Port Jackson

Port Jackson
A Sydney Catamaran ferry on Sydney Harbour
Location	Sydney, New South Wales
Coordinates	33°51′30″S 151°14′00″E / 33.85833°S 151.23333°E / -33.85833; 151.23333Coordinates: 33°51′30″S 151°14′00″E / 33.85833°S 151.23333°E / -33.85833; 151.23333
River sources	Parramatta, Lane Cove, Middle Harbour
Ocean/sea sources	Tasman Sea of the South Pacific Ocean
Basin countries	Australia
Islands	Clark, Shark, Goat, Fort Denison
Settlements	Sydney

Port Jackson, containing Sydney Harbour, is the natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman Sea (part of the South Pacific Ocean). Widely considered to be one of the world's finest harbours, it is known for its beauty, and in particular, as the location of the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge which connects central Sydney with the Northern Suburbs region extended metropolitan area. Its entrance is between North and South Heads, where naval and military stations are located.

The location of the first European settlement in Australia, the harbour has continued to play a key role in the history and development of Sydney. The city itself lies on the southern shore. The Parramatta River forms the harbour's western arm.

Many recreational events are based on or around the harbour itself particularly the Sydney New Year's Eve celebrations and the starting point of the Sydney to Hobart yacht race.

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 Wangal 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 first recorded European discovery of Sydney Harbour, was by Lieutenant James Cook in 1770 - Cook named the inlet after Sir George Jackson, (one of the Lord Commissioners of the British Admiralty, and Judge Advocate of the Fleet).^[1] His ship's log notation states "at noon we where...about 2 or 3 miles from the land and abrest of a bay or harbour within there appeared to be a safe anchorage which I called Port Jackson."

Eighteen years later, on 21 January 1788, after arriving at Botany Bay, Governor Arthur Phillip took a longboat and two cutters up the coast to examine Cook's Port Jackson. Phillip first stayed over night at Camp Cove, then moved down the harbour, landing at Sydney Cove and then Manly Cove before returning to Botany Bay on the afternoon of the 24 January. Phillip returned to Sydney Cove in H.M. Armed Tender Supply on 26 January 1788, where he established the first colony in Australia, later to become the city of Sydney. In his first dispatch from the colony back to England, Governor Phillip noted that:^[2][3]

"...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..."

— Governor Arthur Phillip, 15 May 1788.

In 1942, to protect Sydney Harbour from a submarine attack, the 'Sydney Harbour anti-submarine boom net' was constructed. It spanned the harbour from Green (Laings) Point, Watsons Bay to Georges Head, Mosman, which is on the other 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 World War II, and all that remains are the foundations of the old boom net winch house, which can be viewed on Green (Laings) Point, Watsons Bay. Today, that Japanese midget submarine remains on static display at the Australian War Memorial.^[4]

Fortifications

A number of former fortifications line Sydney Harbour, some of which are now heritage listed. The earliest date from the 1830s, and were designed to defend Sydney from seaborn attack or convict uprisings. There are four historical fortifications located between Taronga 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.^[5][6]

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 million cubic metres. The perimeter of the estuary is 317 kilometres.

According to the Geographical Names Board of New South Wales, 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."^[7] 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. Many of these bays include beaches. Sydney's major central business district begins at Circular Quay, a small bay on the south side that has, over time, had its semicircle 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 NSW Roads and Maritime Services.

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. Exposed at low tide is Sow and Pigs Reef, a well-known navigation obstacle near the main shipping lane.

Tributaries and waterways

• Tank Stream is a fresh water course which empties into Sydney Cove. Today it is little more than a storm water drain but originally it was the fresh water supply for the fledgling colony of New South Wales in the late 18th century. It originated from a swamp to the west of present day Hyde Park and at high tide entered Sydney Cove at the intersection of Bridge and Pitt Streets.

• Middle Harbour is the northern arm of Sydney Harbour. It begins as a small creek (Middle Harbour Creek) at St Ives.^[8] It joins Port Jackson between the two headlands, Middle Head and Grotto Point Reserve, adjacent to the Sydney Heads.

• Parramatta River is the main tributary of Sydney Harbour, a branch of Port Jackson. The river begins at confluence of Toongabbie Creek and Darling Mills Creek west of Parramatta and travels in an easterly direction to a line between Greenwich Point, Greenwich, and Robinsons Point, Birchgrove. Here it flows into Port Jackson, still about 21 km from the ocean.^[9]

• Johnstons Creek is located in the inner-western suburbs of Glebe, Annandale, Forest Lodge and Stanmore. It rises in Stanmore and flows in a generally northward direction towards Rozelle Bay. The creek passes beneath the stands of Harold Park Paceway prior to emptying into Rozelle Bay at Bicentennial Park Glebe. Orphan School Creek is a tributary of Johnstons Creek.

Sydney Harbour at night, with the Opera House and Harbour Bridge.

Maritime transport

Sydney Ferries is an agency of the New South Wales Department of Transport, providing ferry services on Sydney Harbour and the Parramatta River in Sydney, Australia. Most ferry wharves, aside from those concentrated around the Central Business District, lie on the northern banks of the harbour, or on the southern bank, east of the Harbour Bridge. There is a lesser concentration of ferry wharves in the western areas of the harbour.

A service runs to Parramatta, along the Parramatta River, which is serviced by the RiverCat vessels, a large catamaran type ferry.

In addition to the state owned ferry service, private ferry operators run a fast commuter service between Manly and the city during peak times. Fast services on this route are now offered by private operators, following the Government decision in December 2009 to cease the premium service operated by Sydney Ferries.

Finally, a small number of water taxi and water limousine operators are active on the harbour, offering transport to individuals and groups who do not wish to travel by ferry. These water taxis are not restricted by timetables or specific routes,^[10] and can also provide a service to or from private wharfs and houses on the waterfront.

Derivative unit of measure

A Sydharb is a unit of volume used in Australia for water. One sydharb (or sydarb), also called a Sydney Harbour, is the amount of water in the Sydney Harbour (Port Jackson): approximately 500 gigalitres (410,000 acre·ft).^[11]

Gallery

• 

  The QE2 docked at Sydney Harbour, looking towards Circular Quay and the Sydney CBD.

• 

  View of Port Jackson and Sydney's CBD.

• 

  Sydney Harbour

• 

  Sydney Harbour and Port Jackson displaying aerial views of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House. The CBD is located to the far left of the photo.

• 

  Port Jackson, as seen from Rose Bay.

• 

  This is the view of Sydney Harbour from Millers point.

• 

  Sow and Pigs Reef Danger Marker in Sydney Harbour.

See also

• List of bridges in Sydney

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sydney Harbour.

• NSW Maritime Authority
• Maps maintained by the New South Wales Maritime Authority, which legally is the owner of the harbour bed:
  • Port Jackson—east of Harbour Bridge
  • Port Jackson—west of Harbour Bridge
• "Sydney Harbour and Parramatta River catchment" (map). Office of Environment and Heritage. Government of New South Wales. 
• 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.
• A Living Harbour A history of Sydney Harbour from ABC Radio National

v t e Sydney New Year's Eve Events 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 Venues Main venues Sydney Harbour Harbour Bridge Opera House Dawes Point Royal Botanic Gardens Circular Quay Other vantage points Clark Island Cockatoo Island Darling Harbour Fort Denison Goat Island Shark Island The Rocks Waverton Related Bridge Effect 9pm Family Fireworks Midnight Fireworks

v t e Australian places named on the First voyage of James Cook in 1770 Victoria 19 April: Point Hicks Ram Head 20: Cape Howe New South Wales 21 April: Mount Dromedary Batemans Bay 22 April: Pigeon House 25 April: Red Point 28 April: Botany Bay* 6 May: Port Jackson Broken Bay 11 May: Point Stephens Port Stephens Cape Hawke 12 May: The Three Brothers 13 May: Smoky Cape 15 May: Solitary Isles Cape Byron 16 May: Mount Warning Queensland 16 May: Point Danger 17 May: Point Lookout Cape Moreton Morton Bay The Glass Houses 18 May: Double Island Point 19 May: Indian Head Sandy Cape 21 May: Herveys Bay 23 May: Bustard Bay* 25 May: Cape Capricorn 26 May: Keppel Isles 27 May: Keppel Bay 27 May: Cape Manyfold 28 May: Shoal Water Bay Northumberland Isles 1 June: Long Isle Broad Sound 2 June: Slade Point 4 June: Whitsundays Passage Cape Gloucester 6 June: Magnetical Island Palm Isles 8 June: Halifax Bay Dunk Island 9 June: Frankland Islands Fitzroy Island 10 June: Green Isle Trinity Bay Cape Tribulation 14 June – 4 August: Endeavour River* 11 August: Lizard Island* Eagle Island* 18 August: Sir Charles Hardy's Isles 19 August: Cape Grenville 21 August: York Cape 22 August: Possession Island* Prince of Wales' Isles 23 August: Booby Island* *Places where Cook landed

v t e Waterways of the Sydney Metropolitan catchment, New South Wales, Australia Ocean inlets, harbours and bays Botany Bay Broken Bay Middle Harbour Port Jackson Port Hacking Rivers Cooks Duck Georges Hacking Hawkesbury Lane Cove Nepean Parramatta Pittwater Woronora Creeks A'Becketts Angus Archer Badgerys Bardwell Bare Bellamy Farm Bellbird Bells Berowra Bidjigal Bilgola Blacktown Blaxland Blue Gum Boggywell Breakfast Brennans Brickmakers Bunbury Curran Bungarribee Burdekin Byrnes Cabramatta Caddies Cahill Camp Careel Carroll Charity Claremont Clear Paddock Creek Coal and Candle Coopers Cosgrove Cowan Coxs (Belfield) Cup and Saucer Darling Mills Deadmans Devlin Duck Eastern Erskine Eskdale Excelsior Finlaysons First Ponds Forbes Frenchs Glenbrook Gore Grantham Greystanes Haslams Hunts Iron Cove Johnstons Kemps Lalor Little Lowes Marsden McCarrs McKenzies McMahon's Maxwells Middle Harbour Mill Minchinbury O'Hares Orphan School Orphan School (Fairfield) Pendle Hill Powells Prospect Punchbowl Quakers Reedy Rileys Ropes Saleyards Salt Pan Sawmill Scout Second Ponds Smalls Smiths South Still Stoney Subiaco Tarban Terrys Thompsons Toongabbie Two Vineyard Werrington Whites Williams Wolli Lagoons Dee Why Curl Curl Manly Narrabeen Canals and streams Alexandra Canal Busby's Bore Hawthorne Canal Tank Stream Reservoirs Balmain Reservoir (disused) Lake Burragorang Lake Parramatta Prospect Reservoir Upper Nepean Scheme Adjoining rivers and bays Brisbane Water Burke Cataract Colo Cordeaux Coxs Grose Hollanders Jenolan Jooriland Kedumba Kowmung Macdonald Mooney Mooney Mulwaree Nattai Tarlo Warragamba Wollondilly