HMAS Parramatta shipwreck and memorials

Item details


Name of item:	HMAS Parramatta shipwreck and memorials
Other name/s:	HMAS Parramatta (I); HMAS Parramatta (II)
Type of item:	Built
Group/Collection:	Monuments and Memorials
Category:	Other - Monuments & Memorials
Location:	Lat: -33.5007663306 Long: 151.1818575020
Primary address:	Historic Shipwreck: Cascade Gully Hawkesbury River, Bar Point, NSW 2083
County:	Northumberland
Local govt. area:	Central Coast
Local Aboriginal Land Council:	Darkinjung

All addresses

Street Address	Suburb/town	LGA	Parish	County	Type
Historic Shipwreck: Cascade Gully Hawkesbury River	Bar Point	Central Coast		Northumberland	Primary Address
Parramatta (II) memorial George Street, Queens Wharf Reserve	Parramatta	City of Parramatta	St John	Cumberland	Alternate Address
Bow Memorial, Garden Island HMAS Kuttabul	Potts Point	Sydney	Alexandria	Cumberland	Alternate Address
Stern Memorial HMAS Parramatta (I) George Street, Queens Wharf Reserve	Parramatta	City of Parramatta	St John	Cumberland	Alternate Address

Owner/s

Organisation Name	Owner Category	Date Ownership Updated
City of Parramatta Council	Local Government
Land and Property Management Authority (LPMA)	State Government

Statement of significance:


	The HMAS Parramatta (I) Historic Shipwreck site is of State heritage significance as the only readily accessible survivor of the torpedo boat destroyers ordered in 1909 and built for the developing Commonwealth Naval Forces (CNF) . The Parramatta (I) remains represent pre-Great War technology and materials for warship construction. Of principal significance is the vessel's status as the first completed and commissioned (1910) of the wholly Australian naval fleet ordered initially from British dockyards post federation. Parramatta (I) was a River Class Torpedo Boat Destroyer design, the last British type to accommodate an external rudder. Parramatta (I) had a successful military service during World War One, participating in the 1914 naval engagements in German New Guinea, successful tours in the Mediterranean and Adriatic Seas, and toured the famous Gallipoli battlefields at war's end. The wreck site is unique in NSW for being located in three distinct places, following the removal of the bow and stern sections for public education and display in 1972. The historic wreck site, and both the stern and bow sections removed from the wreck, form the core of the current 2003 SHR listing. Presently under consideration for State Heritage Register listing is the Parramatta (II) Memorial located within close proximity to the Parramatta (I) Stern Memorial within Queens Wharf Reserve, Parramatta. The memorial is the focus of annual naval commemorations to the 138 crew of the vessel lost in combat in 1941. Should the memorial be determined to meet the SHR listing thresholds, it would be added to the existing HMAS Parramatta Group, that includes the Parramatta (I) shipwreck and both bow and stern memorials.
	Date significance updated: 21 Feb 07
	Note: The State Heritage Inventory provides information about heritage items listed by local and State government agencies. The State Heritage Inventory is continually being updated by local and State agencies as new information becomes available. Read the Department of Premier and Cabinet copyright and disclaimer.

Description


Designer/Maker:	Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Ltd
Builder/Maker:	Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering at Govan, Scotland
Construction years:	1909-1910
Physical description:	The wreck site of the former HMAS Parramatta (I) lies in shallow water within Cascade Gully in the Hawkesbury River, near its northern bank. With the bow and stern sections removed in the 1970s, the remainder of the wreck retains significant form. The centrally preserved section is retained to original main deck level with six strakes (runs) of external hull plating visible above the waterline, and two internal deck levels. All of the metal fabric shows evidence of extensive corrosion with the majority of fittings and fixtures (eg portholes) removed over the years. The internal spaces of the wreck are littered with miscellaneous plating, piping and introduced rubbish. The Parramatta (I) Stern memorial comprises the aft (stern) end of the former vessel, as removed from the shipwreck site. The stern was cut from the once intact hull by oxyacetylene torches. Originally mounted on a brick support structure, the memorial saw extensive restoration by Parramatta City Council in 2003-4. This included a conservation program to limit water ingress into the memorial, stabilise rust activity, and to replace damaged sections of external plating. Major damage had been witnessed to the external rudder and bottom section of hull. The stern was repainted to an original World War One colour scheme, whilst the memorials brick support was cement rendered and painted. Modern interpretative plaques were installed into the interior recess of the memorial. The Parramatta (I) Bow memorial is located on the Sydney Harbour foreshore of Garden Island Naval base. The striking sheer bow section retains a naval grey colour scheme and is set onto a low brick support base. The memorial has not seen recent conservation assessment. The Parramatta (II) Memorial is located in Queens Wharf Reserve, Parramatta beside the Parramatta River's southern bank and comprises a stone block (granite) with attached plaques, and four white-painted stockless anchors at each corner, within a black square fenced area. The memorial is situated 112 metres east of the Parramatta (I) Stern Memorial.
Physical condition and/or Archaeological potential:	The former HMAS Parramatta (I) shipwreck has retained significant integrity despite the removal of the bow and stern sections. This is testimony to the strength of the original design and construction materials used. Much of the all-steel hull, framing and decking shows signs of advanced corrosion however, due to its external location, and particularly due to the lower hull's partial burial in the mud substrate of the river and within the inter-tidal water zone. Such a setting increases the likelihood of more aggressive corrosion immediately above the nominal waterline. This is evidenced by increased metal pitting in this zone. With limited historic building plans and photographs of Parramatta (I), the archaeological remains hold the potential to document state-of-the-art destroyer design and construction pre World War One. The Parramatta (I) stern memorial has been the focus of extensive conservation works in 2003-4. This work has resulted in limiting water ingress into the structure, repairing visible rust and corrosion damage, and through repainting, providing a durable outer finish to prolong survival. The Parramatta (I) bow memorial appears structurally sound although minor corrosion activity is identified. The Royal Australian Navy maintains the structure which is included in its heritage collection and maintenance programs. The Parramatta (II) memorial does not include any historic fabric related to either the Parramatta (I) or (II) vessels. The monument essentially comprises a block of basalt, attached metal plaques and a metallic railing fence.
	Date condition updated:15 Jul 03
Modifications and dates:	1910 HMAS Parramatta (I) was completed in 1910 and saw immediate service throughout the world during World War One. The vessel returned to Australia after the war and was finally placed in reserve untril decommissioned in 1929. 1929 HMAS Parramatta (I) ended up in the Hawkesbury River as a proposed hulk for the New South Wales Prisons Department. Unknown stripping of the vessel's machinery and fittings occurred at this time. Parramatta (I) was sold soon after to George Rhodes of Cowan and used as a blue-metal storage barge. The hulk was sold again and finally used to store water for local residents in the Hawkesbury during the Depression. 1934 Parramatta (I) blew ashore on a mud flat in Cascade Gully, adjacent to Milson Island, in the Hawkesbury River in 1934 and became a total wreck. The hull retained its form despite gradual deterioration. 1972 In 1972, the Naval Historical Society of Australia began a project to recover the bow and stern for proposed memorials to commemorate the history and significance of the vessel and its later namesakes (Parramatta (II) and Parramatta (II), and Australian naval history generally. This involved the cutting off of both the bow and stern sections, leaving the remaining hull further exposed, particularly to the ingress of water and sand. Today the site retains significant structural integrity, although is encroached upon by mangroves. The Parramatta (II) memorial 1973 The memorial to HMAS Parramatta (II), sunk in combat in the Mediterranean in World War Two, originally comprised a metal plaque established in the grounds of the Parramatta Bowling Club in 1973. 1986 The present memorial at Queens Wharf Reserve was constructed in 1986 and re-dedicated at that time. An additional interpretative plaque was added in 1995. 1941 HMAS Parramatta (II) sunk by German U-boat off the coast of Libya (Tobruk), in the Mediteranean Sea.
Further information:	The Parramatta (I) shipwreck has been recognised for its heritage qualities by listing in the SREP #20 Hawkesbury-Nepean, and for the Parramatta (I) stern section and Parramatta (II) memorial in the Sydney REP #28 - Parramatta.


Current use:	Historic Shipwreck. Bow and stern established as memorials in public open space.
Former use:	Vessel served as blue metal storage facility & accommodation during Depression.

History

Historical notes:

Former HMAS Parramatta (I) shipwreck and bow and stern memorials

The wreck of the former HMAS Parramatta (I) is remarkable for its early associations with the establishment of Commonwealth Naval forces. A torpedo boat destroyer (TBD), Parramatta (I) was the first of six built to serve as fast hunters of the "River" Class, a modification of the British "I" Class destroyer. This class was the last British warship designed with an external rudder system. With Pennant Number "55" painted on the bow, Parramatta was the first of the Australian group built by Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering at Govan, Scotland in 1910. It was also the first to arrive in Australian waters.

The class was noted for its length of 250 feet (76.2 metres) and displacement of 700 tons, a range of 2, 400 miles (3,862) at a speed of fifteen knots. They were equipped with one four inch gun, three twelve pounders and three eighteen inch torpedo tubes. Sister ship Yarra (1910) was built by the famous firm of Denny Brothers at Dumbarton, Scotland; Warrego (1911) in the same yard as Parramatta and re-erected at Cockatoo Island, Sydney; with Swan (1915), Huon (1914) and Torrens (1915) built solely at Cockatoo.

HMAS Parramatta (I) was one of a number of vessels ordered for the Commonwealth's new naval forces in 1909, following the assimilation of the various colonial fleets post Federation. Various proposals were forwarded for the modernisation and expansion of the navy which lead to the construction of Parramatta between 1909 and 1910. The keel of the flagship, the elegant battle-cruiser HMAS Australia (I) was also laid in 1910, followed by the Chattam-Class cruiser's Melbourne and Sydney in 1912. Parramatta found itself the first completed vessel of the Royal Australian Navy when King George V proclaimed the establishment of the navy on 10 July 1911.

With the outbreak of war in 1914, Parramatta (I) immediately saw active service in German New Guinea serving with the Australian fleet led by HMAS Australia (I). This powerful force included the light cruiser's Sydney, Melbourne, Encounter and Pioneer; the two newly arrived E-Class submarines AE1 and AE2; and Parramatta's sister's Yarra and Warrego. Their duty was to flush out the feared German Pacific cruiser squadron under Admiral Graf Spee (which had in fact already fled). The fleet first assisted the allied landings at key installations in German New Guinea, capturing the important naval base at Rabaul, the capital of the German colony.

After taking Rabaul and on patrol duties with the submarine AE1, HMAS Parramatta (I) was the last vessel to see the submarine which sank mysteriously with all hands on 14 September 1914.

During 1914, Parramatta (I) steamed 193 miles (310.6 kilometres) up the dangerous Sepik River in New Guinea in search of enemy vessels. Parramatta spent much of 1915 and 1916 enforcing shipping movements in the western Pacific. In mid-1917 the whole destroyer flotilla was sent to the Mediterranean and based at Brindisi, Italy, on Adriatic patrols to seek out enemy submarines.

On 12 November 1918, Paramatta (I) was part of the Allied fleet that entered the Dardanelles after Turkey agreed to an armistice. After the war, the destroyers sailed to England for leave, then returned to Australia. Here they were individually decommissioned between 1919 and 1928.

Parramatta (I) ended up in the Hawkesbury River as a proposed hulk for the New South Wales Prisons Department, following its decommissioning in 1929. Parramatta was sold soon after to George Rhodes of Cowan and used as a blue-metal storage barge. It was sold again and finally used to store water for local residents during the Depression. Here in 1934, Parramatta blew ashore on a mud flat in Cascade Gully, adjacent to Milson Island and became a total wreck. Squatters allegedly lived on the remains during this time.

In 1972, the Naval Historical Society of Australia began a project to recover the bow and stern for a memorial to the vessel and its later namesakes (Parramatta (2) and Parramatta (3), and Australian naval history generally. However, funding and other constraints delayed the project with the stern finally being mounted in Queens Wharf Reserve, Parramatta in 1981 and the bow at Garden Island in 1986.

HMAS Parramatta (II)

HMAS Parramatta (II) was constructed at Cockatoo Island Dockyard, Sydney, for the Royal Australian Navy as ship number 131. Construction was started on 9 November 1938, the vessel launched on 10 June 1939, and completed on 4 April 1940. The overall length was 266 feet (81 metres) and displacement 1,080 tons. HMAS Parramatta (II) was active during World War Two in the East Indies and the Mediterranean Sea.

Parramatta (II), a Grimsby class escort sloop, was sunk by the German U-boat U-559 on 27 November 1941. The action occurred in the Mediterranean Sea off Tobruk, North Africa. 138 lives were lost with only 24 survivors. The incident stands as the fourth worst loss of RAN lives during armed conflict, with HMAS Yarra (also 138 lives), after HMAS Sydney (645 lives), HMAS Perth (353 lives) and HMAS Canberra (84 lives).

The Parramatta (II) memorial was established in Queens Wharf Reserve in 1986 by the Naval Association of Australia (NSW sub Branch) and Parramatta Council to commemorate the loss of Parramatta (II).

Historic themes

Australian theme (abbrev)	New South Wales theme	Local theme
7. Governing-Governing	Defence-Activities associated with defending places from hostile takeover and occupation	Memorialising the defenders-
7. Governing-Governing	Defence-Activities associated with defending places from hostile takeover and occupation	Involvement with the First (Great) World War-
7. Governing-Governing	Defence-Activities associated with defending places from hostile takeover and occupation	Involvement with the Second World War-
7. Governing-Governing	Defence-Activities associated with defending places from hostile takeover and occupation	Commemorative naming of defence facilities and materials-

Assessment of significance


SHR Criteria a) [Historical significance]	The wreck of the former HMAS Parramatta (I) is of State significance for its early associations with the establishment of wholly-owned and administered Australian naval forces. A torpedo boat destroyer (TBD), Parramatta was the first of six built to serve as fast hunters of the British "River" Class" design, the last British warship designed with an external rudder system. Parramatta was the first of the Australian group built, in its case by Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering at Govan, Scotland.. The vessel was launched on 9 February 1910 by Mrs Margot Asquith, wife of the British Prime Minister, who dedicated the vessel at "the First Born of the Commonwealth Navy". Parramatta was the first completed of the newly ordered fleet of twelve warships by the Commonwealth. It was also the first, with Yarra, to arrive in Australian waters. The wreck demonstrates the pattern of commissioning British-built vessels for the new Australian navy into the early twentieth century, and in the subsequent disposal of such vessels when obsolete. Being the first built and commissioned of the new Commonwealth Naval Forces (CNF), Parramatta signalled the departure from total British naval control of Australian waters. The new Australian owned and operated fleet was greeted with celebration by an enthusiastic nation when the formal entry of the fleet occurred at Sydney on 4 October 1913.
SHR Criteria b) [Associative significance]	HMAS Parramatta (I) is of State significance for its associations with the nation-wide establishment of the Naval Historical Society of Australia, formed in 1970 as the Garden Island Naval Historical Society. The Society's first project proposal that year was the removal of the bow and stern section of the Parramatta (I) wreck site, and was used to galvanize support for the formation of the Society and to attract wide membership. This was a seminal period and resulted in the official establishment of the Society under its current name with full Royal Australian Navy approval. The Society today includes notable ex-military and serving members of the naval forces of Australia and is a key naval historical body nationally. The Society received significant patronage in its early years from distinguished people within and without the service. These have included His Royal Highness, Prince Philip, who opened the bow memorial in 1986, the Admiral of the Fleet Earl Mountbatten of Burma KG, PC, CCB, GCSI, GCIE, GCVO, DSO, FRS who was provided with life membership in 1970, and Admiral Victor Smith KBE, CB, DSC, then Chairman of the Chief of Staffs (Defence), who opened the stern memorial in 1982. The Parramatta (II) memorial is the focal point for veteran remembrance services to the 138 crew lost when the vessel was torpedoed in action off Tobruk, North Africa, in World War Two. The memorial attracts significant patronage from veterans and associated family members, with RAN involvement each year. The vessel retains a historic association to Parramatta and Parramatta City Council due to the historic legacy of Parramatta (I), its associated memorials, and to the historic links of the City of Parramatta to all vessels and crew that bear its name. Parramatta (II)'s loss in 1941 stands as one of the most significant naval tragedies in RAN military and peacetime history.
SHR Criteria c) [Aesthetic significance]	The bow and stern memorials constructed from major elements of the Parramatta (I) shipwreck site demonstrate particular aesthetic values in their use of salvaged wreck materials. They are notably different to memorials erected to commemorate other defence personnel and events.
SHR Criteria d) [Social significance]	The social significance of the vessel is demonstrated by the recovery operations in 1972 and the volunteer efforts to have the bow and stern sections available for wide public visitation as public memorials to the vessel and the development of the nation's independent defence capability. In 1972, the Naval Historical Society of Australia began a project to recover the bow and stern for a memorial to the vessel and its later namesakes (Parramatta (2) and Parramatta (3), and Australian naval history generally. However, funding and other constraints delayed the project with the stern finally being mounted in Queens Wharf Reserve, Parramatta in 1981 and the bow at Garden Island in 1986. The Parramatta (II) memorial was re-dedicated nearby the stern memorial in 1986 and is a significant site of respect and remembrance to the Royal Australian Navy, veterans, and family of the 138 crew killed in the vessel's World War Two loss in action. A symbol of the community's esteem for the memorial and for the need to preserve key naval heritage remembrance sites, is the petition of signatories obtained by the Naval Association of NSW for its nomination to the State Heritage Register. The memorial is currently under consideration by the Heritage Council of NSW which is assessing its significance values.
SHR Criteria f) [Rarity]	The former HMAS Parramatta (I) wreck site is rare as the most intact and only exposed example of the original six vessels built of this class. HMAS Swan lies submerged and partly buried by silt in dangerous water within the Hawkesbury but has been damaged by explosives. The limited remains of the former HMAS Warrego are thought to have partially survived underwater near Cockatoo Island, with only a small section of the bow saved and preserved in the Naval Historical Collection at Spectacle Island, Sydney. The bow and stern memorials, constructed from sections of the Parramatta (I) shipwreck are rare in New South Wales, being the only identified memorials, apart from the HMAS Sydney (1) mast and SMS Emden gun memorial, to incorporate significant historic fabric.
SHR Criteria g) [Representativeness]	The former HMAS Parramatta (I) wreck site is the only accessible vessel that has survived from the first fleet units ordered from Great Britain for the newly formed Commonwealth Naval Forces (CNF) - later the proclaimed Royal Australian Navy. It is representative of the type of small naval attack vessel then built for the British Navy that saw active and useful service in World War One. It retains elements of naval design and construction employed immediately prior to the Great War. Both Parramatta (I) memorials are representative of a type of class of naval memorial that makes use of materials recovered from a wreck to convey a tangible association or connection with the actual vessel and its embodied history.
Integrity/Intactness:	The HMAS Parramatta (I) Historic Shipwreck retains moderate structural integrity. While the hull was reduced by the removal of the bow and stern sections for later dedication as public memorials, the central section of the original hull is retained to main deck level. Scattered within the remainder of the wreck site are sections of miscellaneous plating, piping, and degraded original fabric.
Assessment criteria:	Items are assessed against the State Heritage Register (SHR) Criteria to determine the level of significance. Refer to the Listings below for the level of statutory protection.

Procedures /Exemptions

Section of act	Description	Title	Comments	Action date
57(2)	Exemption to allow work	Standard Exemptions	HERITAGE ACT 1977 ORDER UNDER SECTION 57(2) TO GRANT STANDARD EXEMPTIONS FROM APPROVAL I, Penny Sharpe, the Minister for Heritage, on the recommendation of the Heritage Council of New South Wales and under section 57(2) of the Heritage Act 1977: revoke the order made on 2 June 2022 and published in the Government Gazette Number 262 of 17 June 2022; and grant an exemption from section 57(1) of the Act in respect of the engaging in or carrying out the class of activities described in clause 2 Schedule A in such circumstances specified by the relevant standards in clause 2 Schedule A and General Conditions in clause 3 Schedule A. This Order takes effect on the date it is published in the NSW Government Gazette. Dated this 29th day of October 2025 The Hon Penny Sharpe MLC Minister for Heritage For more information on standard exemptions click on the link below.	Nov 7 2025

Standard exemptions for engaging in or carrying out activities / works otherwise prohibited by section 57(1) of the Heritage Act 1977

Listings

Heritage Listing	Listing Title	Listing Number	Gazette Date	Gazette Number	Gazette Page
Heritage Act - State Heritage Register		01676	15 Dec 06	183	11041
Heritage Act - State Heritage Register - Former		01676	17 Oct 03	167	10127
State Environmental Planning Policy	Hawkesbury-Nepean REP #20		07 Nov 97
Local Environmental Plan		20	08 Sep 89	093	6868

References, internet links & images

Type	Author	Year	Title	Internet Links
Written	Captain John Moore (ed)	1990	Jane's Fighting Ships of World War 1
Written	David Stevens	2000	The Royal Australian Navy
Written	Lew Lind	1974	HMAS Parramatta
Tourism	Parramatta City Council	2007	HMAS Parramatta Memorials, One and Two	View detail

Note: internet links may be to web pages, documents or images.

(Click on thumbnail for full size image and image details)

Data source


The information for this entry comes from the following source:
Name:	Heritage NSW
Database number:	5054727
File number:	H03/00242/1

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