Mort's Dock

In 1854, Mort and Rountree purchased an area of land at Waterview Bay on the northern side of the Balmain peninsula and excavated a dry dock measuring 123 by 15 metres (404 by 49 ft).[1] Despite being the only commercial repair facility for steamers, the dock was not as profitable as expected and by 1861 Mort and Rountree had leased the majority of the surrounding land for cargo storage, minor engineering and an iron and brass foundry.In 1867, Mort's Dock became principally an engineering facility; including the construction of steam locomotives, ship machinery, mining equipment and steel pipe for the Sydney Water Board.When McArthur died, Mort sold his shares to his foreman and his manager, possibly to guard against growing unionism, or improve flagging productivity.In the interwar period an iron foundry was constructed, a slipway and floating dock purchased and it had a virtual monopoly on local industry.Japan's entry into the war led to a sudden demand for coastal protection and increased offensive power in the Pacific Ocean.Between 1940 and 1945, Mort's Dock constructed fourteen of the sixty Bathurst-class corvettes built in Australia during the war, as well as four of the twelve River-class frigates.[citation needed] Shipbuilding once again declined in the post-war period, and revenue from engineering leases fell as firms relocated to cheaper land in western Sydney.The NSW Government proposal for a large public housing development was vigorously opposed by resident groups who wanted it landscaped as open space.The site has a high level of aesthetic achievement becoming a distinctive landscape feature, with landmark qualities, apart from its engineering and industrial/maritime heritage value.The site represents significant technical achievement in the building of the first dry dock in the colony, opening one year before that Cockatoo Island.The site has the potential to yield scientific and archaeological information that will further contribute to an understanding of NSW cultural, industrial and maritime history.Mort's Dock is an important reference site, provides evidence of past maritime and industrial activity that is unavailable elsewhere in NSW.The site is representative of shipbuilding, ship repair, engineering and manufacturing works of that period, of the development of the colony and of Australia as a maritime nation.