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Extremely rare and important chart of Port Phillip Bay, published 18th June, 1838, by the Hydrographic Office, London, this edition with additions to 1842, on 1855 Whatman watermarked paper. Of all the Australian ports, Port Phillip Bay after the discovery … Read Full Description
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Extremely rare and important chart of Port Phillip Bay, published 18th June, 1838, by the Hydrographic Office, London, this edition with additions to 1842, on 1855 Whatman watermarked paper. Of all the Australian ports, Port Phillip Bay after the discovery of gold in 1851 was by far the busiest Australian port. The Hydrographic Office realised the absolute necessity in having accurate charts for safe navigation to and from Australia.
The Victorian Gold Discovery Committee wrote in 1854:
The discovery of the Victorian Goldfields has converted a remote dependency into a country of worldwide fame; it has attracted a population, extraordinary in number, with unprecedented rapidity; it has enhanced the value of property to an enormous extent; it has made this the richest country in the world; and, in less than three years, it has done for this colony the work of an age, and made its impulses felt in the most distant regions of the earth.
Collections:
National Library Australia: Bib ID 3791304
State Library NSW: Call Numbers Z/Charts G 821.01/1 (1842)
Hydrographic charting of Australia History ( - )
Naval policy dictated that Admiralty charts be destroyed when superseded to avoid navigational error. It was during Rear Admiral John Washington’s period as the Admiralty’s hydrographer, 1855-1863, that a series of agreements were drawn up with the Australian colonies. These agreements provided boats and crews for use by officers lent from the Royal Navy to chart the coasts and shoal waters in the approaches to the rapidly developing towns, communication with which was seriously hampered by the the frequency of shipwrecks. It had been the discovery of gold and the consequent rush of miners and emigrants from not only England but California that added greatly the numbers of ships sailing to Australia’s east coast. This led to numerous petitions being made to Her Majesty’s Government to chart the eastern approaches to Australia to make for safer passage for shipping.
View other items by Hydrographic charting of Australia History
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