HMAS CANBERRA at naval buoy number 1
Photographer
Frederick Garner Wilkinson
(1901-1975)
Date1932
Object number00037693
NameGlass plate negative
MediumEmulsion on glass
DimensionsOverall: 82 x 103 mm, 2 mm, 0.04 kg
ClassificationsPhotographs
Credit LineANMM Collection Purchased with USA Bicentennial Gift funds
DescriptionHMAS CANBERRA is shown at naval buoy number 1 Farm Cove on 5 March 1932. This photograph was taken by Frederick Wilkinson during a trip from Circular Quay to Mosman via Garden Island and Cremorne, Sydney.HistoryHMAS CANBERRA was a Kent sub-class design of the County class heavy cruiser of the Royal Australian Navy built by John Brown & Co Ltd at Clydebank, Scotland in 1925. It was the sister ship of HMAS AUSTRALIA and HM ships KENT, BRUNSWICK, CORNWALL, CUMBERLAND and SUFFOLK. After spending its first five months in British waters CANBERRA transferred to Australia and acted as flagship of the Australia Station on a number of occasions.
When World War II broke out HMAS CANBERRA conducted patrols and escorted convoys in Australian waters and the Tasman Sea from 1939-1940. In 1940 it began escort services in the Indian Ocean. In May 1942 CANBERRA was stationed in Sydney to undergo refitting and was present during the Japanese midget submarine attack on Sydney Harbour. In August 1942 CANBERRA was used to support American troop landings in Guadalcanal and Tulagi. It was during this period that the cruiser was torpedoed twice and sunk in the midst of fierce fighting during the Battle of Savo Island, 9 August 1942.
SignificanceThis photograph is representative of HMAS CANBERRA in Sydney Harbour during 1932. The print is part of the F G Wilkinson Photograph Collection, comprising more than 700 glass plate negatives of ships in Sydney Harbour between 1919 and 1936. The collection provides an extensive and well-documented coverage of the changing styles of shipping in the port of Sydney before the decline of the coastal trade. The backgrounds also reveal the changing face of the city and harbour foreshores.
