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The Melbourne Harbor Trust was established in 1877 to improve and operate port facilities for the growing city of Melbourne. It was superseded by the Port of Melbourne Authority in 1978 and later by the Port of Melbourne Corporation.
In the 1860s and 1870s, agitation for the establishment of a trust on the lines of those on the Mersey at Liverpool, and especially the Clyde Navigation Trust (which was run by Glasgow's leading merchants), came predominantly from the Melbourne Chamber of Commerce. However, Williamstown and Geelong interests opposed the measure, while Alfred Clark (the member of parliament for Williamstown) warned "...if ships were to be taken up the river then grass will grow on the piers and streets of Williamstown." The trust reflected Melbourne mercantile interests but the government was hostile towards it. [1]
At the time there was little coordinated management or development of Melbourne ports facilities, with a variety of privately built wharves and jetties constructed along the Yarra River, as well as piers at Port Melbourne (formerly known as Sandridge) and Williamstown. Vessel movements and berthings, navigational aids, and wharfage rates, were the responsibility of the Ports and Harbours Branch under the Department of Trade and Customs. [2]
The trust was created after several boards of inquiry into means to improve access for shipping to Melbourne, and a specific Act of Parliament was finally passed in 1876. [3] The first appointment of fifteen commissioners, who represented various interests in the Port, was on 30 March 1877, with a meeting on 11 April 1877 to elect office bearers: James Lorimer being appointed the Trust's first chairman.
British engineer, Sir John Coode, was commissioned to advise on port improvements. Coode produced a scheme involving a large dock basin (Victoria Dock) and bypassing a large bend in the river through a new cut, now known as the Coode Canal. However, the works could not commence until 1883 when a coalition government united the previously opposing groups. Under Coode's Plan, heavily modified by the Trust's own engineer, Joseph Brady, [4] the Yarra was deepened and cleared of obstructions, and the Coode Canal was excavated, opening in 1886. Excavation of Victoria Dock was underway in 1891, opening in 1896. The Trust also undertook the filling of the Sandridge Lagoon and dredging the deep-water channel to the Port Melbourne piers. [1] Dock construction under the original harbour trust scheme continued into the 1920s. [5]
By 1927 the trust was employing more than 1000 men Melbourne, and was the eighth largest deep-water port in the British Empire. After 1945 new facilities were developed downstream, including Appleton (1956), Webb (1960) and Swanson (1969) docks, [1] each of which was named after chairman of the trust – William Thomas Appleton (1859–1930), chairman 5 April 1911 to 22 January 1913; John Percival Webb OBE chairman from 27 May 1941 to 31 August 1971; and Victor Swanson from 1960 to 1972. [6] [7]
Other commissioners and chairmen included the following:
The purpose of the trust was ...to provide for the Regulation, Management and Improvement of the Port of Melbourne and certain portions of the River Yarra Yarra and certain portions of the Saltwater River....[including the regulation of the trade of the port with respect to such matters as landing of shipping of merchandise, arrivals and departures of vessels, wharfage rates...management of port facilities, [and] improvements to the port. [2]
Two additional commissioners were appointed on 14 November 1883. [8] Until 1900 the Melbourne Harbor Trust Commissioners were responsible to the Commissioner of Trade and Customs, and afterwards to the Minister for Public Works. There was a major reconstitution of the trust in 1913 whereby seventeen elected commissioners were replaced with five commissioners appointed by the Governor-in-Council. These five included a full-time Chairman and four representatives of ship owners, exporters, importers and primary producers. The trust also gained responsibility for the railway piers at Port Melbourne and Williamstown from 1 December 1913, bringing all the wharves, piers and jetties within the Port of Melbourne under the one authority. A sixth commissioner was appointed to represent port workers in 1954, perhaps indicating the growing influence of the Dockworkers Union. [2]
The trust was reorganised in 1978 to form the Port of Melbourne Authority, in line with modern organizational naming practice around the world, although its functions did not change greatly. It moved from its grand 1930 Market Street head office to the World Trade Centre (Melbourne) in 1983. Subsequent restructuring in 1997 saw the Melbourne Port Corporation take over property and assets, the Victorian Channels Authority berthing responsibilities, and Melbourne Port Services privatised and put out to tender. The Port of Melbourne Corporation was formed on 1 July 2003, taking over the Melbourne Port Corporation, and the Victorian Channels Authority. [9]
Maintenance workshops erected in Williamstown. [10]
The trust operated a series of dredges including:
The North and South Wharves were extended downstream, and in the 1930s–1950s Appleton Dock was reconstructed and extended, followed by Swanson Dock, and Webb Dock. [13]
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The Yarra River or historically, the Yarra Yarra River, is a perennial river in south-central Victoria, Australia.
Port Phillip or Port Phillip Bay is a horsehead-shaped enclosed bay on the central coast of southern Victoria, Australia. The bay opens into the Bass Strait via a short, narrow channel known as The Rip, and is completely surrounded by localities of Victoria's two largest cities — metropolitan Greater Melbourne in the bay's main eastern portion north of the Mornington Peninsula, and the city of Greater Geelong in the much smaller western portion north of the Bellarine Peninsula. Geographically, the bay covers 1,930 km2 (750 sq mi) and the shore stretches roughly 264 km (164 mi), with the volume of water around 25 km3 (6.0 cu mi). Most of the bay is navigable, although it is extremely shallow for its size — the deepest portion is only 24 m (79 ft) and half the bay is shallower than 8 m (26 ft). Its waters and coast are home to seals, whales, dolphins, corals and many kinds of seabirds and migratory waders.
Docklands, also known as Melbourne Docklands, is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 2 km (1.2 mi) west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Melbourne local government area. Docklands recorded a population of 15,495 at the 2021 census.
Port Melbourne is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 3 km (2 mi) south of the Melbourne central business district, located within the Cities of Melbourne and Port Phillip local government areas. Port Melbourne recorded a population of 17,633 at the 2021 census.
The Port of Melbourne is the largest port for containerised and general cargo in Australia. It is located in Melbourne, Victoria, and covers an area at the mouth of the Yarra River, downstream of Bolte Bridge, which is at the head of Port Phillip, as well as several piers on the bay itself. Since 1 July 2003, the Port of Melbourne has been managed by the Port of Melbourne Corporation, a statutory corporation created by the State of Victoria.
Sir John Coode, English civil engineer, known for harbour works.
Coode Island is a former island at the convergence of the Yarra and Maribyrnong Rivers, 4 km west of central Melbourne, Australia. The island was formed by the excavation of the Coode Canal in 1887, and became connected to the mainland in the 1930s. Today the low-lying land is part of the Port of Melbourne, and is used as the site of Swanson and Appleton Docks and their associated container storage and rail yards, as well as a number of chemical storage facilities.
The Melbourne and Hobson's Bay Railway Company was a railway company in Victoria, Australia. The company was incorporated on 20 January 1853 to build the line from Melbourne to the port of Sandridge, now Port Melbourne.
The Sydney Harbour Trust began operations on 1 November 1900 with responsibility for the Navigation Department and Marine Board of Sydney Harbour. The Trust, as governed by an act of the New South Wales Parliament consisted of three commissioners appointed by the Governor of New South Wales. It was responsible for the improvement and preservation of Sydney's port. The trust regulated the movement of vessels and the handling of cargo in the port through a Harbour Master, carried out dredging operations, removed wrecks, granted licences for the erection of piers, maintained wharf facilities and collected wharfage rates, maintained swimming baths. The trust also managed fire fighting and other safety equipment within the harbour. All foreshores, lighthouses and tugs within the harbour which belonged to the Government were vested in the Trust, as well as the power to reclaim land. The Trust was wound up in 1936 with the establishment of the Maritime Services Board.
The Port of Melbourne Corporation (PoMC) is a statutory body established by the Victorian Government to develop and manage the Port of Melbourne, Australia's busiest container port. The Corporation commenced operations on 1 July 2003, when it took over the management of the port from the Melbourne Port Corporation. On 1 September 2010, the corporation was re-established with a new charter under the Transport Integration Act.
Williamstown Dockyard was one of Australia's principal ship building yards at Williamstown, Victoria, Australia.
Coode Canal is a reach of the lower Yarra River in Melbourne, the capital city of the Australian state of Victoria. The canal was excavated in 1886, as part of harbour improvements designed by Sir John Coode to improve access for ships to Melbourne's main river docks. It created Coode Island and caused the shallow, narrow and winding Fishermans Bend to be cut off along with other sections of the river including Humbug Reach and the original junction with the Maribyrnong River.
Appleton Dock is an international shipping facility in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It was opened in about 1956 by the Melbourne Harbor Trust, and is named after MHT commissioner William Thomas Appleton (1859-1930), who was a staunch advocate of harbour improvements in the early 20th century.
William Thomas Appleton (1859–1930), was an Australian businessman, shipping agent and public servant. He was born on 2 May 1859 in Leeds, Yorkshire, England. His father, Thomas Appleton was a bookbinder, and his mother was Mary.
Joseph Brady was an Irish born, civil engineer active in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria, Australia, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, undertaking works on railways, water supplies and ports. Among his more important works were the Coliban Water Supply for Bendigo, and Melbourne Port improvements.
Victoria Dock also known as Victoria Harbour is a large excavated harbour basin located off Footscray Road and Docklands Highway, Docklands, in Melbourne. It was constructed between 1887 and 1892, under the supervision of Melbourne Harbor Trust engineer Joseph Brady, to modified designs of British engineer Sir John Coode.
Sir James Lorimer was an Australian politician and businessman. He was the first chairman of the Melbourne Harbor Trust and a Member of the Legislative Council in the Victorian parliament from 1879 to 1889.
Webb Dock is a port facility at Fishermans Bend in Melbourne, Victoria constructed progressively from 1960, by dredging and land fill at the mouth of the Yarra River. It includes roll-on/roll-off facilities handling motor vehicle import and export and break bulk commodities and a container terminal. The dock is named after John Percival Webb OBE, a former Melbourne Harbor Trust commissioner.
Swanson Dock is an international shipping facility in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It was constructed between 1966 and 1972 by the Melbourne Harbor Trust, leading off the north bank of the Yarra River, to alleviate congestion in the port and provide the first container shipping terminal in Melbourne. It is located about 2 km downstream from the Melbourne CBD and was named after Victor Swanson, chairman of the Melbourne Harbor Trust from 1960 to 1972.
John Percival Webb OBE was the longest serving commissioner on the Melbourne Harbor Trust in Melbourne, Australia.