The Australian Volunteer Coast Guard Association Inc.
HISTORY OF THE SOUTH HEAD SIGNAL STATION
| 1790 (January 21) | Captain Hunter of the warship HMS "Sirius" and a group of sailors created a Lookout Post by erecting tents at this spot. Later, the tents were replaced by a "tolerably good house". Captain Hunter had persuaded Governor Phillip to establish a lookout at South Head because for the previous 18 months a party of marines had trekked each week to Botany Bay to see if any ships.(being unaware of the settlement's removal to Port Jackson) had arrived from England. ("Sirius" was wrecked on Norfolk Island later in 1790). | |
| 1790 (February 10) | A flagstaff and some stone huts were erected (at what is thought to be Robertson Park) the "station" being under the command of Lieutenant Daniel Southwell of the "Sirius". A flag was raised for the first time on this site to signal the arrival of HMS "Supply" returning from Norfolk Island. | |
| 1790 (May) | A stone was erected. | |
| 1790 (June3 | Arrival of the first transport vessel "Lady Juliana" accompanying the Second Fleet (some two and a half years after the First Fleet) | |
| 1790 (September) | A nine-metre white stone pillar erected on a five-metre base | |
| 1791 | Lieutenant Southwell was relieved by Robert Watson (Watson's Bay) as a Signal Master. Watson later became pilot and harbour master. | |
| 1793 (January) | Australia's first navigation beacon. A bonfire was lit for the passenger ship "Bellona" which was carrying free settlers. | |
| 1794 | Each night a fire was lit in the metal basket suspended from a tripod. | |
| 1797 | Coal was discovered in Newcastle and replaced wood as the fuel source for the beacon which continued to guide vessels to Sydney Heads until Macquarie Light was built in 1818 | |
| 1800's (early) | Royal Navy Code of Flag Signals was added to the Colonial Signals and messages were relayed from the Signal Station flagstaff to Observatory Hill then to Kissing Point, Putney over to Dundas and on to Government House, Parramatta. This meant that the Governor could be informed within minutes of the type of vessel to arrive off Sydney Heads, where it had come from and what cargo it was carrying. | |
| 1811 | The first road to the Signal Station (Old South Head Road) was built to replace the track that signalers used to walk to and from the Settlement every 12 days. | |
| 1816 | Robert Watson, former Signal Master5, appointed first Lighthouse Keeper of Macquarie Light | |
| 1840 | Authorities decided to rebuild and re-equip for night
lookout and signaling. Semaphore replaced flag signaling. One hut was demolished, and then with convict labour, a two storey building was erected to a height just above the rounded windows. The basement housed signaling equipment and at times was used as a lock-up to restrain difficult or drunken workmen. The semaphore and flagstaff were moved several times. The present tower stands 700 feet north of the original Hunter tower. |
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| 1854 | With the outbreak of the Crimean War, a cannon was placed below the Signal Station to alert the Colony should the Russian Fleet arrive at Sydney Heads. | |
| 1856 | Post Master-General appointed Mrs. Jane Graham (wife of the Signal Master) to operate a postal service to serve the Watson's Bay area. | |
| 1857 (August 20) | The "Dunbar" was tragically wrecked below the Signal Station. Mrs. Graham heard the cries through the night and woke her husband who took no action. Early next morning, wreckage and one survivor (out of 121 passengers and crew was found) . | |
| 1858 (January 26) | To mark the 70th anniversary of Settlement, the first electric telegraph line in NSW was opened from the Signal Station to the Royal exchange in Bridge Street. | |
| 1890 | The top section of the Signal Station was added, raising it to its present height. | |
| 1990 (January) | Bicentenary celebrations mark 200 years continuous service of the Signal Station and Cottages which are classified by the National Trust and which are on the register of the National Estate. | |
| 1990 (November) | Discussions for closure of the Signal Station in hand while surveillance being planned using remote video cameras connected to the Ports Authority tower. | |
| 1992 (March) | The Port Jackson Flotilla of the Australian Volunteer Coast Guard Association (Coast Guard Sydney) takes over the Signal Station. Thus maintaining a 200-year history of one of Australia's most historic sites, the oldest facility in Australia that has been continuously manned since inception. | |
| 1998 (March) | Coast Guard Sydney celebrates six years of continuous
manning solely by unpaid volunteers. Coast Guard Sydney continues to maintain the tradition today by operating the South Head Signal Station as a Category 1 Marine Radio Base for Search and Rescue with minimal government assistance. |
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| 2008 (July) | The Signal Station has undergone a major refurbishment, both internal and external. In addition to a repaint, carpet has been updated and an air conditioner has been fitted to make working conditions more comfortable for the many Coast Guard volunteers who man the base every day of the year, Christmas Day excepted. | |
