1 The Custodian Winter 2020 Volume 2, Issue 17 FORT LYTTON HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION Welcome to the Seventeenth Edition of “The Custodian”. In this issue I continue with two more of Fort Lytton’s ANZAC Generals, these two men were both extremely hard working, mainly on the administration and Q side of soldiering. It was very hard to find a lot of details and photographs about them, especially Dodds, so if anyone can help provide more I would be appreciative. Bryan continues with another interesting article, this time on Queensland’s early electricity endeavours and finally articles from 1 and 20 Regiments, RAA. Harry Lynas (Editor) FORT LYTTON HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION INCORPORATED DIRECTORY President: Dr. Mike McLean PO Box 293, WYNNUM QLD 4178 Hon Secretary: Mr Don Willsher Contact us at our email addresses Hon Treasurer: Mrs J Hynard [email protected] Newsletter Editor: Mr. Harry Lynas [email protected] Web Site: http://www.fortlytton.org.au [email protected] MAJOR EVENTS None at this stage INSIDE THIS ISSUE Introduction and Directory – Page 1 President’s Report – Page 2 A Brief History of Electric Lighting in Brisbane – Page 3 Major General Thomas Henry Dodds, CMG, CVO, DSO – Page 10 Major General James Harold Cannan, CB, CMG, DSO, VD – Page 15 Miscellany – Page 21 FLHA Matters – Page 25 2 PRESIDENT’S REPORT 2020 Like so many other organisations our services for the public were shut down about three months ago due to Covid-19. The rangers have continued to open Fort Lytton National Park on Sundays so the public can walk around, but there have been no tours, no museums and no canteen. We are now in the process of starting to reopen. FLHA has resumed monthly general meetings for its members and we are now investigating how we might implement a soft restart of services at an appropriate time. The shut-down hasn’t affected many of our “back-office” operations, many of which were able to be performed at home. One of these operations was a reassessment of Fort Lytton’s artillery collection. Following a survey of Australia’s other artillery collections, we have determined that ours is probably one of the four largest, the others being the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, the Army Museum in Bandiana and the Australian Armour and Artillery Museum in Cairns. Our collection contains 33 artillery pieces. More importantly, our collection has a roughly 40/60 split between Queensland colonial guns and Australian Army guns. Last year we were delighted when the National Park replaced the roof of the century-old heritage-listed building which is FLHA’s headquarters. In the last few months a lot more has happened, including repairs to the surface water drainage around the building, repairs to the original ceiling, and restoration of the inside walls and floor (an ongoing project). We have also relocated our library into much better premises on the ground floor of the National Park office building. Mike McLean President Ubique “Contact Kevin or Annette on 3375 3366 to get a quote” www.darratyres.com.au 3 A BRIEF HISTORY OF ELECTRIC LIGHTING IN BRISBANE By Bryan Wood. © 2018 The first electric light in Australia was not, as one might expect, in Sydney or Melbourne, but in the fledgling state of Queensland – William Street, Brisbane, in fact. With the initial rejection of Sir William Jervois’ scheme regarding a battery at Lytton, and only about one third of the estimated cost being granted, Colonel Scratchly now recommended that the progress of enemy ships be barred at a point approximately two and a half miles upriver from Lytton, by laying torpedoes across the channel between Parker Island and the mainland. Further protection would be provided by four Carron 24 pounders placed in a temporary earth works at Doughboy (Doboy) Creek. 1878. A public demonstration of a carbon arc lamp held in front of the telegraph fitters’ shop in William Street, Brisbane, was a great success. The Brisbane Courier, 7th July 1878, described it as a small self-regulating device of German manufacture, powered by a sixty cell Bunsen zinc-carbon battery (a nominal 90 volts) and according to this report ‘threw a most brilliant light for a considerable distance’. This first electric light was for use at Parker Island, near Lytton, to identify ships at night approaching the torpedo defences that were already in place on the river, also to be used downstream, at the mouth of the river. (Today Parker Island would have been directly under the Gateway Bridge, it was a victim of dredging the new shipping channel. The spoils pumped onto the nearby Gibson Island and the adjacent ‘unnamed island’ formed the larger Gibson Island that we know today.) This first light was the start of a new era – the age of electric power… 4 Tamworth, in New South Wales, was generally considered to be the first in Australia to use public street lighting. This lighting, consisting of a mix of arc and incandescent lamps was first switched on in the evening of 9th November 1888. But… 1882. In the first week of December 1882, J.W. Sutton & Co installed electric lighting in the offices of the Sutton foundry in Adelaide Street, Brisbane, powered from a dynamo driven by a 10hp steam engine installed in the foundry. Two weeks later, a large crowd gathered in the evening of 19th December 1882, near Victoria Bridge, to witness the first demonstration of public street lighting, eight bright carbon arc lights mounted on cast iron posts illuminated the length of Queen Street from Victoria Bridge to Eagle Street using power from the Sutton foundry. Several Queen Street shops also highlighted their Christmas decorations with electric light using power supplied from the Sutton foundry… Sorry Tamworth. Edison Type Incandescent Lamp 1883. One year later, Alfred Shaw & Co won a contract to supply and put on trial a lighting system in the Government Printing Office on William Street, with 5 the power supplied by an 8.5 hp generator coupled to the existing steam engines that drove the printing machines. Fifty Edison type incandescent lamps lit the staircase, composing and publishing rooms. Following the successful trial of electric lighting in the Government Printery, the government sought and accepted the following quotes; Edison Co. £2485, for the installation of permanent incandescent Lighting of the Printery and Parliament House - two 30kw 110vdc Edison H Dynamos and 500 60w lamps with carbon filaments - fittings - switches and wiring. Smellie & Co. £2747, to supply two 40hp Roby Steam Engines complete with boilers, belts, pulleys and shafting etc. Andrew Petrie £13043, to build a power station building, at the rear of the Government Printing Office in William Street. Alfred Shaw - agent for Edison Co. - £1000, to supply 50 lamps for Council Chamber and supply and install 1200 ft. (366m) of two core 110v Edison Street Tubes. (It is interesting to note that although these tubes were manufactured by the Edison Electric Tube Co., New York, the order actually came from Edison’s Indian & Colonial Electric Co. London, which suggests that they were probably surplus to their first use in the 1882 Holborn Viaduct scheme, London.) William Street Printery with power house at rear 1884. Progress slowed dramatically following the death of the Edison engineer, his replacement, J. Mathieson, proved to be a failure and consequently 6 his wiring was condemned. The Governments Consulting Electrical Engineer, Edward Barton, was appointed to correct and finish the work. 1884. After several years of reporting such innovative lighting systems, the Brisbane Courier eventually ‘saw the light’ and installed its own steam driven generators (they had previously installed lighting in their composing room with power supplied from the Sutton foundry). 1886. With the government’s electric lighting project now complete and the first switch thrown, Queensland’s Parliament House becomes the first legislative building in the British Empire to be illuminated by electricity, at a cost of £19,275. Also during this year, arc lighting was installed in the Roma Street rail yards, although the source of the power is still unknown. In the photo below, a carbon-arc lamp post is seen in the foreground and in the background is the Countess St. power house; it was built in 1897 to supply power for the Brisbane Trams. The arc lamps, however, were installed years earlier, in 1886. Roma Street rail yards, power source unknown, (circa. 1900). ABC TELEVISION NEWS. Excavators in Brisbane have unearthed 134-year-old electrical cables known as ‘Edison tubes’ under a CBD Street, revealing the city’s earliest power grid, designed by Thomas Edison… The first installation consisted of a two-core tube and a separate return tube containing a single core of 27 copper strands, the voids were filled with a 7 black insulating compound of refined Trinidad pitch, linseed oil, beeswax, and paraffin wax. Two core and return tube samples cut from Edison Tubes recovered during Queens Wharf project in 2018. Although we are dealing mainly with the progression of electrical power between Brisbane and Lytton, many regional areas, throughout Queensland, 8 developed their own street lighting schemes, one in particular deserves a mention here. The first regional electricity supply was established in the far western town of Thargomindah where a street lighting system was installed in 1892, and in 1898 commenced generating electricity using Australia’s first hydroelectric plant powered by water pressure from a water bore. This system continued to be used until1951 when it was replaced by diesel generators. LYTTON’S CONTRIBUTION. Following the separation from New South Wales in December 1859, the Queensland Government maintained Lytton’s role as the customs entry into the Port of Moreton Bay.