dating it. in effect. pre-192-l. I'J. This doorway is shown to haYC been a windo\\ in the plan or I() 17 (Plate X) 19x It is possible that original plans for these \Yorks e:-;ist in the archiyes of the Department of Repatriation or Constmction SerYiccs howeyer none has as ret heen located.

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The sandstone southern \Yall of the Orricers Ouartcrs \\as demolished to incorporate the old andnc'' buildings. The wall was possibly replaced by a lighter partition. maintaining t\m distinct spaces. Notches \\ere cut into the stone footing of this \Yall to take the bearers of the addition. The southernmost room of the former Orriccrs Quarters probably housed some form of machinery as eyicJenccd b\ a coke breeze base slab located in the centre of the room. The slab consisted of a light\\cight mix of cement and coke. reinforced \Yith gaJyanised iron pipes running parallel. The slab m1s hcaYily fractured due to the msting of the pipes. It \\as laid directly onto the clay undernoor deposit of the room. the remainder of the floor prcsullledh remained in timber- a presumption based only on the lack of cYidencc to the contrarY

The purpose of the reinforced slab is 11nclear !\It hough in pom condition. it shcmcd no signs of lhtures for machinery. Nor is it certain \\hcthcr or not it belongs to the period of the Trades School or the follo\\·ing usc as the ofliccs of Dorman and Long. The latter seems particularlY unlikely giycn the clerical functions of the building at that time. Being located so close to the entrance fmcr. the slab may haYc supported a display of farming machinery- \Yhich may also haYc necessitated the laying of the concrete floor in the foyer itself

The \\estern side of the infill structure gaye out to the former garden of the Orricers Quarters As eddenccd by the 1926 photo (Plate X). the Ycrandah on the former Orriccrs Quarters (Plate X) continued along to the retaining \\all A slate threshold indicated a doom;n in I he castcm wall. cffcctiYch creating a corridor through the foyer from cast to west. The west \\all of the fmn m1s timber. ;.inc ant-capping/ dampcoursc remaining insitu bclmY the location of the former stud \\all

The stone cast-west retaining "all \\as used to mom1t a three-inch \Yater pipe along its length by 1926 (sec Plate X) This pipe still remains (sec Plate X) 1\t the base of the retaining \\all a concrete gully drain was constructed to take run-off from the \\all. The drain incorporated in its design a footing for the south (stud) \\all of the foyer (sec Plate X)

The upper b·el of the infill building. on the southern side of the retaining wall. \\as not inycstigatcd appart from the immediate area behind the \\all No cYidence \\as identified for this phase

2.14 Harbour Bridge (1924-1932)

Dor·man and Long Offices ( 1924-1932)

Dorman and Long utilised the Trade School buildings and former Officers Quarters as their offices during the construction of the Harbour Rridgc. No clear archaeological cYidencc sun iYCS for their occupation. Photographs taken during this period show lit1lc change from 1he JHeYious occupation (sec Plates X-XX) In 19.12 the buildings \\ere demolished. clearing the site' for landscaping and its ultimate usc as a public recreation space. It appears from the photographic cYidcncc that they were largelY dismantled for their building materials (sec Plates X-XX)

Upper Battery (1925)

The batten· \Yas demolished iu llJ2'i to make \\a\ for a cable tranmaY used to haul building materials up from the harbour.


The cannon were remoyed from their positions in I<J2.'> and stored o11-sitc until 1911. In May of that year Colonel Alfred Spain 1''n. Chairman of Taronga Park Zoo. d1scu.o;;scd \\ith Bradfield the possibility of rcmoying the cannon to the Zoo.c"" The cannon were trall.<;portcd from D;mc,o;; Point to Taronga Park Zoo \\here they \Yerc installed on 10 Juh. 201 placed in a prominent position in the upper portion ofTaronga Park." 2

"2

Sometime between their rcmoYal from their positions in I <J2'i and their installation back on the site 1\Ycnty years later. the lo\\cr parts of the carriages \\ere rcmmrd. During the archaeological cxe<lY<llions in J<Jl)S the Sydney Coyc Authority \\as contacted by a resident of IJmina on the NSW Central Coast \Yho was in possession of a teak garden gate bearing a plaque idcnti(Ying the gate as being made from timbers from the carriages of the Da\\es Point cannon This gate "as subsequentlY donated to the Anthorit~. 2"1

The gate has dccoratiyc detail suggesting an inter-war period manufactnre. with motifs ,o;;imilar to the Roman-inspired decoration on the Jl) lo-17 steps leading from George Street to Cumberland Street at Dawes Point.

Greenway Guardhouse: Rear Win~s ( 1924-32)

Plans "ere made for the renl(wal of the former gnardhome in 192-1-. standing as it \\as in the \\ay of the deeplv excaYatcd cable tunnel (sec bclo\\ ). The demolition \\:tS \\ellnnclcnY;n by Jannary 1<>25. but still incomplete by mid-Fcbmary (sec Plates X-XX)

The only parts of the Guardhouse to remain \\ere the rear sen icc" ings: the toilet block and the laundn These \\ere retained for usc by the Bridge \Yorkers. Substantial remains of the toilet block (south-west \\ing) \\'Cfe uncoyercd in the archaeological record as \\ell as a nnmhcr of photographs showing the buildings at this time. Little archaeological cridcncc of foundations for I he norlh-\\csl 11 ing was found. cousisting mainly of the \Ycst \\all (\Yhich until 1910-11 had been a retaining \\all). and the south \\all (sec Plates X-XX)

It is unclear \Yhat internal changes \Ycrc made lo the loilct cnlltplc.\' during this period. A comprchcnsi\·c analysis of the changes to the fabric is discussed in Section\' abmc

Cable Trench ( J 925-30)

T\YO .. U .. shaped shafts \\ere cxc;l,·atcd in the second half of I <J2\ cmc on either side of the harbom. One of the shafts was situated on the site of the Grcc1m;l\ gHardhouse. c.\C<l\ atcd to a depth of some -to metres (sec Plate X). Through the shafts were threaded the 12R 2 inch thick cables intended to hold back each half of the Bridge's arch until they met in the middle The two hahes of the arch met on 19·;\ugust 1910 and the cables. haring scn·cd their purpose. \\ere rcmorcd and the lrenchccl filled

The edges of the shaft on the site of lhe guardhouse ''ere located Some subsidence of the shaft was subsequently noted follmring hca\\ sho\\er.o;;_ thus indicating that the shaft had not been adequately back filled. f\io further cxcaration occurred in this area (sec Plate X)

''"'Spain \Yas a partner of the architectural firm of Spain & Cosh He had also scrrcd as President of the Royal Australian Historical Society Plate X. au early Yic\\ of the batt err. \\as rcporlcd to hare bccu in his possession in llJOX. hmrcycr subsequent attempts to locale its current location hare failed. 2"" Spain to Bradfield. 25 May 19\ I Original 011 file at Taronga Park Zoo. copY on file RE 0-lH 0 I 0 I. Sydney

Core AuthoritY. 2" 1 Secretary. Taronga Park Zoo to Major F W. Lenno\'. 11 Julr I •n I. Origi11al 011 file at Taronga Park Zoo. copy on file RE OH-l 01 01. Sydne~ Cmc Anthnritr 2"

2 Spain to Captain James Watson. Royal ;\ustralianllistorical SocietY. 2R August 1911. Original on file at Taronga Park Zoo. copy on file RE 0-HlO I o I. SYdncr Cm c Authority 2"

3 The Sydney Cmc Authority gralcfully ack11owledgc.s this donation by Mr Ron f'ampbcll


Former Powder Magazine (I 925-32)

l Hanrahan D. Hanrahan

Piers (1926)

1925

Aug 17th I 92 I M. Cocksedge

E. Warner (or Warren) l Allen l'v!. Hooper l Brimbloom ('.') E. L<mson R. Beehag V Bohle J. Curtis('') W. Potts

-lX

The t\Yo northernmost piers for the approach road to the Rridge 1rcre constmcted. one each. on the site of the Battery and Guardhouse. These obliterated am traces of the earlier cultural remains within their footprint. extending on aycragc 250mm out fron1 the base of each pier Thc.<:c arc the onlY sections of the actual Harbour Bridge stmctmc \Yhich arc present in the studY area (sec Plate X.)

Other Works (I 925-34)

The cxcm at ions to the south of the south-11cst toilet 11 ing re1 caled much disturbance. particularly in the yicinity of the former steps 11hich led dmm to l.owcr Fort St It is unclear" hat purpose these disturbances had scrycd and they merely take the form of a mJmher of pits and yanllcl-cls containing bridge construction debris (contexts x-xx) Similar distnrbances occnr on the eastem side or the battery but arc prohabh associated 11ith landscaping works for the park as hcan machincn llHl\'Cd piles of debri.<: around the site.

2.15 The Park (1934-1995)

Dmycs Point Park was gazetted on 1-l October I<J.\2 '" 1 Lo11cr Fort Street and George Street were re-aligned. George Street terminating at a .. r· intersection 11ith Lo11er Fort Street. Prior to the Bridge construction it was Lower Fort Street that terminated in a ·-y·· intersection 11 ith George St. the latter continuing along what is now the northern end of Lmrcr Fort St (sec Plates X-XX- Thalis/ ( 'anlrcll) This created a roughly rectangular rcscryc bounded by George Street. Lower Fort Street and the retaining \vall on Hickson Road. and incorporating the slopes of the former battery on its northern ami eastern .~ides.

1 he landscaping of the park consisted of a central driyc 11ith mtersccting paths (sec Plate X). The basic contonrs of the Battery hayc been prcsen ed in the park with the c'iception of the former cast-nest retaining wall. In this case massiYc amounts of fill \\ere deposited on the lmrer side and a gentler grade created between from south to north.

In I<J--l:'i Sydney City Council rcsohcclto return the cannon to the rescryc and installed close to their original positions.

:nl NSW GoYcrnmcnt Gazette. October J<Jn


(a} 7hat approl'ril he gil·en to the reJ>Iocement ill flr/ll'r'.l' /'oint !'ark. and on the site indicated on the plan accoiiiJ'ant·ing tlw report of' the ('if\' Fngineer dated 2Y

117

,·l11p,11sf IY.f.5. o{fhe (it·e (5) g11ns o/fhe old f>rlliT.I !'oint !1atfeiT ll'hich li'Cre rel/1!1\'ed fi·mn that !'ark to 'f'amng(/ !'ark !II the lillie o(fhc r·nnlllle/1cenwnt of the consfrllcfion of the S\'flne\' Jlarh(}/f/' nrir(~c. SIICh !lflJW0\'!1/ /wing 01/ the 11/lderstrmding that the Royal, ltlsfralirm !fistorical Societ\' ll'i// 11/T!IIIge (i>r the trml.lj>orfing of the gnns fi·mn Taronga !'ark to I >ml'es !'nint !'ark mulal.m {i>r J7!11'/1Wnl to the ( 'rmncil of the actual cost ofpreparing the site mullaring the ncr essmT conrTefe jiJIInrlations. co\

Apart from general maintenance no major landscaping \\nrks hm c been undertaken in the park since 19~5

Services

Lighting \\as proYidcd along the major path. a small trench for the electricitY suppl~ C.'\C<t\'atcd in the bedrock on the path's western side. This had a minor i111pact on the archaeological remains in the yicinitY of the former Guardhouse and Battery.

Drainage scn·iccs on the other hand ha\c had a greater impact on the archaeological record. A trench for the ceramic drainpipes \\as C.'\C<l\'atcd parallel and adjacent to the central path on its eastern side. The trench mls cut into the bedrock of the Batten gun plat form

Standpipes for the \Yater supply for the park arc located at each of the Bridge piers. These arc interconnected \Yith I 3/~-inch steel pipe griddcd mer the site The iw;tallation of these occurred in the topsoil layers oyer the site. therefore aYoiding archaeological deposits

A high-pressure gas line mls installed through the park to the Harbom Bridge workshop in the South Pylon in the late 19ROs. The line nms from the retaining \\all on l.o\\cr Fort St through the site of the former northwest wing of the Guardhouse in a straight line across the lower entrance to the Batten Ramp. to South Pylon. The pipe cuts through archaeological deposits at the former north-west \\ing and is cut into the bedrock behind the cast-west retaining \rail.

Telecom (now Tclstra) installed telephone lines north south through the site in the mid-I <JROs. cutting a trench appro.'\imatcly one metre "ide and t\\o metre.~ deep The trench mns parallel to Lmrer Fort St. slightly to the cast of the former west wings of the Guardhmt~e Its c.'\GI\'ation impacted most seycr'Ciy on cast-\rcst retaining wall and the site of the former Ofliccrs Quarters The cables thcmsches \\ere placed at a sufficient depth not to be disturbed by the archaeological e.'\cayation. (.'Icc Plate X)

Opt us laid optical fibres through the site in I '1'1 I It \Yas intended that these should. for the most part. occupy the same trench as the Telstra lines. The t"o trenches diycrge at the casHrest retaining mtll. the Optus lines being carried through a separate. trench rneasming appro.'\imatch .iOOrnm "ide. through the remains of the Officers Quarters These lines \\ere not buried as deeply as those of Tclstra and were e.'\poscd in a ten-metre section north of the retaining wall. Opt us subsequent!\· relocated this section in the e.'\isting Tclstra trench. (Sec Plate X)

Dawes Point Reser"Ve Plan of Management, 1990

Dawes Point Park has been regarded as one or the least utili~cd parks in Sydney and in 1990 a Plan of Management "as prepared to:

prot·ide infimnafion (iw the ef(i'cfil·e rlrn· to rim· and long term decision making and estah/ish direcfionsfhr rcsourr·c planning 111!1/Wgr>IIW/11 mlllllltrirll!'llr/1/Cf nnrl f'llhlir· liSe. :or.

2"' fu'd!!~Y Citv Council Prof<::_CQiilg§. Series /.lJ. I o September I 'J 15

2"r, Enyironmcntal Partnership PtY l.td ( 1990). D<mcs Point Rcscn c Plan of Managcn_l_Qtlt .. p:'i

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The study found that in August and September I !Jl)O onh II~ 7. people "ere obsen cd using the park Y Various proposals \\ere made for the upgrading of the park to encourage its use. These included a memorial to the Battery. it being assumed that the site had been totallY destroyed by the Bridge construction. \\ith only the cannon remaining 2

"R Subsequent proposals for usc of the pat-!< inchtdcd a childcarc day-centre The feasibility study reycaled the park to hayc exceptionallY high lead lcycls. dangerous to health. The childcare proposal \\'CHI

no further. It was found that the high lc\'Cis \\ere due to fifi1 \l'<IIS of painting and repainting the Harbour Bridge with lead based paints. To treat this. in JlJ92 the topsoil \\as stripped off the park to a depth of some 150-200mm and replaced \\ith uncontaminated soil The two layers of topsoil \\'ere disccmiblc in the archaeological record (contexts x & x) Lead-based paint is no longer emploYed on the Bridge.

2.16 Dawes Point and the Defence of Sydney (1941-45)

Although Dawes Point Batten ceased to function as a defence post lw 1900 and all ycstiges of the fort were demolished by 1932. the site had an unexpected defence reyiyal in 19-1-1 "hen t\\O anti-aircraft guns were n.mmtcd on top of the south pylon of the llarbour Bridge Changes. such as raising the parapet. \\ere made to the tops of the pylon to accommodate the installation of the guns

On the night of 30 May 19-1-2 a Japanese rcconnaissa11cc plane piloted !w Susun111 Ito ne" up the harbour and under the Harbom Bridge. It \\as not fired upon a.' it \\a.s thought to he an .Australian plane The next night \\as the failed Japanese mini-sub attack on Snh1e' It i.~ not knm111 \\hcthcr the guns on the Bridge \\·ere used during this attack. but if so. it could hme been the first time Dm1cs Point guns \\ere fired for anything other than ceremony.

The pYlon defences \\ere dismantled at the end of the war. although traces of the gun mountings arc still Yisiblc. as arc the architectural changes made to the top of the P' lo11 ''"'

2"- lbid"' p27

2"x Ibid .. Historical Analysis. (, 0 2""-Fou; guns in total \\c~c added to both north ami south pYlons. t\\o 011 each Heritage Group. Department of Public Works and Sen·iccs (I lJlJ7) Sydney Harbom Bridge Consen at ion Management Plan. lm en tory Record OR

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