Spectacle Island History
The Future of Spectacle Island
The Minister for Defence recently announced plans to divest Spectacle Island from the Australian defence estate.
It’s no surprise that Spectacle Island hasn’t yet featured much in the public conversation about this plan. After all, the Island has not been accessible by the general public since the 1860s and as a result is little known by the wider NSW community.
It is one of the harbour’s heritage gems, an isolated, tightly packed group of reasonably well-maintained buildings almost all predating the 1920s. A Commonwealth-listed heritage place, it served successively as a NSW colonial government powder magazine, a Royal Navy armament depot and finally a Royal Australian Navy armament depot. In the most recent heritage management plan for the Island, in 2013, the Island was assessed thus:
"The place has significant heritage values meeting the Commonwealth Heritage threshold at an exceptional level. The assessment indicates that the whole site has potential National Heritage values which would be the subject of a future assessment. The island as a whole is ranked as Exceptional ... with outstanding values to the nation."
Spectacle Island needs to find another use in public ownership that respects and maintains its heritage status, ensures public access, and generates sufficient revenue to pay for its ongoing maintenance.
With an island landform, a harbour location, probable susceptibility to sea level rise, First Nations interest and heritage classification, its future is going to be a planning challenge for both government and the community.
For a quick visual overview of the Island view 160 photos in my Flickr photo album.
For a balanced opinion from the Sydney Morning Herald see: An incredibly rare proposition’: Sydney Harbour island up for sale.
The Island's history
Spectacle Island is in Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour, Australia), offshore from the suburb of Drummoyne and close by Cockatoo Island, a former naval dockyard. Initially a powder magazine operated by the Colony of New South Wales, it later became a Royal Navy ordnance depot and subsequently the initial headquarters of the RAN Armament Depot Sydney.
Spectacle Island, July 1987 Facing East; Cockatoo Island to Left, Snapper Island to Right; Ammunition Lighters at Mooring Trots; Crane Stores Lighter at Front Wharf
2013 was a triple anniversary for the Island - 150 years since construction of its colonial powder magazine was commenced, 130 years since the Island was transferred to the Royal Navy for its use as a naval ordnance depot, and 100 years since it was transferred to the Royal Australian Navy. The Island is a Commonwealth-listed heritage place (Place ID: 105393), still used by the Navy as an operational base. It is one of only 2 Sydney Harbour islands which are currently inaccessible to the general public, and hence is not well known by Sydney residents.
Spectacle Island was known as Gong-ul in the language of the Aboriginal inhabitants (Kohen, 1993; Attenbrow, 2002). For more information about the naming of the island, and to view early map representations, see Spectacle Island - What's In a Name?
Explore the history of Spectacle Island through the links below.
Naval guns being prepared to be placed in reserve storage at Spectacle Island, 1940. From the collection of the Australian War Memorial. (http://cas.awm.gov.au/item/001648)
The construction of the Spectacle Island powder magazine was a direct result of the overcrowding of the Goat Island magazine; the latter being used for storage of merchant's powder as well as the military and naval powder. On 12 February 1861 the Foreman of Magazines at Goat Island wrote to the Assistant Military Storekeeper...
Read What the Foreman Wrote - and Explore the History of the Colonial Powder Magazine, the Royal Navy Ordnance Depot and the RAN Armament Depot.
The Spectacle Island Chronology page contains additional information.
Lieutenant William Bradley, first lieutenant in the SIRIUS accompanied Captain Hunter in a boat party to survey the harbour very soon after the arrival of the First Fleet in 1788.
Bradley's Journal Account of Spectacle Island
Spectacle Island in the 1920s. From the collection of the National Archives of Australia. (Image # C4076, HN5516D)
James Gorman VC, a hero of the Crimean War, took up the position as the foreman of the magazines on Spectacle Island in 1881. Read more about James Gorman and his remarkable life, by courtesy of author Harry Willey, whose 20 year's of research into James Gorman's life enabled the true story to be told.
"In 1933 a short history of Spectacle Island was prepared as a typescript to celebrate the jubilee of the commencement of naval usage of the site. The identity of the author is given by the initials "R.A.B.", believed to be Reginald Arnold Ball, who at that time was an Assistant Armament Supply Officer stationed at the Island.
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Jubilee History of Spectacle Island
"No amount of drenching will extinguish a box of Cordite when once it has taken fire, and efforts should in such an event be directed to preventing the neighbouring boxes from being ignited."
Spectacle Island Fire Regulations.
"The City Coroner (Mr. J. C. Woore) held an inquest yesterday at the City Coroner's Court respecting the death of George Halse, 35, a single man, who died from the effects of an explosion at Spectacle Island on Saturday last."
A list was compiled in 1902 showing the date of erection of each building present at that time on Spectacle Island. It also shows those buildings that were in the course of erection or which were then proposed. It serves to identify the early stages of the island's development.
Early Buildings on Spectacle Island.
Sydney, NSW. 1940-05. Cordite being tested. From the collection of the Australian War Memorial. (http://cas.awm.gov.au/item/001638)
What did the Royal Navy keep at Spectacle Island?
Imperial stockholdings at Spectacle Island.
Henry Douglas Capper, Gunner RN, was appointed as Officer-In-Charge of the Naval Ordnance Depot, Spectacle Island in 1894, following on from Henry Bennett. He was to serve in the post until 1900. Capper was one of the more interesting people to have been associated with Spectacle Island.
Extracts from Henry Capper's Autobiography Aft - From the Hawsehole - HTML version
Extracts from Henry Capper's Autobiography Aft - From the Hawsehole - Adobe Acrobat * (PDF, 31KB) version
The Australian Navy was designated as the Royal Australian Navy on 10 July 1911. When its assembled ships first entered Sydney Harbour on 4 October 1913, the Naval Ordnance Depot, Spectacle Island had been transferred from the Royal Navy and stood ready to meet the needs of the new fleet.
Small boats, lighters and other support craft were essential to the operation of Spectacle Island during its life as an explosives depot. What was the "Ditty Box"?
Spectacle Island Support Craft.
"When embarking or disembarking explosives at a ship or wharf steps are always to be taken by the Lighterman to see that fire hoses would be readily available should the necessity arise."
Fire Regulations Governing the Embarkation and Disembarkation of Explosives - 1928.
"Dinner was just over and on the northern side of the stone cottage which answered the double purpose of guard and mess room a number of bare footed blue-jackets were basking in the sun. From the little of them visible, or about from their ankles to their great toes, they seemed young active lads who grumbled, perhaps, occasionally but on the whole faced life and its worries with easy carelessness."
Read an Account of a Visit to Spectacle Island in 1891
There have been many "Officers-in-Charge" of the Spectacle Island depot, some of whom have had interesting lives in other fields.
Read about some of the people associated with Spectacle Island
Spectacle Island in the newspapers?
Take a mid-20th century photographic tour through this depot.
Sources of further information
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