On This Day
1850-1899 > Colonial Navies & RN
On This Day - 1850-1899
- March 25, 1859
The Australia Station was established as a separate command. The Station was defined in a minute from the Admiralty: “Australia Station:- Bounded on the North by the Parallel of 10 degrees of South Latitude, on the East by the Meridian of 170th degree of West Longitude, on the South by the Antarctic Circle, and on the West by the Meridian of 75th degree of East Longitude”. Ships from the Australia Station were involved in operations from Malaya to the west coast of America and the Pacific islands.
- February 23, 1859
Boats from HMVS VICTORIA rescued the crew of the sailing vessel B. NORRIS, which caught fire and sank in Port Phillip.
- October 20, 1858
The Victorian Government approved the building of a graving dock at Williamstown.
- October 9, 1858
The hulk MELBOURNE was the first ship to be slipped at Williamstown Dockyard, VIC.
- June 28, 1858
The Admiralty approved an expenditure of from £4000 to £6000 for rendering Garden Island, Sydney, available for the repair of HM ships.
- April 1, 1858
The following ships were on the Australia Station:-Sailing vessels; IRIS, (26 guns), SAPPHO, (12 guns), and BRAMBLE, (tender).Steam screw vessel; CORDELIA, (11 guns).
- February 20, 1858
HM Ships ELK, BOSCAWEN, and HMVS VICTORIA, searched Bass Strait and the south coast of Victoria for HMS SAPPHO which vanished without trace on a passage to Sydney.
- February 4, 1858
The Naval Brigade from the screw corvette HMS PELORUS, (CAPT F. P. B. Seymour, RN), landed at Rangoon to garrison Meaday Fort. PELORUS was flagship on the Australia Station in 1860.
- July 18, 1857
HMS PELORUS, (screw steam corvette), was commissioned at Plymouth, England, under CAPT Frederick B. P. Seymour, RN. PELORUS was flagship of the Australia Station in 1860, and during that year participated in the Battle of Taranaki in New Zealand. In this battle, CAPT Seymour was seriously wounded while leading a naval brigade of 600 men against the Maori defences.
- March 26, 1857
HMVS VICTORIA, (sloop of war), trained her guns on prison hulks anchored off Williamstown, VIC, during disturbances following the murder of John Price, (Inspector General of Prisons), by convicts.