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List of foreshore industrial sites on Sydney Harbour

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This is a list of industrial sites on or adjacent to the foreshore of Port Jackson, including Sydney Harbour, North Harbour, Middle Harbour, Lane Cove River, Parramatta River, and the islands within those waterways. Sydney now has relatively few foreshore industrial sites compared with earlier times, and this list is mainly of historical interest.

Balmain Colliery

This list may not include all existing and former industrial sites on or near the foreshore. It covers the period commencing from colonisation of Sydney in 1788.

The Parramatta River, although for the most part tidal, is defined as commencing at a line between Mann's Point, Greenwich and Long Nose Point, Birchgrove.

Northern foreshore

Sites are shown in order of location on the northern foreshore, running generally east to west.

More information Suburb/Locality, Company/Site ...
Suburb/Locality Company/Site Industry/Function Years of operation Current land use / Replaced by
North Head North Head Quarantine Station Quarantine station for passengers arriving on ships with notifiable diseases. It had its own wharf for landing quarantined passengers from ships.[1][2][3][4] 1832—1984 Heritage site with 'Q-Station' accommodation.
Manly /

Little Manly Point

 Manly Gas Co. Gasworks and coal unloading wharf.[5] 1885—1964 Gasworks buildings were demolished in 1971 but the site remained vacant for nearly 20 years, until its decontamination.[6] It is now Little Manly Point Park[7]
Middle Harbour / Bantry Bay Bantry Bay Explosives Depot Depot for the safe storage of explosives.[8][9] 1915—1974 Heritage site since 1999.[9]
Middle Harbour / Cammeray Metropolitan Board of Water Supply and Sewerage Folly Point Sewage Treatment Works[10][11] 1891—1927 Primrose Park, with some remnants of the sewage works structures.[12][11]
Clifton Gardens / Chowder Bay / Georges Heights Military Forces Submarine Mining Depot until 1922 and later Army Maritime School, also naval refuelling facility[13][14][15] 1889—1997 Heritage site and hospitality venues.
Mosman Government of New South Wales Animal quarantine station (transferred from Shark Island)[16] In 1917, a new quarantine station was opened at Abbotsford.[17] c1899—c.1916 Taronga Zoo
Mosman / Mosman Bay Archibald Mosman's whaling station Whaling station and wharf.[18] 1831—1840s Remaining building in Avenue Rd is The Barn Scout Hall now used by 1st Mosman Scouts.[19]
Harnett's Sandstone Quarry Quarry and wharf[1][20] 1878—1889 Mosman Rowing Club and houses and stone wharf remnants. A narrow reserve and flights of stairs follow the old alignment of an inclined cable tramway.[20]
Kurraba Point Thrupp's Quarry Sandstone quarry.[21] Before being quarried for stone blocks, Kurraba Point was used as a source of ballast for sailing ships. 1860—1862 Soap and oil factory (see below). Stone from the quarry was used to build the tower and buildings of Fort Denison
Patrick Hayes Soap and oil factory[21] —c.1883 Land sold in 1883 for ferry base (see below)
Port Jackson & Manly Steamship Company Ferry base and engineering workshop.[21] c.1883—1964 When the ferry company was acquired by the NSW Government in 1974, the land was included and it became Kurraba Point Reserve.
Neutral Bay Benjamin Boyd Woolstore of three storeys constructed of sandstone, and reservoir for wool washing, adjacent to Boyd's house 'Craignathan', on the foreshore at what is now Hayes St, Neutral Bay.[22] 1840s The disused woolstore building was demolished, in 1884, but some remnants exist of the store and reservoir.[23][24] During the 1920s, the house became a private hotel.[25] 'Craignathan' remains the name on an apartment complex there.[26]
Lars Halvorsen Sons Boat building yard (relocated from Drummoyne in 1925) and, from 1937, a boat servicing facility after boat building was relocated to Kissing Point. 1925—until after 1946 at least
North Shore Gas Company Gasworks and coal unloading wharf.[5] 1876—1937 World War II torpedo factory. (See below).[27]
Royal Australian Navy Torpedo factory 1942—

c. 1945

 Naval workshops (See below)[27]
Royal Australian Navy Torpedo Maintenance Establishment (RNTME). Naval workshops servicing Royal Navy submarines and destroyers. 1946—

1967

 Submarine base and submarine school. (See below)[27]
HMAS Platypus - submarine base, submarine school and torpedo workshop 1967—

1999

 From 2005, redeveloped as 'Sub Base Platypus' by the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust.[27]
Kirribilli Robert Campbell One of Australia's first shipyards was located at Wudyong Point on the eastern side of Kirribilli. 1807—? Since 1902, the site has been occupied by the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron.
Pastoral Finance Association Wool warehouse, meat cold store and wharf.[28][29] Its generators supplied electricity to customers on the north side of the harbour.[30] Its capacity was 26,000 bales of wool and 60,000 sheep carcasses. There was a wharf of 20,000 sq. feet in area, with 40 feet of water depth, and a barge canal that ran 50 feet inside the building.[31] It was adjacent to Admiralty House,[32] extending to Beulah Street.[33] 1890—1921 The seven-storey building was destroyed by fire in December 1921,[34] and the land was sold off in 19 allotments, in 1925. Later redeveloped as blocks of apartments.[35]
Sydney Harbour Trust / Sydney Ferries Limited Vehicular ferry wharf, located between Jeffrey Street and Admiralty House.[36][37] 1924—c.1932 Used during construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and closed after its opening in 1932.
Milsons Point Sydney Harbour Trust / Sydney Ferries Limited Vehicular ferry wharf, located at the end of Alfred Street.[36][38] By 1892

—1924

 Closed, in 1924, to allow construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, with vehicle ferries relocated to Kirribilli.
Dorman Long & Company Workshops for construction of Sydney Harbour Bridge.[39][40] c. 1923—c.1932 Luna Park since 1935.
Sydney Ferries Limited Ferry depot prior to completion of Sydney Harbour Bridge. —c.1932
Sydney Ferries Limited Large ferry wharves at former tram terminus and train terminus before Harbour Bridge.[41] Associated with the original Milson's Point station. Until 1932 Luna Park, and smaller ferry wharf reflecting reduced scale of ferry operations after 1932.
Lavender Bay George Alderton / Alderton's Lime Works 'Bee hive' style lime kilns, using shells harvested in Middle Harbour and shells carried by two ketches from Brisbane Water.[42][43][44] —c.1890 The railway yard constructed for the original North Shore line (see below).

A bottle-shaped brick and cement syphon tank still stood in the yard in 1908,[42] and there may have been remnants of the kilns there as late as 1924.[44]
Sydney Trains Lavender Bay train storage yard,[45] known as North Sydney Electric Car Sidings.[46] 1890—

now

 Originally part of the main North Shore line leading to the first Milson's Point station, it became a train storage yard, after the Sydney Harbour Bridge opened.
(Various) Small-scale boat building and repair 1860s—2005
McMahons Point Sydney Ferries Limited Large ferry wharves at the former tram terminus used before the Harbour Bridge.[41] Until 1932 Smaller wharf reflecting reduced scale of ferry operations after 1932.
Sydney Ferries Limited Blue's Point Ferry Depot Until 1932 Foreshore park and on part the boat shed below.
Griffin's boatshed Boat shed with two slipways on Henry Lawson Avenue Structures will be demolished, adding to existing Henry Lawson Reserve.
Blues Point Sydney Ferries Limited Vehicular ferry loading point.[47] Until 1932 The access points for the vehicular ferries still exist, at the end of Blues Point Road, atop the seawall east of Blues Point Tower.[48]
McMahons Point / Berrys Bay John W. Eaton Ltd (Timber Merchants) Power house, two sawmills, engineers shop, joinery shop, blacksmiths shop and wharf and crane.[49] 1880—

c.1980

 Sawmillers Reserve, public open space.[49][50]
Watty Ford's shipyard / Walter McFarlane Ford Boatyard that made ferries and other vessels. Ford was also well-known as an owner and sailor of 18-footer skiffs.[51] 1870—1930 Site reused by Stannards (see below)
Stannards Marine / now Noakes & Rosman Cruises[52] Boatyard[53] that made ferries and other vessels. The company had tugboat operations, and still does in some other Australian ports.[54] 1958—now Modern boatyard and residential apartments, 'The Waterman', after c.1979.[53]
Waverton / Berrys Bay BP Crude and refined oil terminal[55] 1922—1993 Carradah Park - Public open space with industrial remnants[56]
Woodleys Shipyard Shipbuilding and repair yard.[57] This business relocated from Millers Point in 1906. 1906—2012 The buildings and infrastructure were largely intact in 2023, but the site had been cleared by the late February 2026.
Quarantine Launch Depot Depot, refuelling facilities and houses for the crew of vessels Pasteur and Jenner, which were used to ferry sick passengers from ships to the North Head Quarantine Station.[58] 1912—1988 In 1988 the site was transferred to the Australian National Maritime Museum.
Australian National Maritime Museum Maintenance facility used by the museum to maintain its heritage fleet.[58] 1988—recent Two houses on the site have been purchased by North Sydney Council, with rest of site under Transport for NSW control and affected by future Western Harbour Tunnel project.
Waverton / Balls Head Bay Balls Head Coal Loader Coal unloader, stockpile and ship-loader.[59][60][61] 1920—1993 Public space with remnants, and interpretive signs.[62]
Department of Public Works, NSW Quarry for sandstone rock that was used to connect Garden Island to the mainland during the construction of the graving dock.[63][64] 1930s—1942 Naval base (see below) sited below the artificial sheer cliff created by the quarrying.
Royal Australian Navy Naval base, HMAS Waterhen[63] 1943—now Remains in use.
Waverton /

Balls Head Bay

(the part of it previously known as Oyster Bay or Cove and Kerosene Bay)

Robey's Sugar Works Sugar refinery.[65] This company had financial problems and was bought by CSR in 1859.[66] c.1857—1859 Kerosene Works (see below)
Australian Mineral Oil Co. Shale oil refinery and handling of imported 'case oil'[65][67] The first shale came from Stony Creek near 'West Maitland',[68] (probably near modern-day Farley). Later shale seems to have come from Hartley Vale.[69] c.1865—c.1867 It was this industry that gave the waterway its earlier name 'Kerosene Bay'.

Site reused by Peruvian Oil Company (see below)
Peruvian Oil Company The above works, known as the 'North Shore Kerosene Works', was used to process imported crude oil from Peru.[69] January 1868 to at least November 1868. Buildings taken over by an explosive works (see below).
Neokratine

Safety Explosives Co.

 Works making 'Neokratine' brand explosive[70] 1889—1891 North Shore Gas Company (see below)
North Shore Gas Company Gasworks and wharf[5][65]

After coal gas production ceased, during the period 1971–1973, the artist Brett Whitely used the disused coal store building as a studio for creating large artworks.[65]

 1917—1987 Residential development 'Wondakiah', with some public open space. Some of the old gasworks buildings have been repurposed.[71][72]
Millars Timber yard and wharf 1930s Now a bushland reserve, Badangi Reserve. A history of the timber yard and wharf appears on signage there.
Greenwich /

Gore Bay

 Shell Crude and refined oil terminal.[73][74][75][76] 1901—now Now operated by Shell distributor Viva Energy.[77]
Patent Asphaltum Company of NSW Refinery for bitumen, imported from Trinidad.[78] 1884—1908 Greewich Timber Co. (see below).
Greewich Timber Co. Timber yard.[78] 1908—1911 Land sold to John Fell & Co. in 1911 (see below).
John Fell & Co / later Shell Lubricating oil refinery[79][78][76] 1911—at least 1937 Bought in 1927 by Shell,[80] owners of the adjoining land. It continued to operate as a refinery, under Shell ownership, at least as late as 1937.[81]
John Fell & Co. / later Shell Four-storey reinforced concrete building used as a bulk store for oil products.[82] 1921—at least 1937 Bought in 1927 by Shell,[80] owners of the adjoining land. The building was still standing in 1935,[83] but is now gone.
Greenwich / Manns Point Burns Philp Wharf and bond store for copha and salt[84][85] —c.1965 Greenwich Sailing Club
Greenwich Henry Ferris (Messrs. Ferris & James) / Rosemorrin Smelting Works Coke ovens and wharf used for the copper smelter located on the opposite side of the river, at Onions Point, Woolwich.[86] c.1847—c. 1849
Longueville / Woodford Bay Rupert Kirk Soap and candle factory, on the south-west corner of Woodford Bay[84][87] 1831·1842 Residential housing
Riverview / Burns Bay Radke, from 1941 J.C.Ludowici Tannery on the left bank of Tannery Creek. 1880— Residential housing.
Lane Cove / Burns Bay A. Radke &

J.C Ludowici

 Tanneries on the right bank of Tannery Creek. Prior to 1858 their tannery was at Balmain.[88][89][90] 1858— Residential housing and public open space.
Mangrovite Belting Tannery and manufacturer of leather drive belts, on the right bank of Tannery Creek, originally owned by Charles Ludowici (son of J.C. Ludowici, and later a publicly listed company (delisted 1993).[91][92][90] 1913— Light industrial area, located east of the roundabout on Waterview Drive.
Australian Wood Pipe Company Factory for manufacturing wooden pipes, located on the western side of Burns Bay.[90][93] 1914— Mangrovite Oval,[84] public open space
Lane Cove River / Lane Cove Cumberland Paper Board Mill Paper and cardboard mill, located south of Stringybark Creek, with a dam on the creek.[94][95][96] 1912—1928 The plant burned in a fire in 1928[97][95] and the site was reused to manufacture chemicals (see below). The dam on Stringybark Creek[98] is a remnant of the paper mill.
Robert Corbett and Sons, later CSR Chemicals Chemical manufacturing plant 1928— S.C.Johnson and others
S.C.Johnson Household cleaning products —now Still operating.

The area south of S.C.Johnson is a light industrial area
John Sugden Berry Boiling down works[99] —c.1894 ‘Chicago Starch Mill’
‘Chicago Starch Mill’, later Clifford Love and Co. and later various others, finally Ingredion Corn mill and starch factory, on left bank of the river, north of the confluence with Stringybark Creek, located near where Epping Road crosses the Lane Cove River.[100][101][94][102][99][103] 1894—2020 Closed on 31 January 2020, when Ingredion ceased milling (45,000 tonnes of maize per-annum) and switched to imports.[103] Expected to be rezoned and redeveloped as apartments.
Lane Cove River / West Lindfield Jenkins family,

and others

 Orchards and wharves, on the upper part of the river below the former tidal limit, which were accessible by boat before the construction of the Lane Cove River weir in the 1930s c.1842—1937 Lane Cove National Park, with some remnant buildings.[104]
Cook's Wharf River wharf, which once stood at the river end (near what would later be the Schwartz Homestead) of an early road in the district (now Bradfield Rd), in what is now Lane Cove National Park.[105] c.1830s Part of Lane Cove National Park.This section of the river is no longer tidal, being impounded by a weir.
Lane Cove River / West Killara Fidden's Wharf River wharf, which once stood at the river end of an early road in the district (now Fiddens Wharf Rd), in what is now Lane Cove National Park.[106][107] c.1805 This section of the river is no longer tidal, being impounded by a weir.
Government sawmill There was a government-run sawmill operated by convict labour, nearby the site of the wharf.[106][107] c.1805—c.1819
Lane Cove River (right-bank) / Hunters Hill Ferry services on the Lane Cove River / Fig Tree Depot Ferry depot located on the shoreline between the Fig Tree Bridge and Fig Tree House. The site was used replenish coal bunkers of steam ferries and was also the site of Fig Tree ferry wharf. c.1871—? The seawall of the depot is still apparent and the adjacent Fig Tree House still stands.
Woolwich /

Onions Point (then known as 'Rosemorrin')

 Henry Ferris (Messrs. Ferris & James) / Rosemorrin Smelting Works Copper smelter managed by Richard Cocks.[108][109] It had four blast furnaces, and two wharves. Blast was provided by an 8 horsepower steam engine and the plant had a capacity of 50 tons of ore per week. Coal, wood, and coke was loaded at a wharf on the opposite side of the Lane Cove River.[86] c.1847—

c. 1849
Woolwich Atlas Engineering Company Workshops 1884—1898 Taken over by Mort's Dock in 1898.[110]
Mort's Woolwich Dock Dry-dock[111] 1901—1958 Army water transport, from 1963 until 1997, now public space with remnants.[111]
Sydney Smelting Co. Tin smelter and wharf.[112] 1892—1967 Kellys Bush Park, tin smelting operation was relocated to Alexandria
Hunters Hill (Unknown) Coal tar refinery producing Carbolic Acid.[113] 1900-1911 Site reused by Radium Hill (see below)
Radium Hill Radium and uranium refinery[114] 1911—1915 Residential housing (7-11 Nelson Parade), later purchased by the N.S.W. Government and demolished, due to presence of radioactive waste. The area was still being decontaminated in 2021.[115][116]
Mobil Oil Oil import terminal.[117] 1924—1988 Residential housing (Pulpit Point)[118]
Putney /

Kissing Point

 James Squire and his descendants Brewery and 'Malt Shovel Tavern' c.1792—c.1834 Part of the site became the Kidman and Mayoh shipyard and later the Halvorsen boatyard.
Kidman & Mayoh Shipyard[119][120][121][122] c.1917—

1922

 Site later used by Lars Halvorsen Sons.
Slazenger Shipyard Wartime facility, with operations of sporting goods manufacturer converted to wooden vessel building.[123] 1943—

c.1946
Lars Halvorsen Sons Boat building facility c1937—c.1980 Building still standing, now used as Recycled Building Materials Centre.[124]
Bill Fisher Boat builder.[123] Until

1992
Meadowbank Meadowbank Manufacturing Company Agricultural machinery and railway and tramway rolling stock maker.[125] 1890—1930 Meadowbank TAFE, and there is a memorial to works manager, Thiomas White, on the site.[126] TAFE site is being redeveloped as an education precinct with TAFE, primary school and high school.[127]
Hoover Domestic appliance factory[125] 1953—2001 Residential housing.
Melrose Park

(Wharf Road)

 Pfizer Australia Pharmaceutical company.[128] 1959—2015 Historically, the part of Melrose Park that lies within the City of Parramatta has been an industrial suburb, but redevelopment of this area, for residential apartment blocks, is well under way.[128]
GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical company.[128] —c.2020 (as above)
Eli Lilly Pharmaceutical company.[128] —2015 (as above)
Aeroplane Jelly Factory making the famous Australian brand of jelly.[128] 1973—2006 (as above)

Factory operations moved to Clayton, Victoria.
Big Sister Foods Manufacturer of fruit cakes and other baked goods.[128] The company failed in 2014,[129] although its brand remains in use by others.. 1945 or later—2014 (as above)
Close

Southern foreshore

Sites are shown in order of location, generally running generally east to west.

More information Suburb/Locality, Company/Site ...
Suburb/Locality Company/Site Industry/Function Years of operation Current land use / Replaced by
Watsons Bay Transport for NSW 1907—1959, Lifeboat station;

1959–2015, Pilot boat station[130]

 1907—2015 Building and jetty leased to Boating Industry Association and repurposed as a boating safety school.
Boating Industry Association The Pilot Station – Boating Safety Education Centre[130] 2015—now Still operating
Rose Bay Rose Bay Water Airport Seaplane landing space 1938—now Still operating for light seaplanes only.
Qantas / Ansett Flying boat base and hangars.[131][132][133] 1938—1974
Rushcutters Bay Hardy's Rubber

Works (or Hardie's?)

 Rubber factory[134] c.1932
Rushcutters Bay Tram Depot Public transport (cable trams then electric trams, and trolleybuses)[135] When originally constructed for cable trams, it was also the site of the winding house that propelled the cable.[136] 1898—1960 Rushcutters Bay Hotel
Potts Point / Garden Island Royal Australian Navy Naval dockyard and base. This base is known officially as Fleet Base East.[137] 1866—now Still operating.
Royal Australian Navy Captain Cook Graving Dock[138] 1945—now Still operating
Woolloomooloo Finger Wharf Shipping wharf[139] 1913—c.1980 Repurposed as a hotel and residential.
Sydney Suburban Hydraulic Power Company Hydraulic power pumping sub-station, located on Cowper Wharf Road.[140] c.1920s
Fish Market Public and wholesale fish market[141] 1871—c.1945 Astor apartments (block bounded by Bourke, Plunkett, Forbes and Wilson Sts)
Wharves Shipping wharves on western shore. Apartments
Bennelong Point Quarry Quarry used to obtain sandstone for early government buildings and seawalls.[142] c.1788—c.1848 'Tarpeian Way', artificial cliff-face and Man o' War steps.
Lime Kilns Lime Kilns once existed on the eastern side of Fort Macquarie, which burnt oyster and other shells to make lime.[143]
Fort Macquarie Military fort that replaced earlier fortifications dating back to 1788. 1817—1901 Fort Macquarie Tram Depot
Fort Macquarie Tram Depot Public transport (electric trams)[144][135] 1902—1955 Sydney Opera House
P&O Wharf Passenger ship terminal, which stood to the west of the Fort Macquarie Tram Depot.[145] It was already disused by 1928, with P & O ships berthing at Woolloomooloo Bay in that year,[146] but the structure was still there c.1945.[145] By c.1945 it was already known as the 'old P & O Wharf'. Now a part of area occupied by Sydney Opera House
Sydney Harbour Trust Vehicular ferry wharf, located at Fort Macquarie, for vehicle ferries to Milsons Point until 1924 and, after 1924, Kirribilli.[36] —1932 Closed after opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Circular Quay

(East) / Sydney Cove

 Warehouses Wool-stores and auction houses[147] c.1840s Now the site of the Bennelong Apartments buildings, colloquially known as ‘The Toaster’.
Circular Quay

/ Sydney Cove

 Warehouse

(Mort's later Farmers & Graziers)

 Wool-stores and auction house[148] c.1860—1960 Now the site of the AMP Building.
Warehouses (various) Smaller wool stores and warehouses. c.1860—now Although long since repurposed, some of these smaller buildings survive, in the laneways behind the Customs House,[149] notably Hinchcliff House in Young Street.
Ferry Wharves Public transport

(Ferries)

 —now Newer ferry wharves
The Rocks /

Circular Quay

(West) / Sydney Cove

 Overseas Passenger Terminal Passenger terminal and wharf for ocean liners and cruise ships. 1958—now Still in use. Major modifications made in 1988.
Government Dockyard Dockyard[150][151] 1797—1859 Open space near Cadman's Cottage and part of Museum of Contemporary Art site. Cadman's Cottage is the former coxswains' barracks.
Commisariat Store & King's / Queen's Wharf (originally known as 'Hospital Wharf') Government warehouse,[152] with public wharf known as King's Wharf (after 1837, Queen's Wharf) in front. Warehouse:

1810—1939 Wharf: 1802—?

 The Maritime Services Board Building now occupied by Museum of Contemporary Art
Metcalfe Bond Stores Warehouse and bond store, built 1912–1916.[153] c1912—? Building repurposed as offices, restaurants, and retail arcade.
New South Wales Department of Public Works / George Street Electric Light Power Station Intended to supply the Rocks and Millers Point area with direct-current electricity, and replace two small power stations operated by Public Works, this power station was inadequately sized and was an early victim of the debate over the merits of alternating current and direct current. No machinery was ever installed in it, and the building was left in a roofless state.[154][155] No longer needed, after Pyrmont Power Station opened in 1904. 1900—1908 The tall brick chimney (a landmark of the Rocks) is a relic of the original power station, but was never used.

The single-storey building was converted, by adding more floors in 1908, to house the Geological & Mining Museum (since closed), by Government Architect, Walter Liberty Vernon.[154]

Dawes Point Sydney Ferries Limited / Sydney Harbour Trust Horse ferry dock and later vehicular ferry wharf on the Sydney Cove side of Dawes Point. Redundant after the opening of Sydney Harbour Bridge and subsequently closed, —1932 Open space with the remnants of the ferry site evident in the arrangement of the seawall.
Walsh Bay Wharves Shipping wharves Repurposed wharves
Millers Point John Leighton's flour mills Wind-powered flour mills. John Leighton's nickname 'Jack the Miller' was applied to the area, as 'Jack the Miller's Point', later Millers Point.[156] c.1814—

c.1842

 Houses.
Windmill Street Quarry Sandstone quarry.[157] c.1790— c.1830 Buildings in Windmill Street, around where it dips in level.[157]
Millers Point / Darling Harbour / Barangaroo Munn's Slipway Boatyard and slipway. 1820s Cuthbert's Shipyard. Some stone flagging from Munn's Slipway has been preserved in Nawi Cove.
John Cuthbert / Cuthbert's Shipyard Shipyard for wooden sailing vessels and steamers. The business began at 'Milne's Wharf' (also on Darling Harbour), in 1853, but was transferred to the site at Miller's Point in 1861.[158] The first naval vessel built in Australia, H.M.S. Spitfire, was made there.[159][160] 1861— 1873[158] Replaced by warehouses.[159]

Now Nawi Cove in the Barangaroo redevelopment.

Australian Gas Light Gasworks, the first in Australia.[161] 1841—1921 Now occupied by part of the Barangaroo redevelopment. One building of the gasworks, later Building 1 of the MSB Stores Complex, remains standing.
Sydney City / Cockle Bay Various flour mills

(Sussex Street)

 Steam flour mills[162] 1830s
Sydney City / Bathurst Street Gillespie Bros Flour Mill Flour mill —1921 Moved to Pyrmont in 1921.
Sydney City / Darling Harbour Wharves Coastal shipping wharves (general cargo) Redeveloped as mixed use.
Sydney / Darling Harbour Government Freezing Works Freezing works including for export.[163] c. 1899
Sydney / Darling Harbour

(former Barker Street)

 Wearne's Flour Mill Flour mill destroyed by fire in 1866. It stood near the foot of Bathurst St, in the former Barker St.[164] the business relocated to Goulburn Street. The Wearne family were associated with other mills in N.S.W. —1866
P. N. Russell and Company Ironworks and foundry. Steam-engines, boilers, rolling stock and mining equipment.[165] 1855—1875 Closed down after protracted industrial disputes.

C&G Hoskins started as a result of P & N Russell shutdown.[166]

Ultimo / Darling Harbour Sydney Suburban Hydraulic Power Company / Hydraulic Pumping Station No.1 Pumphouse for hydraulic power to operate lifts, hoists, cranes, bank doors and wool dumping presses. The company was established in 1889, and the pump station commenced operating in 1891.[167][140][168] (The original water source was the company's water supply dam, located at what is now Zetland, around the north-west corner of South Dowling St. and O’Dea Ave. Water was pumped through 2.5 mile (4 km) of cast iron mains to the pump-house.)[167] 1889—1975 Building still standing. From 1988, it was used as a micro-brewery and bar and, subsequently, as a bar and restaurant.

Part of the company became Elevators Pty Ltd, in 1955, and is now a part of Kone.

Ultimo Power Station Electricity for tram network. 1899—1963 Powerhouse Museum
Pyrmont / Darling Harbour

(see also

Darling Island)

 Darling Harbour Yard Rail goods yard and wharves.[169] 1856—

1993

 Darling Harbour redevelopment
Goldsbrough Mort & Co. Wool store.[170][171] —1980s The original building was repurposed, in 1995, with four new floors added, as 'the Goldsbrough' apartment building.
Farmers and Graziers Wool store. The original building was repurposed, as an apartment building by Meriton in 1998.[172]
Pyrmont coal wharves Railway coal wharves (both loading and unloading of coal) c.1870s—c1930s Australian National Maritime Museum
David Drake Shipyard at the foreshore end of Murray Street. The business relocated first to Jones Bay in 1881 and then to Bald Rock, Balmain in 1889.[173][174] 1875—1881
Pyrmont Power Station Electricity supply. It was operated first by the City Council, then by Sydney County Council, from 1935, and last by Electricity Commission of New South Wales, from 1952. 1904—1983 Star Casino
Grain store Grain stores for wharves[175] c. 1903
Goodlet and Smith / Victoria Steam Saw and Joinery Mills Sawmill and joinery works, on Murray Street and the western foreshore of Darling Harbour. Relocated to a site adjacent to the CSR sugar refinery in 1885.[176][177] 1872—1885
Pyrmont Pyrmont Tin Smelting Company Tin Smelter and jetty.[178][179][180] 1874—

(at least) 1918

 Pyrmont Bay Park
Henry Vale & Company Manufacturer of marine engines and locomotives. The factory was on a former street, known as Alma Street, that no longer exists.[181] c.1875—1884 The works relocated to Auburn in 1884, eventually its site was occupied by part of the flour mill (see below)
Gillespie Bros Flour Mill

(Union Street)

 Flour mill and grain silos on Union St and Edward st. (An earlier mill stood at the base of Bathurst St on (former) Barker St until 1921.)[182] 1921—1992 The Pyrmont mill was demolished in 1992 and replaced with a supermarket, office buildings and a part of the Star Casino's site.[183]
The Waterside Cold Stores

(Jones Bay)

 Cold store.[184][185] c.1932—c.1988
Goodlet & Smith

(Jones Bay)

 Timber wharf, sawmill and timber yard. This timber business began in 1872, in nearby Murray Street on the western side of Darling Harbour, and relocated to its new site in 1885. The main building of five storeys, housed a large engine driving the machinery throughout the building. The site closed when the lease on the land expired in 1927.[177][186] (Goodlet & Smith also made bricks and roof tiles, at other places in Sydney. The Goodlet family were known as philanthropists.[187]) 1885—1927
Thomas Chowne

(Jones Bay)

 Shipyard that built thirteen vessels including two early harbour ferries.[188] c.1840—c.1860 Sugar refinery (see below)
Colonial Sugar Refinery

(Jones Bay)

 Sugar refinery and wharves.[189][190][191][192] To prepare for construction of the sugar refinery, the site was first quarried for sandstone, until its level was just above high-tide level.[193] The site had two grab-unloader cranes for unloading raw sugar and other bulk materials from the 1950s. 1875— 1993 Residential housing (‘Jackson's Landing’)
David Drake Shipyard at Jones Bay. The business relocated from near Murray Street in 1881 and then relocated to Bald Rock, Balmain, in 1889.[173][174] 1881—1889
Saunder's Quarries Quarries for building stone (sandstone).[194][195] The quarries had colloquial names, 'Paradise',[196] 'Half Way',[197] 'Purgatory',[198] and 'Hell.'[199] The quarries were the main source of the highly regarded 'yellowblock' freestone. Many notable Sydney sandstone buildings used stone from the quarries at Pyrmont. 1840s—1940s Various uses. The Wentworth Park light rail stop is located inside the site of the former 'Half Way' quarry.[197] The Farmers & Graziers building is on the site of the 'Purgatory' quarry.[198]
City Iron Works Iron works and rolling mills.[200][201][202] It was also known as 'Brown's Ironworks', after its owner, and was located nearby the Glebe Island Bridge.[203] 1865—1938 Relocated to Alexandria in 1938.[202] Its site became part of the CSR site and is now part of Waterfront Park, Pyrmont.
Blackwattle Bay Sydney City Council / Municipal incinerator The municipal incinerator was the largest of the six reverberatory furnace incinerators, in Sydney, built by Reverberatory Incinerator and Engineering Co. Pty Ltd, in buildings designed by architect Walter Burley Griffin. It stood at what is now the corner of Bank St and Quarry Master Drive, overlooking Blackwattle Bay. The road entrance was from Saunders St. The area had been quarried for sandstone previously.[204][205][206][207][208] c.1936—1971 The practice of incinerating garbage became unacceptable, due to air pollution limits, and the incinerator closed. The building was left to decay, before being demolished in 1992. The site was reused to build a Meriton apartment block.
State Brickworks Wharf and brick depot for bricks made at the brickworks, at Homebush Bay, and brought by water from there.[209] c.1936
Heidelberg Materials Australia Concrete batching plant. (Replaced plant closed at new fish market site.) 2021—now
Allen Taylor & Company, Sexton & Binns, and others Timber yards and wharves.[210] c.1908 Sydney Fish Markets
Shell Company of Australia Kerosene and Mineral turpentine unloading wharf and storage tanks[211] Sydney Fish Markets
Sydney Fish Market Wholesale and retail fish market. 1966—now Still operating (2021) but planned to be relocated to the head of the bay.
Jones Brothers,

Wharf 21

 Coal unloader and coal depot. It had a large gantry crane and a wooden coal bunker structure[210][212] 1926—c.1988 Derelict site for many years. Demolished as a part of the relocation of Sydney Fish Market, in 2021
RW Miller Coal unloader and coal depot[212]
Howard Smith, Wharf 25 Coal unloader and coal depot[212] c.1922 Site later cleared and used as mooring area by RW.Miller and later for 'Stone Fleet', as below.
Pioneer Concrete, later Hanson Australia Wharf and bunkers for unloading and distribution of construction aggregate from the ships known colloquially as the 'Stone Fleet'.[213] Until 2011 Became a concrete batching plant, as below.
Hanson Australia Concrete batching plant. Until c2020 Demolished for new Fish Market development in 2021. (Replaced by facility adjacent to the old Fish Market on the other side of Blackwattle Bay.)
New Sydney Fish Market (Construction site) New Sydney Fish Market (under construction) 2021—now The new market and its retail outlets are due to open in (late) 2025.[214]
Blackwattle Bay / Wentworth Park Imperial Wool Purchase Scheme Wool storage sheds in Wentworth Park, capacity 35,000 bales[215] c1916—1923 Parkland (Wentworth Park)
Blackwattle Bay / Glebe Kauri Timber Company Timber unloading wharf, next wharf to the west of Howard Smith's coal wharf. Imported timbers included kauri pine, 'Oregon', and Baltic pine. Timber yard and factory. 1883—1909 Sold to George Hudson and Son in 1909.[216]
George Hudson & Son Ltd. Timber yard, factory and wharf.[217]

Scene of a huge fire in 1928[218] and a famous industrial dispute in 1929.[219] It was still expanding its area in 1950.[220]

 1909—

1950s, at least

 From 1979, Glebe High School, now Sydney Secondary College Blackwattle Bay Campus, and foreshore parkland.[221]
G.E. Crane and Sons / Sydney Lead Works Leadworks with 190 foot high shot tower[222] In 1906, the site was also rolling lead sheet and making lead pipes.[223] 1893—1930 Partially demolished c.1950 (shot tower).
Municipality of The Glebe / Municipal Incinerator The municipal incinerator building was designed by architect Walter Burley Griffin. Previously the site was a depot, where garbage was loaded onto barges, taken out to sea and dumped offshore. Eventually, the practice of incinerating garbage became unacceptable and the incinerator closed.[224][225][204] 1933 (or 1936)—1949 Much of the building has survived; the furnace and flue were demolished in 1952. It is one of six surviving in Australia, and one of two in Sydney.
Vanderfield and Reid Large timber yard on waterfront land leased from the Maritime Services Board.[221][226][227] Until c.1970 Now part of Blackwattle Bay Park. The restored house Bellevue (now a cafe) was once part of Vanderfield & Reid's timber yard.[228][229]
Glebe Point Stride's Yard Breaking yard located on the foreshore and Leichhardt St, Glebe, founded by Sylvester 'Jim' Stride and operated as a family business. In 1937, the business bought more land and expanded the site. The harbour ferries Curl Curl and Dee Why were scrapped there, as was the 'sixty-miler' SS Bellambi. The size of ship that could be broken up there was limited by the opening width of the Glebe Island Bridge.[230][231][227] c.1919—1985 The yard's crane was conserved as a public artwork, in 2010, and still stands in the portion of the site that is now part of Blackwattle Bay Park.[232][233]
Harbour Lighterage Limited This company split from the remnants of Sydney Ferries Limited in 1951.[234] It had a base on Rozelle Bay, from where it operated a fleet of small tugs and lighters. The fleet was sold at auction in 1990.[235][226][227] —1990 Most of its site is covered by the Bridgewater apartments, built in 1996, except for a small strip of public land along the waterfront. A winch, from its former slipway, and its (now shortened) wharf remain at its former site. The wharf is privately owned.[236]
Streetley Industries, National Plywood, Sydney Sawmilling, and Standen Brothers. Land owned by the Maritime Services Board was leased for use as timber yards.[221] Until c.1970 Now public open space; Bicentennial Park (Glebe) and Federal Park were added to the existing Jubilee Park (Glebe) to create a large area of parkland.
Independent Oil Industries Limited / Purr Pull Oil Industries Limited 'Purr Pull' petrol import, storage and distribution facility, and from around 1957 a chemical manufacture and blending facility, located on waterfront land at 27-45 Federal Road, Glebe.[237][238][239] Its abandoned site was still there in 1969.[240] 1932 until at least 1957 Site now part of Federal Park,
Rozelle Bay Rozelle Tram Depot Public transport (Electric Trams) 1904—1958 Repurposed as a retail complex, 'Tramsheds' in 2016.[241]
Five yards on Rozelle Bay

All there in 1939

 Timber yards
Rozelle Bay/ Annandale Beale Piano (possibly one of the above yards) Timber wharf for nearby piano factory[242] c.1902—c. 1975
Rozelle /

White Bay

 White Bay Power Station Coal-fuelled electrical power station, operated by New South Wales Government Railways, from 1933, by NSW Department of Railways, and from 1953 by Electricity Commission of New South Wales. 1913—1983 Stood unused, until around 2021, when a remediation began. Reopened as a venue for community and cultural activities in 2024,[243]
Balmain Coal Loader Coal ship-loader mainly used for coal brought to the site by rail. 1935—1991 Yet to be redeveloped. Part of the Bays Precinct, it will be site of The Bays metro station, on the Sydney Metro West, due to open in 2032.
Balmain /

White Bay

 Lever Brothers Soap and detergent factory, known colloquially as 'The Sunlight Factory.'[244] 1895—1988 Residential housing ('Watervale', 'Dockside' and 'Somerset Mews' apartments), with some remnant buildings.
David Drake Limited Shipyard in the area of Balmain known as 'Bald Rock'.[173][174] 1889—1934
Poole & Steel Limited Shipyard at the foreshore end of Stephen Street.[245] During the Second World War, the yard constructed seven Bathurst-class corvettes and one tugboat for the Royal Australian Navy. c. 1902—

c. 1961

 The site was taken over by Swift's Chemicals, by 1967.[246]
John Booth Steam-operated sawmill and timber yard, located on the foreshore east of Booth Street. It provided timber for shipbuilding and housing. Destroyed by fire in 1874, it was rebuilt in 1875–76.[247][248][249] 1854—1902 The site was later used as wharves. Booth Street is named after John Booth.
White Bay Cruise Terminal Terminal for cruise liners. Supplements Overseas Passenger Terminal but can only accept liners that can fit under Sydney Harbour Bridge. 2013—now Still operating.
Balmain / Cameron Cove /

Johnstone Bay

 Anderson's Jubilee Floating Dry Dock Ship repair floating dry-dock. It was originally known as the 'Victoria Jubilee' but subsequently just known as the 'Jubilee' floating dry dock. It was designed by its owner James Anderson.[250][251][252][253][254] The floating dock was working, until at least 1902,[255] and possibly later.

The business relocated to Long Nose Point Birchgrove, as Jubllee Engineering Company, in the 1930s.[256]

 1887—1930s MSB depot (see below), some parkland and open water.

The nearby street Jubilee Place, is named after the Jubilee dry-dock.

Maritime Services Board Depot 1930s—c.2004 Water Police (see below)
NSW Police Marine Area Command, also known as the 'Water Police' Police boat depot and wharf. The Water Police date from 1789 and earlier has been located at Watson's Bay, Garden Island, Goat Island and Cockatoo Island.[257][258][256] 2004—now Still operating
Morrison & Sinclair Shipyard that constructed ferries, island trading vessels, pontoons, lighters, and yachts.[245][259] It moved to Longnose Point in 1923. 1890s—1923
Balmain East / Peacock Point Fenwick & Co Boat Store Shipwrights yard, operated first by John Bell, and the Fenwick family after 1883.[260] c.1840—c.1994 Heritage-listed building (2-8 Weston Street) and also open space that is now part of Iloura Reserve.
John Graham /

Graham's Dock

 Small floating dock that was moored near the end of Darling Street, where there was also a shipyard.[261][262][263] c.1882—c.1887

at least
Peverley Wharf and shipbuilding yard created by cutting away solid rock.[264][265] It was put up for a mortgagee sale twice; once in 1869[266] and again in 1873.[267] Yard taken over by Henry Beattie (see below), possibly after a mortgagee sale in 1873.
Henry Beattie Beattie's shipyard was located between Darling Street and Peacock Point.[268][265][269] c.1873— Peacock Point Reserve
Balmain East / Waterview Bay Waterview Wharf Workshops Maritime industrial site.

Formerly operated by Adelaide Steamship Company.[270]

 c.1900—now Still operating
Balmain / Waterview Bay Svitzer Australia, formerly Adelaide Steamship. Tug boat depot and wharf; marine services.[271] —now Still operating
Colgate-Palmolive Soap, toothpaste, and shampoo factory[272][273] 1922—1994 Remaining building at 22-23 Colgate Ave, Balmain[272] Site now housing.
Sydney Slipway and Engineering Company Slipway and engineering workshop.[274] It was a wholly owned subsidiary of the Adelaide Steamship Company.[275] The company entered voluntary liquidation in October 2003.[276] c.1959[277] and still there in 1972[274]
Balmain Shipyard Public Transport (Ferries) 1850s—now Operated by Transdev Sydney Ferries
Captain T. S. Rowntree Patent slip. Rowntree was a partner, with T. S. Mort, in the subsequent dry-dock on the site, from the start of its construction in 1854 to around 1860.[278] c. 1852—1854 Mort's Waterview Dock (see below)

Rowntree St, Birchgrove is named after Captain Thomas Rowntree.

Mort's Waterview Dock / 'Mort's Dock & Engineering Works' Ship repair dock and some shipbuilding. By 1897, on the site of 18 acres, it employed around 1000 men, and it included a dry dock, two 'patent slips' and a smaller slip (slipways), engineering workshops (including a boiler shop, machining shop, erecting shop, and joinery shop), an iron foundry, and a sawmill, As well as serving the dockyard, the foundry made products such as cast-iron baths and building columns. The works also made mining and other machinery, and it fabricated parts for bridges.[279][280] 1855—1959 The company went into liquidation in 1959. Part of the site was used as the ANL terminal (see below). Container storage site from 1963 to 1975, then residential housing and parkland.
Birchgrove / Mort Bay Australian National Line Terminal and wharf for MS Empress of Australia on Sydney-Hobart / Bell Bay / Devonport route. 1965—1972 Terminal was in Yeend Street
Thomas. S. Rowntree & Company Floating dock in Mort's Bay.[281] c.1888 Open water,
Birchgrove /

Ballast Point

 Texaco, later Caltex Fuel depot, manufacturing and packaging facility.[282] 1928—c.1990 Ballast Point Park (urban park and public open space)[283]
Birchgrove / Snails Bay Nicholson Brothers Ferry and launch mooring depot.[259] Closed when the ferry company was bought by Stannard Marine in 1967. —1967
Fountain's Boatshed Family-owned boat repair business on the foreshore at 5 Wharf Road. 1960—now Still operating
Birchgrove / Longnose Point Jubilee Engineering Co. Boilermaking and ship repair workshop. It carried out repairs on R.W. Miller ships and other R.W.Miller equipment. It was located on the foreshore at 113 Louisa St. It had relocated from Cameron's Cove, Balmain East in the 1930s. Wound up c.1990. 1930s—1990 Two very large houses and a small foreshore park, Yerroulbin Reserve.
Morrison & Sinclair Shipyard that made ferries and yachts.[259] 1923—1970 Yurulbin Park, which contains some remnants of the old shipyard.
Birchgrove / Longnose Point Storey & Keers Ship repairers was located on the Parramatta River side of Lousa Road. Company still operates at White Bay and Port Kembla.[284][259]
Birchgrove Balmain Colliery Colliery and coal wharf.[285] It was the only coal mine within inner-Sydney and is still the deepest in Australia at approximately 800 m. 1897—1945 Residential housing, Hopetoun Quays'[286]
Rozelle /

Iron Cove side

 Elliot Bros. / later Australian Fluorine Chemicals / laterMonsanto Chemicals Chemical plant.[287][288][289]

This site also provided the last large vehicle access and wharf for transport to and from nearby Cockatoo Island.

 c. 1865[288]—c.1990s Residential Housing, 'Balmain Cove'.[290]
Electric Light and Power Supply Corporation / later ECNSW / Balmain Power Station Coal-fired electrical power station that also generated some of its heat energy from incinerating garbage.[290] EL&PSC was nationalised in 1956, and the power station assets became owned and operated by ECNSW. 1909—1976 The old power station pumphouse building remains on the site. Part of the old site is now occupied by 'Balmain Shores' apartment complex and part by Bridgewater Park, public open space. There is a public walk along the foreshore from King George Park (west of Iron Cove Bridge) to 'Balmain Shores' apartments on the former Monsanto site.[290]
Drummoyne /

Iron Cove

 Perdriau Brothers, then

Dunlop, after 1929

 Rubber and tyre factory.[291] 1900—1977 Retail outlets (Birkenhead Point)
Drummoyne Henderson Slip Company Slipway and marine refit and repair business in St Georges Crescent, Drummoyne.[292][293] (Later operated by Bailey and Jorgensen.[294]) 1930s
Lars Halvorsen Sons Boat builders 1924 only Business relocated to larger premises at Neutral Bay.
Chiswick Lysaght Bros & Co., later BHP / Sydney Wire Mill Wire mill and wire netting factory.[295][296] 1884—1998 Residential housing developed by Meriton,[297] and a foreshore park known as Wire Mill Reserve.
Abbottsford / Fig Tree Bay Nestlé Chocolate factory, in a large garden setting on the foreshore of Fig Tree Bay, with a wharf. When opened, it was the largest chocolate factory in the Southern Hemisphere.[298][299][300][301] 1917—1991 Residential housing, 'Abbotsford Cove'.[302]
Abbotsford / Hen & Chicken Bay Commonwealth of Australia Animal quarantine station on 2.38 hectare site.[17][303] 1917—1980 A public reserve known as Quarantine Reserve, which contains many of the old quarantine station buildings.[17]
Concord / Hen & Chicken Bay Farleigh, Nettheim & Co. Tannery adjacent to a former swampy area.[304][305] 1876—before 1970 Concord High School[306]
Concord /

Exile Bay

 Bushells Tea and coffee manufacture[307] 1958—now Still operating, although there is a plan to close the factory.
Walters, Middleton and Eades / (later)

Tanner & Middleton[308]

 Timber yard and wharves. before WWI—? Residential housing, 'The Estuary' built c.1993.[309]
Austral Bronze Crane Copper[308] Brass foundry, copper and aluminium rolling plant. 1930— Residential housing.
Cabarita Wunderlich Building material for ceilings, including asbestos cement made using asbestos from the company's mines at Barraba and Beaconsfield.[310][311] The plant was located on the promontory, adjacent to what is now called Prince Edward Park. 1917-1950s Southern Can / Containers Limited (See below)
Containers Limited (originally Southern Can) Manufacturing cans for food and drink packaging[310] 1950s—1982 Land sold to neighbour Wellcome Australia.[310] Later became part of 'Cape Cabarita'.[312] (See below)
Wellcome Australia Veterinary and horticultural products. 1919—? Apartment and townhouse housing with residents-only open space and recreational facilities ('Cape Cabarita').[312]
Dulux Paints (originally 'BALM', British Australian Lead Manufacturers, until 1960) Paint factory (lead paints)[313] it stood on land fronting Kendall Bay, near Cabarita Park. 1921—1990s Redeveloped as housing, 'Kendall Inlet'.[314]
Mortlake / Breakfast Point / Kendall Bay Australian Gas Light Company Gasworks and coal unloading wharf.[315] 1886—1990s Residential housing (Breakfast Point)
Mortlake / Green Point River Quays Marina Moorings, repair facility, and slipway. The marina's site was the original location of the first Palace Hotel (1886). ?—c.1995 Buildings and wharves are still there, but it is no longer operating.
Transport for NSW / Mortlake Ferry Cable ferry linking Mortlake to Putney. The last vehicular ferry operating across the Parramatta River or Sydney Harbour.[316][317] 1928—now Still operating
Allen Taylor and Company Timber yard.[318] ?—1942 Green Point Naval Boatyard

(see below)

Concrete Constructions / Green Point Naval Boatyard Site used to assemble prefabricated naval launches and other vessels.[318] 1942—1950s Part of the area is Wangal Centenary Bushland Reserve, part is now apartments, with a wharf. In the reserve, there is a plaque commemorating the boatyard.[318]
Rhodes NSW State Sawmill Sawmill[319] 1900—? H. McKenzie (see below)
H. McKenzie Timber merchants and joiners[319] Until 1969
Tulloch Limited / Phoenix Ironworks Railway rolling stock maker.[320][319] 1913—1974 Commercial buildings (Rhodes Corporate Park)
Philips Industries Site made Malvern Star and Speedwell bicycles.[320][319] Philips entered the bicycle business through its purchase of Electronic Industries, which had purchased the brands Malvern Star (in 1958) and Speedwell (in 1965).[321] c.1970—c.1980
Various Ironworks and, in World War II, ship building, on Bray's Bay. 1914—1985 Public park with industrial remnants
NSW Main Roads Department / Ryde Ferry Cable vehicular ferry, linking Concord Road, Rhodes and Church Street, Ryde.[322] 1840s—1935 Replaced by Ryde Bridge in 1935.
John Darling Mills,

then Allied Mills from 1960

 Grain milling and stock-feed manufacture.[319] c.1919 Redeveloped as high density housing.
Timbrol later taken over by Union Carbide Chemical plant (This facility was between John Darling Mills and Hoskins/CSR.)[323] 1928—1985 Redeveloped as high density housing.

Land contaminated with chemicals and contamination of the bay sediments.

C&G Hoskins Cast-iron pipe factory[319] The works stood near the Rhodes railway station.[324] 1911—1930 Pipe plant moved to Port Kembla, with site reused by CSR Chemicals (see below).
CSR Chemicals later ICI Chemical plant[325] 1935—1997 Redeveloped as high density housing.
Lewis Berger & Sons

and later briefly Orica

 Paint factory and wharf.[319][320][326][327] c. 1916—1987 Rhodes Waterside Shopping Centre, offices and apartments, and a foreshore park, known as Lewis Berger Park, that contains a war memorial, in the form of a sundial, commemorating ex-servicemen from the former factory.
Homebush Bay / Haslams Creek Radio 2SM Transmitter site and tower, also used from c.1967 until October 2020 by 2CH, which was earlier at Ermington,

Also now used by 2UE.

 c.1931—now Still in use.
Radio 2UE Transmitter site and tower. The first site was at Lilli Pilli on Port Hacking and opened in 1925[328] c.1942—?[329] Original site no longer used.[330] (See Radio 2SM)

Now a BMX track.

Radio 2KY, later known as Sky Sports Radio Transmitter site and two towers.

Same facility also used by 2GB since 2015.

 c.1925—now Still in use.
Homebush Bay / southern end (Unknown) Ship-breakers’ yard c.1972 Partially disassembled hulks of four ships left in Homebush Bay.
State Brickworks Quarrying and brickmaking,[331][332]

with wharf (to send bricks to Blackwattle Bay). The brickworks was serviced by a platform on the former Abbatoirs branch railway line.[333][334]

 1910—1988 Olympic Park and wetland for Golden Bell Frog habitat.[209]
Homebush Bay / Wentworth Point Ralph Symonds Limited Plywood factory, a unique, architect-designed, very large, timber structure, which was itself noteworthy.[335][336] 1959—c1980 Only a part of the building was still standing by October 2025, and was in use as industrial building. Other part of site redeveloped as housing and Marina Square shopping centre.

In October 2025, it was stated that the remaining wooden buildings would be replaced by two 50 storey apartment towers.[337]

de Havilland Marine (Large Craft) Marine vessel building[336] Until 1982 Redeveloped as housing
Radio 2GB Transmitter and tower;[336] the site was chosen because moist ground provides a good earth connection and stronger signal.[338] c.1926—2015 Site is now Wentworth Point Park. (2GB's tower was demolished in September 2015. 2GB now shares the site of the 2KY tower.)[338]
Homebush Bay /

west of Wentworth Point

 Saleyards Livestock saleyard, where livestock were sold by auction.[339] In 1968, the saleyard operations were relocated to this site from Flemington, making way for the new fresh produce markets. It was serviced by a loop line from the Abattoirs branch railway line.[333] 1968—1988 Sydney Olympic Stadium is on the old saleyards.
State Abattoirs Government-owned abattoir and saleyards[340][331] that was serviced by a branch railway line.[333] 1913—1988 Part of the old Abattoirs branch railway route was reused as the Olympic Park railway line.
Royal Australian Navy Newington Armament Depot 1897—1997 Armament transfer station and Athletes’

Village for 2000 Olympic Games.

Clyde / Duck River Clyde Smelting and Chlorination Works (a.k.a. Clyde Chlorination Works) A plant for treating pyrite gold ores using the chlorination process (a process pre-dating the cyanide process). It stood on 22 acres between the main railway line and the banks of Duck River.[341] c.1888[342]—c.1898 The site was sold in late 1899 to John Howell, who was said to have plans to erect a large smelter,[343] which apparently never occurred.
John Fell & Co. Oil refinery for processing crude shale oil from Newnes to produce petrol for motor cars.[80] By the time that the refinery opened, crude oil production at Newnes had ceased, and the refinery processed imported conventional crude oil instead. 1923—1927 Sold to Shell Oil
Clyde Refinery, Shell Oil Oil refinery 1925—2013 Shell Oil - import and distribution terminal
Redbank Wharf Deep-water wharf and terminus of a privately owned steam tram line from Parramatta.[344] c.1883—1943
Camelia / Sandown Australian Kerosene Oil and Mineral Company Oil refinery making 'Southern Cross' kerosene, axle grease, soap and candles. The crude shale oil was made at Joadja and came from there by rail, via Mittagong.[345][346][347] 1887—1894 Originally part of the Elizabeth Farm estate. Plans are in place for the foreshore industrial area of Camellia to be redeveloped.[348]
The Graziers’ Meat Export Company Meatworks consisting of slaughterhouse, freezing rooms and canning works—all in one large building—and a wharf.[1][349]

The company changed its name to the Sandown Meat Company in 1897.[350]

 c.1897 (as above)
Sandown Meat Company Abattoir, probably an expansion of the above meatworks. It was destroyed by fire in May 1923. The coroner returning an open finding on the cause of the fire, and commented that the meat works was grossly over-insured.[351][352][345][353] 1910—1923 In 1925, the site was purchased by Ford.[354]
Ford The old meatworks site was the location of a short-lived Ford car assembly plant.[355][356] 1925—1931 The Ford factory closed in 1931, and all operations went to Victoria.[357] Ford later recommenced assembly at a site on Parramatta Road, Homebush West.[358]

Ford sold the land to Shell in 1929.[359]

Australian Cream Tartar Company Chemical factory (Potassium bitartrate), after 1939, also producing other chemicals (citric acid, tartaric acid and Rochelle Salts). Site of a platform (Cream of Tartar Works), on Sandown railway line.[345][360] 1926— The food technology division became part of AB Mauri and continued to manufacture at the site in 2015.[360]
Goodyear Tyres Tyre factory and site of a platform (Goodyear), on Sandown railway line. The factory was sometimes called the 'Granville' plant, although it was on the Parramatta River foreshore.[345][361][362] 1927—c.1977
Camellia / Clyde James Hardie Asbestos and asbestos cement factory and site of a platform (Hardies) and siding on the Sandown railway line.[345][363] 1919—1996
Parramatta Parramatta Gas Company Gasworks[364] 1873—1891 Queens Wharf Reserve, Parramatta
Close

Islands and former islands

Islands and former islands are shown in order, from east to west. There were originally fourteen islands in Port Jackson, including the Parramatta River. In addition to the twelve islands shown below, there were once two much smaller ones, Bennelong Island[365] and another small island that was connected to the former Dawes Island to form the island now known as Spectacle Island.[16][366] During the construction of the Fort Macquarie, from 1817 to 1821, the former Bennelong Island was joined to the mainland (Bennelong Point), using material excavated when creating the level area occupied by the fort.

Garden Island, Glebe Island and Berry Island, although now linked to the mainland by reclaimed land, are still known by their original names.

Darling Island is no longer an island and is rarely called by that name; it is now part of the north-eastern part of the Pyrmont peninsula.

More information Suburb/Locality, Company/Site ...
Suburb/Locality Company/Site Industry/Function Years of operation Current land use / Replaced by
Shark Island Government of New South Wales Anchorage for quarantine inspection of incoming shipping.[16] c.1832 Animal quarantine station (see below).
Government of New South Wales Animal quarantine station.[367][368][369][370] 1871—1899 Scenic picnic site, later also a part of Sydney Harbour National Park.[371] The animal quarantine station was moved to what later became the site of Taronga Zoo.[16]
Clark Island Ralph Clark Vegetable garden[16] c.1789 From 1870, a picnic site, except during World War II.
Royal Navy Storage of spare barrels for 14" naval guns.[16] c.1939—c.1945 Now a part of Sydney Harbour National Park.
Garden Island Garden Island Dockyard The island has been a long-term naval base.[372] Construction of the Captain Cook Graving Dock during WWII resulted in the connection of Garden Island to the mainland. c1866—now Still in use.
Pinchgut / Fort Denison Fort Denison Military fortress and lighthouse.[16] 1862 Heritage site. Tide forecasts are made relative to this location..
(former)

Darling Island (at times, known as Cockle Island, now the north-eastern part of Pyrmont)

 Australasian Steam Navigation Company Wharves and warehouses.[175][16] 1851—1899 Purchased by N.S.W. Government in 1899 (see below).
Maritime Services Board Wharves and warehouses.[16] 1899—1990s Wharf buildings repurposed as offices and hospitality venues.
Royal Navy / Royal Edward Victualling Yard Naval food warehouse.[16] Opened 1907 Converted to offices in 1994. For a time, one of the buildings was used by the Defence Science and Technology Group.
Goat Island Queen's Magazine Explosives storage.[373] 1839—1900
Sydney Harbour Trust, later Maritime Services Board Shipyard and construction depot, also site of Harbourmaster's residence.[373] The shipyard was located on the western side of the island.[374] 1901—c.1989 From 1994, Goat Island became a part of Sydney Harbour National Park, but the shipyard remains (see below)
Sydney Ship Repair and Engineering Marine repair and refit business that uses the old MSB shipyard site.[375] —now
Berry Island (Various) Ship breaking yard[376] 19th-century Park
Glebe Island Glebe Island Abattoir Main abattoir for Sydney, which seems to have provided facilities for a number of small operators.[377][378] The stone buildings of the abattoir were designed by architect Edmund Blacket.[379] By the first decade of the 20th century, there was pressure to relocate this industry to Homebush Bay[380] (where the State Abattoir would open in 1913[340]) or to Camelia / Sandown (where a privately owned abattoir opened in 1910.[381][351]). c.1850—1916 Abattoir buildings were demolished in 1920.[382]
(Various) Various small industries associated with byproducts of the abattoir, including tanning, candle-making, soap making, 'blood and bone' fertiliser manufacture and tallow making.[377] 2nd half 19th-century
Grain Elevators Board Grain terminal[383] 1921—1990 Silos are still standing although no longer in use. Grain terminal transferred to Port Kembla.

Wharves reused for containers.

Glebe Island Container Terminal Container wharves and storage. c.1990— All container traffic now passes through Port Botany.
Glebe Island Multi-User Facility Bulk materials wharf - Last remaining operating deep-water shipping wharves on Sydney Harbour.[384] Current Still in use.
Cockatoo Island Cockatoo Island Dockyard Shipbuilding, dry docks and ship repairs. Site of two dry-docks,[385] the Fitzroy Dock and the Sutherland Dock. 1857—c.1991 Public open space, with remnants.
Snapper Island Royal Australian Navy Naval training depot[386][387] 1931—c.1945 Later a museum, future uncertain.[387]
Spectacle Island Royal Navy, then

Royal Australian Navy

 Munitions store[388] RN

1865—1913

RAN

1913—1995

 Naval repository.[389]
Rodd Island Pasteur Institute Experimental station for biological control of feral rabbits[386] and site for animal vaccine manufacture. 1888—1894 Public parkland reserve.
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