Loss of the ‘India’

We stop the press to announce the melancholy intelligence of the loss by fire of the ship India, Captain Hugh Campbell, with emigrants, from Greenock to this port, on the 20th July last. The India sailed on the 4th June last with 198 souls on board,...

Lighthouses and Shipwrecks in the Port Phillip District

Above: The Cape Otway Lighthouse is considered Australia’s most significant lighthouse and is also known as the ‘Beacon of Hope.’ It is perched on   towering sea cliffs 90 metres above where Bass Straight and the Southern Ocean collide, along the rugged Australian...

Harbours and Ships of Port Phillip – 1800 to 1930

By Martin Playne As family historians, we have tended to ignore the role that the sea has played in the history of Port Phillip. Yet, we all have ancestors or even ourselves who have arrived by sea. Our history and prosperity are intimately linked to the sea. The...

The Barque Ward Chipman

The Ward Chipman on which my ancestor, Robert Dodd, arrived at Port Phillip on 29th December 1841 had a typical merchant ship history travelling to many ports in the world carrying emigrants and various cargoes during her life. She was a three-masted...