The top two photographs were taken by my father, Frank Rouse and the bottom photograph was taken by my Uncle, Jim Rouse. It even made the front page of the local paper, The Koo-Wee-Rup Sun.
Koo-Wee-Rup Sun, Page 1, February 8, 1967.
Koo-Wee-Rup Sun, Page 1, February 8, 1967.
We borrowed some old Truck & Bus magazines from a friend and John came across this Atkinson advertisement (above). It shows a picture of Jim Forrest's Atkinson underwater in early 1974. Apparently Jim, and a group of others, were parked at the QTT Transport Terminal in Rocklea in Brisbane. It had been raining for five days and the creek flooded. Jim heard a bit of noise outside, swung his feet off the sleeper bunk and got wet feet! Atkinson towed his truck from the terminal, stripped it back and Jim was back in operation less than eight days after the event.
John drove this same truck, which had a 671 GM, during one of his leave periods from the Tri-Ellis. This picture was taken late 1974 on the Cunningham Highway, near Inglewood.
In my next post, we will continue on the disaster theme and show a Bedford on Fire.
Looking west towards Spotswood.
Looking west towards Yarraville.
The Howard Smith tug, The Melbourne. The Melbourne had been hit in the stern and sunk in the Bay, in this photograph it had been raised and is being supprted by the salvage tender. There is a good view of the West Gate Bridge in the back ground.
The Empress of Australia, the replacement for the Princess of Tasmania, at the Tasmania Ferry Terminal. Another good view of the West Gate Bridge is behind her.
Looking south to Port Melbourne. The Roy A. Cameron, was a Melbourne Harbour Trust hopper, whose job was to take the mud from the bucket dredge and deposit it at the Spoil Ground in the Bay.
The 'Short Road' or Williamstown Ferry, taken in 1965. The Ferry is leaving Williamstown. This particular ferry commenced service in 1930. Photographs taken by Frank & Wendy Rouse.
It was called the 'Short Road' Ferry, because it was the 'short road' to Williamstown. The 'long road' was down Dynon Road to Whitehall Street and Douglas Parade. It’s hard to believe now, as Williamstown is very gentrified and trendy, that Williamstown was once a real working port and industrial area. There was the Newport Power Station, the Newport Railway workshops, the Naval Dock yards, the Port Phillip Woollen mills, the Harbour tugs at the Reid Street Pier, the Melbourne Harbour Trust dredges (which dredged the Melbourne Port area) at Ann Street pier, and the Ports & Harbours bay dredges, which dredged the South and West Channels in Port Phillip Bay. Dredging of the Bay has been going on since the 1870s, so you have to wonder why there was so much kerfuffle over the recent (2008-09) Channel dredging by the Queen of the Netherlands. Obviously, some people have no idea of our history.
The Williamstown Ferry went from the end of Williamstown Road and crossed the Yarra to the bottom of The Strand, near the Power Station. This location had been the site of a river crossing since Melbourne was established, but the first formalised ferry service didn't start until 1873. The 1873 scale of fees was - Foot passenger, one pence ; Vehicle with one horse or animal, six pence ; with two horses or animals, nine pence ; with three animals, one shilling ; Vehicles with four wheels, 2 shillings. The Ferry became redundant with the opening of the West Gate Bridge in November 15, 1978. I have some pictures of the West Gate Bridge in the next blog post.