Lady Chelmsford
 Lady Chelmsford in 1970
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Australia | |
| Name | Lady Chelmsford |
| Namesake | Frances Thesiger, Viscountess Chelmsford |
| Operator |
|
| Builder | Rock Davis, Blackwall, New South Wales |
| Launched | 14 April 1910 |
| Out of service | 1971 |
| Fate | Sank at her moorings 2008, broken up 2011 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Lady-class ferry, 3rd series |
| Displacement | 98 t (96 long tons; 108 short tons) |
| Length | 110 ft (34 m) |
| Beam | 9.80 ft (2.99 m) |
| Height | 24.70 ft (7.53 m) |
| Speed | 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph) 11 kn (20 km/h; 13 mph) (from 1957) |
| Capacity | 446 |
| Notes | [1] |
Lady Chelmsford was a Sydney Harbour ferry built in 1910 for the Balmain New Ferry Company. She and four similar ferries, Lady Denman (1912), Lady Edeline (1913), Lady Ferguson (1914), and Lady Scott (1914), were a new series of "Lady-class" ferries designed by naval architect Walter Reeks.
Lady Chelmsford and her four sisters survived the 1932 opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and were converted to diesel power that decade. They also survived the 1951 NSW State Government takeover of the ailing ferry fleet.
Design and construction
[edit]![[icon]](/wiki/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (September 2024) |
In common with most Sydney Harbour ferries at the time, Lady Chelmsford 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, an arrangement favoured by Walter Reeks. The Balmain New Ferry Company predicted that the Sydney Harbour Bridge would open in the late 1920s or early 1930s, and as such, Lady Chelmsford and her sister ships were designed to have a short lifespan of 15 years, being of light construction and had corrugated iron for their roof.[2]
Service history
[edit] | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (September 2024) |
Lady Chelmsford was the first of five in the Balmain's company's final series of "Lady-class" ferries introduced to replace the single-ended ferries on the Lane Cove River service.[3]
In 1933 or 1934, Lady Chelmsford was the first of her class to be converted given a Gardiner diesel engine, with her operational crew being reduced from five to three, and could run for nearly three weeks without refueling. With the modernisation deemed a success, the remaining four Lady-class ferries, as well as K-class ferries Karingal and Karrabee were similarly converted to diesel power during the 1930s.[2][1]
On 11 November 1950, Lady Chelmsford operated the last Lane Cove River ferry service, departing Circular Quay at 6:30 pm with 70 passengers on board for Longueville.[4]
Post-ferry career
[edit] | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (September 2024) |
After being sold by the Sydney Harbour Transport Board in 1971, Lady Chelmsford was repurposed as a showboat in Adelaide, with her aft wheelhouse being removed.[5] She served in this role there until being replaced by a purpose-built vessel in 1985, and Lady Chelmsford was sold again to Bill Leahy for use in Melbourne.[6]
On 6 December 2002, Lady Chelmsford was involved in a collision with the moored cabin cruiser Rob Roy, resulting in minor damage to both ships but no injuries.[7]
In February 2008, Lady Chelmsford sank at her moorings in Melbourne.[8] Due to her fragile structural integrity and salvaging cost, she was broken up on site in June 2011.[9]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b "Lady Chelmsford". ferriesofsydney.com. Archived from the original on 27 February 2016. Retrieved 31 August 2024.
- ^ a b "Lady Denman". arhv.sea.museum.
- ^ "Obituary, Lady Scott (1914-1969)" (PDF). Trolley Wire: 14–15. June 1969.
- ^ "Lights Flashed Farewell To Last Ferry". The Sydney Morning Herald. 11 November 1950. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
- ^ "Lady Chelmsford: History". ladychelmsford.com. Archived from the original on 3 January 2009. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
- ^ Description for MV Lady Chelmsford: The Ocean Voyage by Olsen, Phil. 2002. ISBN 9781864770155
- ^ "Lady Chelmsford (Reference: 13)" (PDF). www.marinesafety.vic.gov.au. Marine Safety Victoria. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 April 2006. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
- ^ Tullberg, Julie (19 February 2008). "Old ferry sinks in Melbourne Harbour". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
- ^ "Vale Lady Chelmsford". Dockland News. 29 June 2011. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
Bibliography
[edit]- Andrews, Graeme (1975). The Ferries of Sydney. A.H. & A.W. Reed Pty Ltd. ISBN 0589071726.
- Andrews, Graeme (1982). A Pictorial History of Ferries: Sydney and Surrounding Waterways. Sydney: AH & AW Reed Pty Ltd. ISBN 0589503863.
- Gunter, John (1978). Across the Harbour: The Story of Sydney's Ferries. Rigby. ISBN 0727007157.
- Prescott, A M (1984). Sydney Ferry Fleets. Magill, South Australia: Ronald H Parsons. ISBN 0-909418-30-6.
External links
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Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 2008 | |
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