| Historical notes: | STATEMENT OF COUNTRY
The Manly Cove Pavilion is situated on the traditional lands of the Cameraygal (also Cammeraygal, Gamaragal, Cam-mer-ray-gal, Cameraigal) (Aboriginal Heritage Office, 2024). As custodians of the northern shores of today's Sydney Harbour, the Cameraygal have a deep and enduring connection to these waters.
The name 'Manly' was first suggested for the area by Governor Arthur Phillip, who was impressed by Cameraygal that he encountered near Manly Cove in January 1788 (Tench, 1793). Manly Cove is known as Kai'ymay in the local language.
Kai'ymay is an important early contact site between Aboriginal people and colonists (Karskens, 2015). The first recorded interaction between Aboriginal women and colonists occurred there in January 1788. Months later, Phillip abducted Arabanoo from the cove and, in November 1789, took Colebee and Bennelong from the same area. In September 1790, Phillip himself was speared at Kai'ymay by Aboriginal warriors (MacRitchie, 2006). These encounters reflect the complex dynamics between Aboriginal people and the British in the earliest years of the colony.
EARLY MANLY
Despite early exploration by colonists in the 1790s, Manly was initially considered unsuitable for settlement due to its isolation from Sydney Cove (Manly Heritage Study, 1986).
It was not until 1853 that Henry Gilbert Smith recognised the area's potential. Smith envisaged a seaside resort town to rival his native Brighton (England), constructing a hotel and planting Norfolk Island Pines, now iconic foreshore features (Pike, 1967). By 1858. Smith had built the Brighton Baths, a stone swimming enclosure, just north of today's pavilion on the shore of Manly Cove. The 'extensive and elegant' Brighton Baths had separate sections for men and women to swim (NBC Local Studies, n.d.).
In the 19th century, overland travel to Manly was almost impossible and Smith recognised that, without reliable water transport, his venture would fail. He chartered a paddle steamer, then built a wharf at Manly Cove. By 1855, Sydneysiders could travel to Manly via ferry three days a week, and by 1859 Smith launched the first daily service (Manly Historical Society, 1976).
The response to Smith's ferry was spectacular. On Boxing Day in 1859, nearly 10,000 people spent the day at Manly (Curby, 2001). Manly bustled on public holidays and Sundays; but The Corso was quiet on weekdays (Curby, 2001).
THE PORT JACKSON & MANLY STEAM SHIP COMPANY
In 1873, Smith sold his wharf to Thomas Parker and Captain Thomas Heselton, then to John Carey (NBRS & Partners, 2002). In 1876, Carey founded the Port Jackson Steam Boat Co. Ltd (Port Jackson Company) and assumed control of the Manly ferry service (Prescott, 1984).
The following year, Manly was incorporated into a municipality. The Port Jackson Company and Manly Council became the dominant forces that shaped present-day Manly.
Water transport was Manly's lifeline and the primary driver of its development. By the 1870s, the Port Jackson Company ran six daily services and cargo trips to a new wharf at Manly Cove. Manly Council asserted government rights over the two wharves and leased them back to the company. This allowed Council to leverage the company's profits for municipal works (NBRS & Partners, 2002). The Port Jackson Company was also genuinely interested in enhancing Manly's public appeal; a vision which, in turn, supported their expanding fleet. Early strategies included the issue of a free five-year ferry pass for anyone building a house in Manly (Prescott, 1984).
In 1885, Manly Council purchased the site of Smith's Brighton Baths and constructed a Ladies Baths with a stone bathkeeper's cottage, retaining wall, windmill and wooden changing sheds (NBC Local Studies, n.d.). The Ladies Baths would be a popular swimming spot until its demolition in 1919, reflecting the growing importance of coastal recreational facilities in Manly during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
In late 1902, Manly Council approved daytime surfing and sunbathing, a cultural shift that broke from Victorian norms and revolutionised its leisure industry. In 1904, 2.5 million Sydneysiders travelled by ferry to surf at Ocean Beach and swim in the calm waters of Manly Cove (Prescott, 1984).
MANLY HARBOUR POOL
The 1924 construction of the Spit and Roseville bridges made overland travel to Manly feasible, posing a major threat to the ferry industry. The Port Jackson Company determined that an additional bathing facility at Manly could assist in enticing people back onto the ferries (NBRS & Partners, 2002).
In 1928, new general manager Walter Dendy proposed a shark-proof pool offering safe swimming right beside Manly's ferry terminal. The pool would replace a small wire shark-proof fence which had been erected in the former Ladies Baths' site in 1924.The proposal was presented to Council on 17 September 1931, approved on 27 October, and completed in time for the Christmas holidays.
MANLY POOL DRESSING PAVILION
The pool featured a 335 metre (m) hardwood boardwalk with turpentine pilings (Morcombe, 2023). Amenities included water wheels, slides and underwater floodlights that illuminated the water at night (The Sydney Morning Herald, 1932).
The pool was an immediate success. A December 1931 article noted that its popularity meant '..that Manly Council is finding it difficult to accommodate the weekend crowds'. (The Sun, 1931). However, there were no changing amenities for the crowds. The Port Jackson Company acted quickly, with a permanent dressing pavilion constructed on the former Ladies Baths by October 1933. The entire pool complex (including the pavilion) cost approximately 35,000 pounds, funded entirely by the Port Jackson Company.
The pavilion was designed and constructed by Howie, Moffat and Co. in consultation with their in-house architect and the Sydney Harbour Trust, which owned the western foreshore land. Archibald Howie, the firm's director, was chairman of the Port Jackson Company.
The 2-storey building, designed in the Inter-War Mediterranean style, featured a central pavilion with prominent arched colonnade flanked by two lower wings. It housed male and female dressing rooms, tea rooms, a caretaker's residence and the lifesaving club.
Managed by Olympic diver Dick Eve, the pool and pavilion appealed to both locals and tourists. While the pool was free, use of clothes peg and shower in the pavilion cost threepence and a locker an additional threepence. In 1934, 145,000 people paid for admission to the pavilion (NBRS & Partners, 2002). The first-floor tea rooms, managed by A.S Cormack, served morning and afternoon teas, luncheons and supper and could be hired for dances.
In 1934, a new bay was constructed at the rear of the female dressing room, a Ladies Retiring Room was added at the south-east corner and the Female Life Savers area was converted into a refreshment kiosk (NBC Local Studies, 2013). In 1939, the pavilion opened a hot seawater bath, offering massages and spa treatments. Ferry advertisements portrayed the pavilion as a centre of carefree, coastal sophistication.
By the late 1930s, 250,000 people were annually patronising the pavilion, with the Port Jackson Company claiming a corresponding increase for the Manly ferry (NBRS & Partners, 2002). Within a decade, annual passenger numbers had surpassed 10.5 million, a golden age for the Manly ferry.
LATER TWENTIETH CENTURY
The first floor of the pavilion struggled after World War II. Between 1950-56, it operated as The Mermaid Club, Pavilion Tea Rooms, Le Gourmet Club Restaurant, Bexley Restaurant and l'Hermitage Restaurant. In 1956, the lessees added a catwalk connecting to Commonwealth Parade. A catastrophic fire in May 1958 gutted the restaurant, though the exterior and dressing rooms were left intact (NBRS & Partners, 2002).
Major development in Manly Cove also damaged patronage. In 1963, Manly Council completed Marineland, an aquarium that obscured half the pavilion from sight. The next year, the Port Jackson Company approached Council to take over the facility; however, Council declined (NBC Local Studies, 2013).
In 1972, the Port Jackson Company was acquired by Brambles Limited, which planned to phase out the ferry service. In May 1974, a massive storm smashed the Manly harbour pool, with the pavilion the only surviving structure (Manly Daily, 1974). The Port Jackson Company demolished the remains of the pool and requested to terminate their lease (NBC Local Studies, 2013). The NSW Government took control of the Manly ferry in November 1974 and acquired the pavilion soon after (Prescott, 1984).
In 1974, the Manly Pier Restaurant was reopened and the catwalk rebuilt by Galli and Dawn Ripka. In 1980, Barry Robertson and Galli Ripka leased the entire pavilion. The Manly Waterworks amusement park, behind the men's dressing room, opened in 1981.
Various lessees operated the pavilion during the 1980-90s, sometimes in tandem with Marineland or its successor, Manly Underwater World/Manly Sea Life (Manly Daily, 1988). In c.1991, a new two storey northern extension was added as a refreshment kiosk for the Manly Waterworks. The interiors of the pavilion underwent alterations in 2003, 2005 and 2009.
RESTORATION
In 2011, the Land and Environment Court approved the adaptive re-use of the pavilion as a function centre. Designed by Nicholas Squillace Architects, the project included demolition of previous additions and construction of a steel first floor extension, structural repairs, repainting, restoration of the first floor archways, and repair and replication of decorative elements (Squillace, 2011). The restaurant closed in 2012 and the pavilion fell into disrepair.
In 2016, the Miramare Group announced plans to restore the pavilion which were completed in 2018 (The Daily Telegraph, 2016). In 2022, the lease was acquired by The Boathouse Group.
Manly Sea Life closed in 2018 and was demolished in 2025, reinstating the original views to and from the pavilion of Manly Cove and Manly Wharf (TfNSW, 2025). Manly Waterworks was also demolished in 2025. |