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''Kanimbla'' (later ''Kurra-Ba'') was a " K-class" ferry on
Sydney Harbour Port Jackson, commonly known as Sydney Harbour, is a ria, natural harbour on the east coast of Australia, around which Sydney was built. It consists of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove River, Lane ...
. Launched in 1910, the timber-hulled steamer was built for
Sydney Ferries Limited Sydney Ferries Limited operated ferry services on Port Jackson, Sydney Harbour from 1900 until June 1951. The company grew out of the North Shore Steam Ferry Company and took over smaller ferry operators to become the largest ferry operator i ...
during the boom in cross-harbour ferry travel prior to the opening of the
Sydney Harbour Bridge The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a steel through arch bridge in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, spanning Port Jackson, Sydney Harbour from the Sydney central business district, central business district (CBD) to the North Shore (Sydney), North ...
. ''Kanimbla'' was renamed "Kurra-Ba" in 1935. She was laid up in the 1940s and broken up in the 1950s. She was very similar to '' Kosciusko'' (1911), and although built by different builders, the two ferries often considered sister ships. "Kanimbla" is an Australian Aboriginal name thought to mean "big fight".


Background

''Kanimbla'' was built for
Sydney Ferries Limited Sydney Ferries Limited operated ferry services on Port Jackson, Sydney Harbour from 1900 until June 1951. The company grew out of the North Shore Steam Ferry Company and took over smaller ferry operators to become the largest ferry operator i ...
during the early twentieth century boom in cross-Harbour travel prior to the 1932 opening of the
Sydney Harbour Bridge The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a steel through arch bridge in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, spanning Port Jackson, Sydney Harbour from the Sydney central business district, central business district (CBD) to the North Shore (Sydney), North ...
. At the time, the company ran one of the largest ferry fleets in the world. The ferry was part of broader type of around 20 double-ended timber screw ferries the
Sydney K-class ferries The K-class ferries were a group of double-ended screw steam ferries run by Sydney Ferries Limited and its government successors on Sydney Harbour. The company introduced more than two dozen of the vessels from the 1890s through to the early 20th ...
 that the company commissioned between the 1890s and early 1920s to meet the booming demand. ''Kanimbla'' followed the Sydney Ferries Limited tradition of naming their vessels after Australian Aboriginal words starting with "K". "Kanimbla" is thought to mean "big fight".


Design and construction

''Kanimbla'' was built in 1910 by
Morrison & Sinclair Morrison & Sinclair was a Sydney, New South Wales based company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether Natural person, natural, Juridical person, juridi ...
, of Johnsons Bay, Balmain for a cost of £12,489. Designed by
Sydney Ferries Limited Sydney Ferries Limited operated ferry services on Port Jackson, Sydney Harbour from 1900 until June 1951. The company grew out of the North Shore Steam Ferry Company and took over smaller ferry operators to become the largest ferry operator i ...
draftsman, T Barter, under the supervision of T Brown, she was described as an enlarged edition of the 1905 K-class ferry, ''
Kareela Kareela is a suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. History Kareela was the first mixed-use estate developed by Stockland, developed in 1953. The estate was originally called Sylvan Headland. Sylvan Headland c ...
''. Her machinery was designed by Sydney Ferries officers and supplied by Mort's Dock & Engineering Co. She was provided with 55 hp triple expansion steam engines of acting surface condensing type with three cranks. Her cyclinders are 12, 20 and 32 1/2 inches respectively with a stroke of 18-inch. Her two multitubular cylindrical boilers, 18 ft in length and 7 ft external diameter, were fitted with Deighton patent suspension furnaces with a working pressure of 180 lb. Electric lights were installed by Warbuton and Frankl. The timber ferry was 156 tons, 35.4 m in length, and had a passenger capacity of 791. She could reach a speed of 11 knots. '' Kosciusko'', very similar in size and form to ''Kanimbla'', was built the following year by
David Drake David A. Drake (September 24, 1945 – December 10, 2023) was an American author of science fiction and fantasy literature. A Vietnam War veteran, he worked as a lawyer before becoming a writer in the military science fiction genre. Biography ...
, Balmain.


Service history

Smaller than the big '' Kirrule-type ferries'' planned for the Mosman run, and the ''
Kulgoa ''Kulgoa'' was a "Sydney K-class ferries, K-class" ferry on Sydney Harbour. Launched in 1905, the timber-Hull (watercraft), hulled steamer was built for Sydney Ferries Limited during the boom in cross-harbour ferry travel prior to the 1932 openin ...
'' and ''
Koree ''Koree'' was a "Sydney K-class ferries, K-class" ferry on Sydney Harbour. Launched in 1902, the timber-hulled steamer was built for Sydney Ferries Limited during the boom in cross-harbour ferry travel prior to the opening of the Sydney Harbour Br ...
'' on the Milsons Point route, ''Kanimbla'' was built for the narrow constrained bays of the Neutral Bay service. ''Kanimbla'' was launched on 2 September 1909 where a crowd had gathered to watch in Johnsons Bay. A shipwright former suffered a head injury by a cable that had flown loose during the launch. She (and ''Kosciusko'') survived the 1932 opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, after which demand for ferries dropped significantly and much of the fleet was laid up. ''Kanimbla'' gave up her original name in 1935 to a new larger
Royal Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the navy, naval branch of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (Australia), Chief of Navy (CN) Vice admiral (Australia), Vice Admiral Mark Hammond (admiral), Ma ...
ship, HMAS Kanimbla, and became ''Kurra-Ba'' (not to be confused with the "Kurraba" a Sydney ferry laid up in 1932). ''Kurra-Ba'' was pulled out of service and laid up around 1946, and was broken up in the 1950s along with a number of other larger K-class steamers as part of a fleet rationalisation following the NSW State Government's
Sydney Harbour Transport Board The Sydney Harbour Transport Board was a statutory of the Government of New South Wales responsible for the provision of ferry services on Port Jackson, Sydney Harbour from July 1951 until November 1974. History With its Port Jackson, Sydney Ha ...
takeover of the struggling Sydney Ferries Limited. ''Kosciusko'' would go onto survive the 1950s state government rationalisation of the fleet and was converted to diesel in 1959. She was sent to
Hobart Hobart ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly hal ...
in 1975 to assist with cross- Derwent travel following the collapse of the Tasman Bridge. She was then used as a floating restaurant in Hobart but was burnt out during renovations in 1982.


Incidents

* 11 August 1926 – With 230 passengers, ''Kanimbla'' collided with the Manly ferry, '' Binngarra'' near Kirribilli Point. The steel ''Binngarra'' was not significantly damaged, however, she cut deep into the timber ''Kanimbla'' which was rushed to Kirribilli to prevent her sinking. The Marine Court enquiry into the collision found the master of ''Kanimbla'' to be at fault. * 15 June 1927 - Arguably ''Kanimbla's'' most serious incident was her collision with Manly ferry ''
Balgowlah Balgowlah is a suburb of northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Balgowlah (or Bulgowlah) said to be an Aboriginal name for "North Harbour". The area now known as Balgowlah was known to the Aboriginals as Jilling. Balgowla ...
'' at Circular Quay. She was leaving Circular Quay with 100 passengers on a trip
Neutral Bay Neutral Bay is a suburb on the Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Neutral Bay is around 1.5 kilometres north of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of North Sydney Council. Neutral Bay takes ...
when she collided head-on with ''Balgowlah'' which was heading into the Quay. The significantly larger steel-hulled ''Balgowlah'' had minor damage, whereas timber ''Kanimbla'' had her upper and lower superstructure smashed, and her port bow almost torn off with the ''Balgowlah'' penetrating the side of the smaller ferry by six feet and into the passenger cabins. Six passengers were injured and treated at
Sydney Hospital Sydney Hospital, historically known as the Rum Hospital, is a major hospital in Sydney, Australia, located on Macquarie Street in the Sydney central business district. It is the oldest hospital in Australia, dating back to 1788, and has been at ...
. ''Kanimbla'' was settling at the bow, and she was rushed to Milsons Point where she was beached. Her passengers were transferred to the ferry ''
Kookooburra ''Kookooburra'' was a "Sydney K-class ferries, K-class" ferry on Sydney Harbour. Commissioned in 1907, the timber-hulled steamer was built for Sydney Ferries Limited during the boom in cross-harbour ferry travel prior to the opening of the Sydn ...
''. * 23 September 1936 – ''Kurra-ba'' collided with ferry ''Kulgoa'' causing significant damage to her superstructure. One injured passenger was taken to hospital.City of Sydney Archives
/ref>


See also

*
List of Sydney Harbour ferries Sydney Harbour's first ferry, ferries were sail and/or oar powered, but by the mid-19th century, paddle steamers were well established. Double-ended ferries became common as they did not require turning at terminating wharves in Sydney's busy bu ...
*
Timeline of Sydney Harbour ferries Sydney Harbour ferry services date back to the first years of Sydney's European settlement. Slow and sporadic boats ran along the Parramatta River from Sydney to Parramatta and served the agricultural settlements in between. By the mid-1830s, s ...
*
Sydney K-class ferries The K-class ferries were a group of double-ended screw steam ferries run by Sydney Ferries Limited and its government successors on Sydney Harbour. The company introduced more than two dozen of the vessels from the 1890s through to the early 20th ...


Citations


References

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External links

* {{Sydneyferries, state=collapsed Ferries of New South Wales Ferry transport in Sydney 1910 ships Sydney Harbour Water transport in New South Wales Sydney K-class ferries