Port Jackson
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Port Jackson, containing Sydney Harbour, is the natural harbour of Sydney, Australia. It is known for its beauty, and in particular, as the location of the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge.
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[edit] History
The land around Port Jackson was occupied at the time of European discovery and colonisation by various tribes including the Gadigal, Cammeraygal, Eora and Wanegal peoples. The Gadigal people are said to have occupied the land stretching along the south side of Port Jackson from what is now South Head, in an arc west through to Petersham. The Cammeraygal lived on the northern side of the harbour. The area along the southern banks of the Parramatta River, west of Petersham to Rose Hill, was reported to belong to the Wanegal. The Eora people lived on the southern side of the harbour, close to where the First Fleet settled.
The harbour's discovery by Europeans is credited to Lt James Cook in 1770, although he did not enter it. Cook named the harbour after Sir George Jackson, Judge Advocate of the Fleet at the time; he noted in his log that "there appears to be a good anchorage". Captain Arthur Phillip established the first colony in Australia at Sydney Cove inside Port Jackson in 1788 which was to become the city of Sydney. In his first dispatch from the colony back to England letter noted that "...we had the satisfaction of finding the finest harbour in the world, in which a thousand sail of the line may ride in the most perfect security..."[1].
In 1942, to protect Sydney Harbour from a submarine attack, an anti-submarine boom net was constructed on Green (laings) Point, Watsons Bay. It spanned the harbour from Green Point to Georges Head on the north side of the harbour. On the night of 31 May 1942, three Japanese midget submarines attempted to enter the harbour, one of which became entangled in the western end of the boom net's central section. Unable to free their submarine, the crew detonated charges to destroy it, killing themselves in the process. The anti-submarine boom net was demolished soon after WWII, and all that remains are the foundations of the old boom net winch house, which can be viewed on Green (Laings) Point Watsons Bay.[2]
[edit] Fortifications
A number of former fortifications line Sydney Harbour, some of which are now heritage listed. Dawes Battery (located under the southern end of the Sydney Harbour Bridge) was recently excavated, revealing works from the 1830s. Other forts date back to 1871 and were built following the removal of British forces from Australia (the Cardwell Reforms) in 1870, which left the colony of New South Wales to organise its own defences. The fortifications and gun emplacements were designed to defend Sydney town in the event of a seaborn attack and to beat down any convict uprisings. There are four historical fortifications located between Toronga Zoo and Middle Head, Mosman, they are; the Middle Head Fortifications, the Georges Head Battery, the Lower Georges Heights Commanding Position and a small fort located on Bradleys Head, known as the Bradleys Head Fortification Complex. The forts were built from sandstone quarried on site and consist of various tunnels, underground rooms, open batteries and casemated batteries, shell rooms, gunpowder magazines, barracks and trenches.[3][4]
[edit] Geography
Geologically, Port Jackson is a drowned river valley, or ria. It is 19 km long with an area of 55 km². The estuary's volume at high tide is 562,000 megalitres. The perimeter of the estuary is 317 kilometres.
According to the Geographical Names Board of NSW, Port Jackson is "a harbour which comprises all the waters within an imaginary line joining North Head and South Head. Within this harbour lies North Harbour, Middle Harbour and Sydney Harbour." These three harbours extend from the single entrance (known as Sydney Heads (North and South Heads)). North Harbour is the shortest, and is really just a large bay extending to Manly. Middle Harbour extends to the north-west. It is bridged at The Spit and Roseville. Its headwaters lie in Garigal National Park. The longest arm, Sydney Harbour, extends west as far as Balmain, where it is fed by the estuaries of the Parramatta and Lane Cove rivers. Port Jackson is bridged by the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the ANZAC Bridge (formerly known as the Glebe Island Bridge). A tunnel, the Sydney Harbour Tunnel passes underneath the Harbour, to the east of the bridge, and in 2005 it was proposed that a third harbour crossing, this time a railway line, be constructed to the west of the bridge. The harbour is heavily embayed. The bays on the south side tend to be wide and rounded, whereas those on the north side are generally narrow inlets. Sydney's major central business district begins at Circular Quay, a small bay on the south side that has, over time, had its semi-circle reclaimed by land to the point where it is a rectangular quay. The northern side of the harbour is mainly used for residential purposes.
The waterways of Port Jackson are managed by the New South Wales Maritime Authority.
[edit] Islands
There are several islands within the harbour, including Shark Island, Clark Island, Fort Denison, Goat Island, Cockatoo Island, Spectacle Island, Snapper Island and Rodd Island. Some other former islands, including Bennelong Island, Garden Island and Berry Island, have subsequently been linked to the shore by land reclamation.
[edit] Sydney Harbour Ferries
Sydney Ferries is a state-owned corporation of the New South Wales Government providing commuter and tourist passenger ferry services in Sydney Harbour.
[edit] Tributaries and Waterways of Port Jackson
- North Harbour
- Middle Harbour
- Parramatta River
- Lane Cove River
- Middle Harbour Creek
- White's Creek
- Gordon Creek
- Iron Cove Creek
- Hawthorne Canal
- Moores Creek
- Johnston's Creek
- Scott's Creek
- Powell's Creek
- Haslam's Creek
- Duck River
- Subiaco Creek
- Vineyard Creek
- Toongabbie Creek
- Darling Mills Creek
[edit] References
- ^ NSW Govt Printer (1892), Historical Records of New South Wales, Vol 1, Part 2 (1783-1792) pages 67-70. cited in statusquo.org
- ^ NPWS plaque
- ^ [1]
- ^ heritage.nsw.gov.au
[edit] External links
- NSW Maritime Authority
- Maps maintained by the New South Wales Maritime Authority, which legally is the owner of the harbour bed:
- Sydney Harbour Federation Trust Established by the Australian Government to plan for the future of former Defence and other special Commonwealth Lands around Sydney Harbour.
- Geographic Names Board of New South Wales reference to Port Jacksonde:Port Jackson
es:Bahía de Sydney fa:بندرگاه سیدنی gl:Baía de Jackson id:Port Jackson it:Port Jackson he:מפרץ ג'קסון ja:ポート・ジャクソン湾 pl:Port Jackson pt:Baía de Sydney vi:Port Jackson
