Queensland Maritime Museum

The Queensland Maritime Museum contains a two-level exhibition building presenting historic sailing ship models together with merchant shipping from early cargo ships to modern container ships, tankers, and cruise liners. The Museum is located next to and includes the South Brisbane Dry Dock, which was built in the 1870s.

The Queensland Maritime Museum also specializes in showcasing numerous historic vessels that are on display.

A Tour of the Queensland Maritime Museum

• Ella’s Pink Lady
• Freedom – Atlantic Rowing Race Boat
• Forceful – Tugboat
• Carpentaria – Light Ship
• HMAS Diamantina

Highlights of the Queensland Maritime Museum

• Ella’s Pink Lady

  • Ella’s Pink Lady was the boat used by Jessica Watson (b 1993), an Australian sailor who completed a southern hemisphere solo circumnavigation at the age of 16. Departing in 2009, she returned to Sydney three days before her 17th birthday.

    The boat is a 10.23-meter (33.6 ft) Sparkman & Stephens model S&S 34. It was refitted with a new galley, reconditioned diesel and water tanks, and a complete rebuild of the electrical system. Watson was also deeply involved in the preparation of the boat, which she named Ella’s Pink Lady. Most of the time, the boat is steered by a self-steering wind vane system. Watson called the system Parker after the chauffeur of the pink Rolls-Royce in the Thunderbirds television series.

• Freedom – Atlantic Rowing Race Boat

  • Freedom is an Atlantic Rowing Race Boat, which was rowed across the Atlantic Ocean in a challenging race in 2001 by Doctors Patrick Weinrauch and Paul McCarthy, the first Australians to achieve this feat. Australian Team, the Freedom crew, claimed second place in the Ward Evans Atlantic Rowing Challenge. The Atlantic Rowing Race is an ocean rowing race from the Canary Islands to the West Indies, a distance of about 2,550 nm (2,930 statute miles or 4,700 km). The race was founded in 1997 and is the world’s toughest rowing event and is now held annually, starting each December.

    Freedom raced in the Ward Evans Atlantic Rowing Race of 2001, which departed the port of Playa San Juan, Tenerife, and arrived at the port of Port St. Charles, Barbados. The race started in October 2001 with 36 teams. The winning boat was Telecom Challenge from New Zealand.

• Forceful – Tugboat

  • Forceful was an ocean-going tugboat built in Scotland. She arrived at her homeport of Brisbane, Queensland, in 1926. In Brisbane, Forceful was employed mainly in the Brisbane River and coast assisting with towing and helping many stricken ships.

    As a consequence of World War II, Forceful was commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy during most of 1942 and 1943 as HMAS Forceful (W126). During her war service, she was based at Darwin and operated mainly in northern Australian waters. She received two battle honors for her wartime service.

• Carpentaria – Light Ship

  • Carpentaria is a Light Ship or a lightvessel, which is a ship which acts as a lighthouse. They are used in waters that are too deep or otherwise unsuitable for lighthouse construction. CLS 2 spent much of its time in the Gulf of Carpentaria. Hence the name CARPENTARIA emblazoned along the side but was last stationed in the Bass Strait oilfields serving as a traffic separator.

    Lighthouses and navigational beacons are built on solid ground. The Light Ship evolved from the need for a beacon to be located on the edge of shoal waters, where it was impossible to construct a permanent Lighthouse. CLS 2 Carpentaria was designed in Scotland and built at Cockatoo Island Dockyard, Sydney, in 1917.

• HMAS Diamantina

  • HMAS Diamantina (K377/F377/A266/GOR266), named after the Diamantina River in Queensland, is a River-class frigate that served the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Diamantina was active from 1945 until 1946, was placed in reserve, then was recommissioned as a survey ship from 1959 until 1980.

    Diamantina was committed to the Bougainville Campaign, providing fire support to the Australian Army units operating ashore in July and August 1945. Transiting through the Solomon Islands, she shelled Sohana Island and later provided counter-battery fire against Japanese positions on Taiof Island.