The Cockatoo Island Dockyard was a major dockyard in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

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, based on Cockatoo Island. The dockyard was established in 1857 to maintain

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

warships. It later built and repaired military and battle ships, and played a key role in sustaining the

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. The dockyard was closed in 1991, and its remnants are heritage listed as the

Cockatoo Island Industrial Conservation Area Cockatoo Island Industrial Conservation Area is a heritage-listed protected area relating to the former Cockatoo Island Dockyard at Cockatoo Island, Sydney Harbour, New South Wales, Australia. It was added to the Australian Commonwealth Heri ...

Colonial ownership

It was established by the colonial

Government of New South Wales The Government of New South Wales, also known as the NSW Government, is the Australian state democratic administrative authority of New South Wales. It is currently held by a coalition of the Liberal Party and the National Party. The Governmen ...

, commencing operations in December 1857 with the opening of

Fitzroy Dock Fitzroy Dock is a heritage-listed dockyard at the former Cockatoo Island Dockyard, Cockatoo Island, Sydney Harbour, New South Wales, Australia. It was added to the Australian Commonwealth Heritage List on 22 June 2004. History Cockatoo I ...

. Planning had begun as early as May 1846, when Governor George Gipps had recommended the construction of a dry dock at Cockatoo Island to the British government to service

vessels. Construction had begun in 1851, with Captain Gother Mann as engineer-in-chief, and taken six years. It was known as the Government Dockyard – Biloela while in colonial control. Shipbuilding facilities, such as slipways and workshops, were also established, and the dockyard produced small vessels for the colonial government, in addition to its role servicing British government vessels. It was initially administered by the superintendent of the adjacent prison, but was operated by the Department of Harbours and Rivers from 1864. The main machine workshop was upgraded in the same year. Fitzroy Dock was lengthened from to 1870, and extended for a second and final time to in 1880. Numerous buildings were added to the site during the 1880s, including a Pump House, stores and accommodation for new machinery. It became apparent as early as 1870 that a larger dock would be needed due to the increasing size of ships, and

Sutherland Dock Sutherland Dock is a heritage-listed dockyard at the former Cockatoo Island Dockyard, Cockatoo Island, New South Wales, Australia. It was added to the Australian Commonwealth Heritage List on 22 June 2004. History Cockatoo Island became a ...

was built from 1882 to 1890 at a cost of £267,825. Sutherland Dock, at long and wide, was said to be the largest dock in the world at completion. Its size allowed it to cater to the larger Royal Navy vessels. Facilities at the shipyard were expanded significantly in the 1890s following the opening of Sutherland Dock, taking up a larger proportion of Cockatoo Island. Although the

Federation of Australia The Federation of Australia was the process by which the six separate British self-governing colonies of Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia (which also governed what is now the Northern Territory), and Western A ...

took place in 1901, the New South Wales government remained in ownership of the dockyard. The dockyard was again extensively upgraded between 1904 and 1908, with the construction of a steel foundry, extension of existing workshops, construction of two new slipways, and additional steel-working facilities and cantilevered cranes. The Royal Australian Navy was established in 1911. , initially built in

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but dismantled, shipped to Australia and reassembled at Cockatoo Island, became the first Australian naval vessel built there. It was still in New South Wales ownership at the time. Sutherland Dock was widened in 1911, and the biggest slipway on the dockyard, Slipway No. 1, was built in 1912, as well as a plate shop.

Commonwealth ownership

The Commonwealth then purchased the Cockatoo Island Dockyard from the New South Wales Government, with the transfer taking place from 31 January 1913, although the formal agreement was not signed until 1915. The Commonwealth paid £867,716.19 for the dockyard. It was then renamed the Commonwealth Naval Dockyard, Cockatoo Island. It built many ships for both naval and civilian purposes in Commonwealth ownership.

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

saw an increase in work for the shipyard, which had built over 50 ships and repaired or converted more than 150 by the end of the war. It fitted out transports capable of conveying over 120,000 officers and men and 17,000 horses, and handled nearly 2,000 dockings. Many new facilities were established to accommodate the increased need, including a cruiser wharf, new bolt workshop, brass foundry, ship fitting workshop, coppersmith's workshop, timber store, electrical workshop, tool room and store, electrical workshop, plater's shed, and a new power station and sail loft. The workforce reached a peak during December 1919, at which time 4085 people were employed at the dockyard. A Royal Commission into the future of Garden Island and Cockatoo Island was held between 1919 and 1921. It recommended that Cockatoo Island cease shipbuilding activities, but continue to function as a maintenance and repair facility. This did not take place, but in September 1923 the dockyard was transferred from the Navy to the Australian Commonwealth Shipping Board, and began operating on a commercial basis in addition to its naval work. However, a November 1927 High Court ruling held that the government could not compete for open contracts against private enterprise, resulting in the loss of a major contract for the

Bunnerong Power Station Bunnerong Power Station was a coal-fired power station in the south-eastern Sydney suburb of Matraville, New South Wales, Australia that was decommissioned by 1975 and subsequently demolished. When the last generating units were commissioned, ...

. A further economic downturn in 1928 further affected dockyard work, and the impact of the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

saw workers decrease from 1,300 in 1928 to 560 in 1932.

Cockatoo Docks & Engineering Company

Frank Norton - Norton-96311 - Fitting Out H

In 1935, following a period where the dockyard struggled financially, it was leased to a private company, the

Cockatoo Docks & Engineering Company The Cockatoo Docks & Engineering Company was a ship building and maintenance company which operated the Cockatoo Island Dockyard on Cockatoo Island in Sydney, Australia between 1933 and 1992. History The Cockatoo Docks & Engineering Company ...

. The lease allowed the dockyard to take on various heavy industrial projects outside of shipbuilding, and although priority remained with naval work under the owners' agreement with the government, to conduct substantial commercial shipping work. The new heavy engineering aspect saw it also building machinery for mines and dams, later to include the Snowy Mountains Scheme. The shipyard again saw a substantial increase in work during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. It was the main ship repair base in the South Pacific for a period following the

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. 19 new ships were built and major repairs undertaken on 40

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warships. Over £400,000 was spent on upgrades during the war, including a new turbine shop, brass foundry, plater's shed, welding workshop and slipway were built during the war. The construction of the turbine shop and foundry had required extensive excavation of the cliff face, with the excavated rock then used to reclaim land for further facilities. A new motor transport system was also instigated during the war. Following the war, the shipyard then engaged in refitting naval vessels for commercial service. Cockatoo Island aerial view 1951

In 1947,

Vickers Limited Vickers Limited was a British engineering conglomerate. The business began in Sheffield in 1828 as a steel foundry and became known for its church bells, going on to make shafts and propellers for ships, armour plate and then artillery. Entir ...

gained the majority of shares in the Cockatoo Docks & Engineering Company, and Vickers Cockatoo Docks and Engineering Pty Ltd, formed in 1948, would formally operate the dockyard for the remainder of its existence. The old Sutherland Wharf was upgraded between 1962 and 1965, and a new Sutherland Wharf built in 1971, with new submarine refit facilities opened in the same year. The last major commercial contract undertaken by the dockyard was , completed in 1965. A new agreement in 1972 meant that Cockatoo Island no longer had preferential treatment for Commonwealth work except submarines, which thereafter became a significant portion of the dockyard's business. The dockyard unsuccessfully tendered for several large naval shipbuilding projects following the new agreement. The ownership of Vickers Cockatoo Dockyard Pty Ltd was transferred to a new company, Vickers Australia Pty Ltd, in 1978. It merged with the

Commonwealth Steel Company Commonwealth Steel Company was an American steel company based in Granite City, Illinois, and founded in 1901 "by some of the young men who had helped establish the American Steel Foundry".''Granite City – A Pictorial History'' (G. Bradley Publish ...

to form Comsteel Vickers in 1984, and the combined company was sold to

Australian National Industries Australian National Industries was an Australian heavy engineering company with diverse range of holdings. History In 1911 John McGrath began to sell motor vehicles. It operated the first public garage in New South Wales. The company held motor ...

in 1986. The last ship to be built at the dockyard was , then the largest naval vessel built in Australia, which launched on 3 March 1984.

Laid down marine vessels

Marine vessels laid down at the Cockatoo Island Dockyard include: * HMAS ''Adelaide'', Town-class cruiser * HMAS ''Albatross'',

seaplane tender A seaplane tender is a boat or ship that supports the operation of seaplanes. Some of these vessels, known as seaplane carriers, could not only carry seaplanes but also provided all the facilities needed for their operation; these ships are rega ...

* HMAS ''Arunta'', Tribal-class destroyer * HMAS ''Barcoo'', River-class frigate * HMAS ''Bataan'', Tribal-class destroyer * HMAS ''Bathurst'',

Bathurst-class corvette The ''Bathurst''-class corvettes were a class of general purpose vessels designed and built in Australia during World War II. Originally classified as minesweepers, but widely referred to as corvettes, the ''Bathurst''-class vessels fulfilled a ...

* HMAS ''Bendigo'',

* HMAS ''Biloela'', fleet collier * HMAS ''Brisbane'', Town-class cruiser * HMAS ''Cape Leeuwin'',

lighthouse tender A lighthouse tender is a ship specifically designed to maintain, support, or tend to lighthouses or lightvessels, providing supplies, fuel, mail, and transportation. In the United States, these ships originally served as part of the Lighthous ...

* CLS-4 ''Carpentaria'', lightship * MS ''Empress of Australia'',

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

* HMAS ''Glenelg'',

* HMAS ''Goulburn'',

* HMAS ''Huon'', River-class torpedo-boat destroyer * HMAS ''J1'',

J-class submarine The J-class submarines were seven submarines developed by the Royal Navy prior to the First World War in response to claims that Germany was developing submarines that were fast enough to operate alongside surface fleets. Six were completed ...

, refit * HMAS ''Kangaroo'',

Bar-class boom defence vessel The Bar class were a class of boom defence vessels of the Royal Navy, Royal Australian Navy and South African Navy during World War II. Ships Royal Navy * HMS ''Barbain'' (Z01) * HMS ''Barbarian'' (Z18) * HMS ''Barbastel'' (Z276) * HMS ''Bar ...

* HMAS ''Karangi'',

* HMAS ''Koala'',

* HMAS ''Kookaburra'', Net-class boom defence vessel * HMAS ''Mombah'', coal lighter and stores ship * HMAS ''Parramatta'',

River-class destroyer escort The River class was a class of six destroyer escorts (originally designated anti-submarine frigates) operated by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Plans to acquire four vessels, based on the British Type 12M (or ) frigate, began in the 1950s. The ...

* HMAS ''Parramatta'',

grimsby-class sloop The ''Grimsby''-class sloops were a class of 13 sloops-of-war laid down between 1933 and 1940. Of these, eight were built in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy, four in Australia for the Royal Australian Navy and one for the Royal Indian Navy. ...

* HMAS ''Queenborough'', Q-class destroyer * HMAS ''Stalwart'', escort maintenance ship * HMAS ''Stuart'',

* HMAS ''Success'', ''Durance''-class tanker * HMAS ''Swan'',

* HMAS ''Swan'', River-class torpedo-boat destroyer * ''Titan'',

floating crane Floating may refer to: * a type of dental work performed on horse teeth * use of an isolation tank * the guitar-playing technique where chords are sustained rather than scratched * ''Floating'' (play), by Hugh Hughes * Floating (psychological phe ...

, fabricated in

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in the United Kingdom and assembled at Cockatoo Island Dockyard * HMAS ''Tobruk'',

battle-class destroyer The Battle class were a class of destroyers of the British Royal Navy (RN) and Royal Australian Navy (RAN), named after naval or other battles fought by British or English forces. Built in three groups, the first group were ordered under the 1 ...

* HMAS ''Torrens'',

* HMAS ''Torrens'', River-class torpedo-boat destroyer * HMAS ''Voyager'', ''Daring''-class destroyer * HMAS ''Vampire'', ''Daring''-class destroyer * HMAS ''Vigilant'', auxiliary patrol boat (aka HMAS ''Sleuth'' and HMAS ''Hawk'') * ''Waratah'',

tugboat A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, su ...

(aka ''Burunda'') * HMAS ''Waree'',

* HMAS ''Warramunga'', Tribal-class destroyer * HMAS ''Warrego'',

* HMAS ''Warrego'', River-class torpedo-boat destroyer, fabricated in England and reassembled at Cockatoo Island Dockyard * ''Wattle'',

steam tug A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, suc ...

* HMAS ''Yarra'',

* ''Yelta'',

Closure

By the 1980s, much of the dockyard's machinery was obsolete and it was in need of a major and expensive upgrade were it to continue in operation. In 1987, the dockyard was listed as an asset to be sold following a review of defence facilities. The Commonwealth government announced that the dockyard lease would not be renewed beyond 1 January 1993, and that the island would be sold. New contracts in negotiation were largely cancelled, and operations thereafter largely focused on completing existing contracts. The last submarine to be refitted at Cockatoo Island was , handed back to the government on 4 June 1991. The dockyard was decommissioned on 31 December 1991. Many buildings and wharves were demolished following the closure of the site; however, the remainder of the site is now heritage-listed.

Colonial ownership

Commonwealth ownership

Cockatoo Docks & Engineering Company

Laid down marine vessels

Closure

See also

References

Further reading