On This Day
1850-1899 > Colonial Navies & RN
On This Day - 1850-1899
- June 22, 1893
VADM Sir George Tryon, a former Flag Officer Commanding Australia Station, lost his life when his flagship, HMS VICTORIA, was rammed by HMS CAMPERDOWN, off Tripoli, Syria. Tryon was found to be at fault.
- February 19, 1893
HMQS PALUMA, (gunboat), floated free from Brisbane Botanical Gardens after being stranded by record floods in the Brisbane River.
- February 6, 1893
During a flood the gunboat HMQS PALUMA (CAPT G. Pirie, RN), the steamer ELIMANG, and the hulk MARY EVANS, were washed up high and dry in Brisbane’s Botanical Gardens. The same disastrous flood carried away three bridges across the Brisbane River and swept 12 other ships out to sea.
- December 31, 1892
HMS WOLVERINE, training ship of the NSW Naval Brigade, was sold out of service.
- September 30, 1892
The Queensland Navy vessel GAYUNDAH, (gunboat), was paid off and laid up in reserve at Brisbane. Her sister-ship PALUMA, joined her in 1895.
- September 12, 1892
RADM Nathaniel Bowden-Smith was appointed Flag Officer Commanding Australia Station. His flagship was HMS ORLANDO.
- July 30, 1891
HMS HIMALAYA, (troopship), arrived at Port Jackson with relief crews for ships on the Australia Station. HIMALAYA was a steamship built for the P&O Line in 1853. She was chartered by the Admiralty as a troop transport during the Crimean War, and later purchased. Commissioned into the RN, she was employed as a troop ship for over 30 years. The vessel was paid off in 1894 and used as a coal hulk until sunk by German bombers in 1940.
- April 1, 1891
The Auxiliary Squadron, consisting of HM Ships WALLAROO, MILDURA, and RINGAROOMA, (cruisers), and KARRAKATTA, (torpedo gunboat), in commission, and with HM Ships KATOOMBA, and TAURANGA, (cruisers), and BOOMERANG, (torpedo gunboat), in reserve, commenced operations in Australasian waters. The squadron was in addition to the Imperial Squadron based in Sydney. All six Australian States and New Zealand contributed to the upkeep of the Auxiliary Squadron on a population basis.
- February 11, 1891
The Clipper ship SOBRAON was purchased by the NSW Government as a replacement for the boys’ training ship VERNON. The vessel was commissioned into the RAN as HMAS TINGIRA in 1912.
- September 25, 1890
Royal Naval House, Sydney, was officially opened by His Excellency, Lord Carrington, Governor of NSW.