Port Fairy Fort

BATTERY HILL PORT FAIRY, Moyne Shire

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Vic. War Heritage Inventory

GUNS AND EMPLACEMENTS SOHE 2008

Statement of Significance

• Additional Place Information

  • Physical Description 1

    Port Fairy Fort - Physical Description 1

    The guns and emplacements at Battery Hill, Port Fairy, comprise bluestone and concrete fortifications built by the Public Works Department in 1886-87; two [check] guns, installed in 1877 and 1887 respectively, and associated machinery; concrete bunkers; and compartments with timber doors labelled 'cartridge recess' and 'lamp recess'. The fort is prominently and strategically sited on a costal dune overlooking the Southern Ocean and the mouth of the Moyne River. The site comprises a grassed area, with a flagpole at the highest point. A bluestone powder magazine (c.1860s?) is located a short distance away on the south bank of the Moyne River.

    Veterans Description for Public

    Port Fairy Fort - Veterans Description for Public

    The Port Fairy Fort, Battery Hill, is located in the coastal reserve south of Battery Lane and the southern end of Griffiths Street, Port Fairy and to the north of the Powder Magazine. The embankment faces east-south-east and is approximately twenty metres above sea level. The site of the Fort is a particularly important one in the area of Port Fairy along the banks of the Moyne River and the strategically located, elevated site has a commanding view over the sea, the mouth of the river and Griffiths Island and the township itself.

    A signalling flagstaff was established at Battery Hill, as an early observation site, in 1861and also an observation hut (this was re-developed in 1887). In 1867 cannons were installed at the site and a brass band was formed. The battery was made suitable for the addition two 68 pound guns in 1874, some on traversing platforms, and 80 pound RML guns acquired in 1877. The collection of weapons that were installed over its operational life is rivalled in Victoria only by the collection at Fort Queenscliff. However the guns have only ever been used only for training purposes and civic celebrations (e.g. King George V's coronation in 1911), and have never been fired in defence.

    The battery structure comprises of bluestone and concrete fortifications built by the Public Works Department between 1886-87; two guns, installed in 1877 and 1887 respectively, associated machinery; concrete bunkers; and compartments with timber doors labelled "cartridge recess" and "lamp recess". The site includes a grassed area, with a flagpole at the highest point. A bluestone powder magazine (c.1860s) is located a short distance away on the south bank of the Moyne River.

    Battery Hill was established as part of a rejuvenation of Victoria's militia forces in the mid-1860s and, more particularly, with the re-establishment of the Belfast (Port Fairy) Volunteer Corps in 1866. This was one of several important Volunteer Corps set up in Victorian coastal towns (a Volunteer Rifle Corps had been formed originally at Belfast in 1859). The revived corps were equipped with thirty, 2 pound weight MLSB cannons in 1867, the first battery named The Mills Battery, after the Harbour Master. The volunteers exercised with vessels of the Victorian Navy in 1873 and 1886. Regular practices for the complement of sixty to hundred personnel were held and the volunteers attended camps at Sunbury, Queenscliff and Portland, as well as conducting regional manoeuvres at Belfast. They also conducted competitive artillery practice with the Warrnambool detachment. Earthworks were thrown up in 1874 to support the introduction of sixty, 8 pound cannon and the thirty, 2 pounders were mounted on traversing platforms.

    Battery Hill was further developed in the 1880s with the large-scale construction of fortifications and the acquisition of additional guns in readiness for a much-feared Russian attack. The fortifications were inspected by Sir William Jervois in October 1877 and new traversing platforms were supplied in 1880. Government expenditure on western ports resulted in plans for a more substantial battery in 1887, constructed by Messrs Lewis, Roberts and Glover and completed in October 1887. Two new 80 pound Armstrong guns on iron traversing carriages were installed and the thirty, 2 pounders were sold to the Borough for one pound in 1889 and located in the Botanic Gardens. The sixty, 8 pounders were positioned in King George's Square on the other side of the river in 1911. In 1984 all the cannons were assembled in the Battery Hill area.

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