''Lady Ferguson'' was a

Sydney Harbour Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is the ria or natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman Sea (p ...

ferry built in 1914 for the Balmain New Ferry Company. She and four similar ferries, ''Lady Chelmsford'' (1910), '' Lady Denman'' (1912), ''

Lady Edeline ''Lady Edeline'' was a Sydney Harbour ferry built in 1913 for the Balmain New Ferry Company. She and four similar ferries, ''Lady Chelmsford'' (1910), '' Lady Denman'' (1912), ''Lady Ferguson'' (1914), ''Lady Scott'' (1914) were a new series of "L ...

'' (1913), and '' Lady Scott'' (1914), were a new series of "Lady-class"craft designed by renowned naval architect

Walter Reeks Walter Reeks (1861-1925) was one of the earliest Naval architecture, naval architects in Australia and is known for designing yachts, ferries and coastal ships., He was born in Christchurch, Dorset, Christchurch, England and migrated to Australi ...

. ''Lady Ferguson'' and her four sisters survived the 1932 opening of the

Sydney Harbour Bridge The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a steel through arch bridge in Sydney, spanning Port Jackson, Sydney Harbour from the Sydney central business district, central business district (CBD) to the North Shore (Sydney), North Shore. The view of the bridg ...

and were converted to diesel power that

decade A decade () is a period of ten years. Decades may describe any ten-year period, such as those of a person's life, or refer to specific groupings of calendar years. Usage Any period of ten years is a "decade". For example, the statement that "du ...

. They also survived the 1951 NSW State Government takeover of the ailing ferry fleet. ''Lady Ferguson'' was sold out of Sydney ferry service in 1975 to be used as a relief vessel in

Hobart Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...

following the collapse of the Tasman Bridge. On arrival, she was found to be in such poor condition that she was not used. She was broken up in 1977. Continuing a Balmain Ferry Co convention of naming their ferries after the wives of

Governors-General of Australia The governor-general of Australia is the representative of the monarch, currently King Charles III, in Australia.Governors of NSW, ''Lady Ferguson'' was named after Helen Hermione, wife of

Ronald Munro Ferguson, 1st Viscount Novar Ronald Craufurd Munro Ferguson, 1st Viscount Novar, (6 March 1860 – 30 March 1934) was a British politician who served as the sixth Governor-General of Australia, in office from 1914 to 1920. Munro Ferguson was born in Kirkcaldy, Fife, Sco ...

the sixth Governor-General of Australia. This naming nomenclature was again used by the State Government harbour ferry operator with the introduction of 6 new " Lady-class ferries" in the 1960s and 1970s.

Design and construction

In common with most Sydney Harbour ferries at the time, ''Lady Ferguson'' and her four sisters were wooden double-ended screw steamers. The five ferries had only a single propeller at one end that pushed the vessels in one direction and pulled them in the other. The configuration contrasted with the double-ended vessels of

Sydney Ferries Limited Sydney Ferries Limited operated ferry services on 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 in Sydney's his ...

( the K-class ferries) which had a continuous propeller shaft and a screw at each end. This feature was introduced by the ferry's designer,

, on a previous Balmain company ferry, ''Lady Rawson'' of 1906. A single propeller and one shaft simplified the internal arrangements and put less stress on the timber hulls compared to shafts running a propeller at either end. Apart from some unusual handling characteristics, the single-propeller configuration was a success and Reeks unsuccessfully tried to patent it. ''Lady Ferguson'' was built in 1914 by David Drake Limited of Balmain. ''Lady Denman'' and ''Lady Scott'' were built by J Dent of

Jervis Bay Jervis Bay () is a oceanic bay and village on the south coast of New South Wales, Australia, said to possess the whitest sand in the world. A area of land around the southern headland of the bay is a territory of the Commonwealth of Australia ...

, ''Lady Chelmsford'' was built by

Brisbane Waters Brisbane Water is a wave-dominated barrier estuary located in the Central Coast region, north of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Brisbane Water has its origin at the confluence of the Narara and Coorumbine Creeks, to the south–east of G ...

shipbuilder Rock Davis, and ''Lady Edeline'' by G A Washington of Annandale. With construction of a Sydney Harbour Bridge seeming likely, she and her four sisters were designed for a maximum of fifteen years of life. Instead, she would go on operating on the harbour until 1979 with her four sisters having similarly long or even longer careers. Because they were to have a limited life-span, they were lightly built and almost austere in her fittings, such as roofs of galvanised iron. They were relatively small and had a veed shape and shallow draft to navigate the muddy and silted upper reaches of their upstream runs. Her original engines were 24 hp (nominal) compound steam engines by McKie and Baxter which pushed her to 11 knots.

Service history

Sydney Ferry LADY FERGUSON at Fig Tree wharf c

From 1900, the Balmain New Ferry Company began a period of expansion to keep up and compete with the tram network expanding into what is now referred to as Sydney's Inner West. Older ferries were sold off including several series of "Lady-class" class ferries were introduced. ''Lady Ferguson'' was the last of five in the Balmain company's final series of "Lady-class" ferries, the others being ''Ladies Chelmsford'' (1910), ''Denman'' (1912), ''Edeline'' (1913), and ''Scott'' (1914). This series was introduced to replace the single-ended ferries on the Lane Cove River service. They also worked on the run from Balmain to Erskine Street wharf (at site of current

Barangaroo Barangaroo was the second wife of Bennelong, who was interlocutor between the Aboriginal people and the early British colonists in New South Wales. Barangaroo was a member of the Cammeraygal clan. While Bennelong spent considerable time in th ...

). ''Lady Ferguson'', and the rest of the Balmain fleet, were bought by

as part of its take over of the Balmain company on 1 March 1918. The five operated the Lane Cove River services to Fig Tree until 12 November 1931 when weekday services were suspended. They ran weekend services to Fig Tree on weekends until 2 September 1945. Lane Cove River services were discontinued altogether on 10 November 1950, after which the five saw them work the Parramatta River and across other routes. Sydney Ferries ran a service to Balmain until it was taken over in 1939 by Nicholson Brothers Harbour Transport Company with their own ferries. The five "Lady class" ferries were run on other routes across the Harbour. In 1932, the

was opened, and Sydney Ferries Ltd's annual patronage dropped from 40 million to about 15 million. As part of economy measures, almost older and/or larger steamers were put up for sale, and the five "Lady-class" ferries were converted to diesel power in the 1930s with ''Lady Chelmsford'' first. Their tall black smoke stacks were replaced with short funnels. Facing uncertain post-Bridge times, Sydney Ferries Ltd sought a refreshed look for their ferries, covering the original livery of varnished timber and white trim with yellow and green paint and red trim. In 1937, ''Lady Ferguson'' re-entered service with a six-cylinder 65 hp Henty & Gardner diesel that pushed her to 9 knots. The five "Lady" ferries continued to run the

Hunters Hill Hunters Hill is a suburb of the lower north shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Hunters Hill is located north-west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local government area ...

and Balmain services. The post-Bridge drop in demand for the ferry fleet was somewhat mitigated as many could not afford their own transport in 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 ...

of the 1930s and rationing of fuel during World War 2 made the coal required for the steam ferries relatively cheap. Sydney ferry LADY FERGUSON at Valentia St Wharf Woolwich 6 October 1970

Sydney ferry LADY FERGUSON at Valentia St Wharf Woolwich 6 October 1970

However, the post World War II years saw the drop in demand pick up pace. In 1951, with annual patronage down to 9 million, the NSW State Government took over Sydney Ferries Limited and its remaining fleet and assets. The

Port Jackson and Manly Steamship Company The Port Jackson and Manly Steamship Company (PJ&MSC) was a publicly listed company that operated the Manly ferries in Sydney, Australia. After being taken over by Brambles Industries, the ferry service was eventually taken over by the State Go ...

, which ran the Manly service, was paid to run the services. The services and fleet were quickly rationalised with most of the larger remaining timber K-class steamers being decommissioned, however, the five relatively small and economical "Lady-class" ferries were retained. Throughout the remainder of the 1950s and into the 1960s, they became the back-bone of Sydney Harbour's non-Manly ferry fleet, along with '' Karginal'' and '' Karrabee'' the smallest of the K-class ferries. Their routes were expanded to all inner-harbour (ie, non-Manly) services including

Taronga Park Zoo Taronga Zoo is a zoo located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, in the suburb of Mosman, on the shores of Sydney Harbour. The opening hours are between 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Taronga is an Aboriginal word meaning 'beautiful water view'. ...

Milsons Point Milsons Point is a suburb on the lower North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The suburb is located 3 kilometres north of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of North Sydney Council. Mil ...

, Cremorne and

. The five sister ferries (except ''Lady Scott'') were re-engined again in the late 1950s and early 1960s. ''Lady Ferguson'' received a 4-cylinder 300 bhp

Crossley Brothers Crossley, based in Manchester, United Kingdom, was a pioneering company in the production of internal combustion engines. Since 1988 it has been part of the Rolls-Royce Power Engineering group. More than 100,000 Crossley oil and gas engines ...

diesel that pushed her to 10 knots. In the 1960s the Board updated all their ferries' 1930s green and gold livery to a more muted cream and khaki scheme.

Demise

Sydney ferries KOSCISUSKO and LADY FERGUSON boarded for trip to Hobart 1975

''Lady Ferguson'' was used as a relief vessel from 1963. In the 1970s, the fleet were painted in the

Public Transport Commission The Public Transport Commission (PTC) was an agency of the Government of New South Wales responsible for the provision of rail, bus and ferry services in New South Wales, Australia from October 1972 until June 1980. Upon dissolution, responsib ...

's blue and white scheme, except for ''Lady Ferguson'' who was the last ferry to wear the green and cream. By the 1970s, her condition was deteriorating and she was set aside for disposal in 1974. She was towed to

with '' Kosciusko'' in 1975 to assist following the collapse of the Tasman Bridge, however, upon arrival she was found to be in too poor condition to be used. She was broken up in 1977 in Hobart. ''Lady Chelmsford'', the first built of the five, was sold in 1969 and rebuilt as a show boat in Adelaide. She was sold to Melbourne interests in 1985 where she was used as a cruise boat. She sank at her moorings in 2008 and was broken up in 2011. ''Lady Scott'' was sold out of ferry service in 1969 and used as a cruise ferry. A 1972 fire destroyed her superstructure and she was rebuilt as the ''John Cadman'' and undertook a successful career as a cruise boat before being sold in 2000s and falling into disrepair and broken up in 1914. ''Lady Denman'' was pulled from ferry service in 1979 following the introduction that year of the new '' Lady Street''. She is now on permanent land display at Huskisson on the New South Wales south coast. ''Lady Edeline'' was the longest serving as a Sydney ferry being decommissioned in 1984 with the remaining wooden K-class ferries following the '' Karrabee's'' sinking earlier that year. She was laid up on the

Parramatta River The Parramatta River is an intermediate tide-dominated, drowned valley estuary located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. With an average depth of , the Parramatta River is the main tributary of Sydney Harbour, a branch of Port Jackson. Seco ...

and sank into the mud in 1988. Of the original five, only ''Lady Denman'' is extant.

Design and construction

Service history

Demise

See also

Notes

References

External links