Cockatoo Island is an island in Sydney Harbour, Sydney, Australia. The island was originally used as a prison and later developed as a shipyard. Many naval ships were built and maintained at Cockatoo Island Dockyard. The shipyard was closed during the 1980s. In late March 2005 the island was re-opened to the public for the Cockatoo Island Festival, after two and a half years of planning.

The island is currently managed by the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust, and is accessible only for special events and tours. It is planned to revitalise the island as a landmark harbour attraction, with commercial maritime activity operating alongside interpretation of the island's heritage.

Early history

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There is no evidence of usage of the island by aboriginal people, although it is likely they visited.

Between 1839 and 1869 the island was used a convict prison. The initial prisoners were transferred to Cockatoo Island from Norfolk Island, and they were employed constructing rock-cut silos for storing the colony's grain supply. By 1842 approximately 140 tonnes of grain was stored on the island.

Later, quarrying on the island provided stone for a group of penal buildings on the island and for construction projects around Sydney, including the wall for semi-Circular Quay. Between 1847 and 1857, convicts were used to dig the Fitzroy Dock, Australia’s first dry dock, on the island. An estimated 1.5 million cubic feet of rock was excavated with 480,000 cubic feet forming the dock itself.

Cockatoo Island Dockyard

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In 1864 the island was split between the NSW Department of Prisons and the Public Works Department who expand the dockyard around the foreshores. In 1869 the convicts were relocated to Darlinghurst Gaol. In 1890 the Sutherland Dock, a dry dock large enough to take ships of 20,000 tonnes, was opened.

In 1913 Cockatoo Island become the Commonwealth Naval Dockyard, but in 1933 it was leased to the Cockatoo Island Docks & Engineering Company Ltd. During World War II, Cockatoo Island's importance to the Allies was enhanced by the fall of Singapore and its shipyards. No less than 20 ships were built during the war . The dockyard continued to work on both naval and commercial vessels until its closure in 1992.

Significant vessels built or worked over the life of the dockyard include:

• HMAS Huon, a destroyer launched in 1914
• HMAS Brisbane, a light cruiser launched in 1915
• HMAS Adelaide, a light cruiser launched in 1918
• HMAS Albatross, a seaplane tender launched in 1928
• HMAS Vampire, a destroyer launched in 1952 and now at the Australian National Maritime Museum in Darling Harbour
• HMAS Success, the last ship launched from the dockyard in 1992

Cockatoo Island Festival

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From March 25 to March 27 2005, a music and arts festival was held on the refurbished island, utilising abandoned buildings and warehouses as exhibition rooms, concert halls and shopping/food venues. The festival was headlined by local and international musical groups and artists, including:

• Art Of Fighting
• Decoder Ring
• Eskimo Joe
• Gomez
• Machine Gun Fellatio
• Pete Murray
• The Wailers
• The Waifs
• Youth Group

The festival drew over 20,000 people and featured over 120 musical acts as well as stand-up comedians, performance artists and more. A dedicated ferry service ran day and night to take ticket holders to and from the island.

References

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External links

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• Sydney Harbour Federation Trust Sites - Cockatoo Island
• Cockatoo Island Festival 2005 official website
• Vintage aerial photograph by Frank Hurley at the National Library of Australia

Islands of Australia | Sydney localities | Australian penal colonies | Defunct prisons | Prison museums in Australia | Prisons in New South Wales | Prisons in Sydney