On This Day
1900-1913 > Federation, RAN and pre-WW1
On This Day - 1900-1913
- September 10, 1905
VADM Sir Wilmot H. Fawkes, KCB, KCVO, was appointed Flag Officer Commanding the Australia Station. His flagship was HMS POWERFUL
- July 18, 1905
The naval prison at Garden Island, Sydney, was completed. It provided accommodation for 12 prisoners.
- January 12, 1905
Commonwealth Naval and Military Boards were constituted under the Defence Act of 1903-1904. The regular members of the Naval Board were the Minister for Defence, (Mr J. W. McKay) as President, the Director of Naval Forces, (CAPT William Creswell), and a civilian as finance member, (Mr J. A. Thompson). CMDR F. Brownlow, (Officer Commanding Naval Forces New South Wales), was named as consultative member.
- December 24, 1904
CAPT William Creswell was appointed Director of Naval Forces.
- November 10, 1904
Water tender RIPPLE, built by Foster & Minty, Balmain, NSW, underwent trials at Sydney. It served in the RAN from 1913 to
- March 1, 1904
Control of State Defence Forces was formerly transferred to the Commonwealth of Australia.
- November 17, 1903
The Daily Telegraph, Sydney reported:- ‘New Survey Ship For Australia. The British Admiralty has purchased the yacht CONSUELO, (owned by the 26th Earl of Crawford and Balcarres), for survey work in Australian waters’. The vessel was a screw schooner of 270 tons displacement, 50 metres long and 8.2 metres beam, built in 1887 by Robert Steele & Co., Greenock, Scotland. She was commissioned HMS INVESTIGATOR in 1903, and in 1904 changed to HMS SEALARK. She sailed from Portsmouth in September 1904. In 1919 the vessel was sold to the Patrick Steam Company, Sydney.
Subsequently her name was changed to SEALARK III in 1920, NORWEST in 1923, had a change of owner to William Waugh Ltd in 1925, and was removed from registry on 26/05/1925.
The figurehead depicting Helen Elizabeth Lambert, (daughter of the first owner Charles Lambert), was presented to the Naval Dockyard, Garden Island.
- August 3, 1903
The first Marines Corps formed in Australia were the New South Wales Marine Light Infantry, recruited as the Third Contingent to join New South Wales’ volunteers in South Africa. The unit sailed in the transport SALAMIS for China.
- July 3, 1903
Imperial ships of the Australia Station were:- ROYAL ARTHUR, (1st class cruiser); ARCHER, PHOEBE, and PYLADES, (3rd class cruisers); LIZARD, and TORCH, (gunboats).
- April 9, 1903
The first message received from a ship at sea to an Australian wireless station was transmitted by the Queensland gunboat, GAYUNDAH, to a receiving station in Brisbane. The historic message read:- ‘Gun drill continued this afternoon and was fairly successful-blowing squally and raining -prize firing tomorrow. Marconi insulators were interfered with by rain but easily rectified and communication since has been good. Good night.’ The ship’s aerial was a tall bamboo pole lashed to the mast.