04 July 2009

Dawes Point


Recently I published this photo on Sydney Daily Photo, wondering what the little sandstone building is. Fellow Sydney blogger, Julie, took up the challenge and has been doing some sleuthing. See her post here. It was taken at Ives Steps Wharf at Dawes Point, just on the western side of the Harbour Bridge.

It may have formed part of a fort, built under Governor Macquarie's instructions to fend off prospective invading French or Russians (Napoleon remained interested in Sydney after his Man At Sea, La Perouse, was pipped at the post by Captain Cook.

Today I went for another poke around the area, and while there's isn't a plaque or signboard indicating what it is, I think Julie may be correct. The only thing I did find was these pieces of sandstone embedded in the pavement. Further up the hill, where I took the photos below from, there are cannons in the park, but much of it is fenced off as some sort of work is going on.