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I '. I : fl(OtiT llEVATIOfI :" I REMAINS OF PYRMONT 'A' I POWER STATION I
I Anne Bickford and Associates MAACA Heritage Consultants 135 Catherine St Leichhardt NSW 2040 I Phone 02 - 95699672 Fax 02 - 95500261 I FINAL REPORT I February 1994 I I
I 1 I CONTENTS PAGE List of Figures 2 I List of Photographs 2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 4
I 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 The Client I 1.2 Liaison 1.3 The Study Area 1.4 The Brief 5 I 1.5 The Study Team and Authorship 1.6 Timing I 1.7 Constraints 2. BRIEF HISTORY OF PYRMONT 'A' 6 2.1 From "Pyrmont and Ultimo: A History" 1982 I 2.2 From "The Significance of White Bay and Balmain 7 Power Stations to Sydney's Industrial Heritage"...1989 I 2.3 From "Report Pyrmont Power Station"... 1990 3. DRAWINGS OF PYRMONT 'A' 8
I 4. GUIDE TO THE SET OF DRAWINGS OF PYRMONT 'A' 9 I 5. BRIEF ANALYSIS OF THE DRAWINGS 11 6. SITE SURVEY 12 6.1 Fieldwork I 6.2 Results of Fieldwork 13 I 7. DIRECTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH I 8. THE ORIGINAL SHORELINE 14 I I I I
I Anne Bickford and Associates Remains of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station February 1994 I I
I 2 I LIST OF FIGURES NUMBER I [Consecutively following Executive Summary] I Location Map 1 Evolution of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station. Phase I (1903-1914) 2 I Evolution of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station. Phase II (1914-1925) 3 I Plan of Pyrmont Bay 1836 Showing Shoreline 4 1836 Shoreline Digitized Onto 1993 Plan 5 I Crossections of 1993 Shoreline Plan 6 Pyrmont 'A' Power Station During Construction 7 I of Boiler House No. 3. I 1987 Aerial Photo of Site 8 June 1990 Site During 'B' Station Chimney Stack Removal 9
I Key to Overview Photographs 10 [In front of photographs at end of Report] I
I LIST OF PHOTOGRAPHS NUMBER [At end of Report] I Remaining front offices, Pyrmont Street looking north 1 I Remaining front offices, Pyrmont Street looking south 2 Rear elevation of remaining front offices. Basement level 3 I remains of Power Station in foreground Detail : original steel stanchion at corner of front offices / 4 I engine room. Note later roofline above Site overview from roof terrace of front offices looking 5 I south-east Site overview from observation platform looking 6 I east and south I Anne Bickford and Associates Remains of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station February 1994 I I
I 3 I Site overview from elevated lane looking north and east 7
I Detail overview from roof terrace of front offices. 8 Arrow symbol indicates ,detail photo
I Detail. Remains of steel stanchion on original engine 9 room (left). Concrete base to later steel stanchion from i Extension No. 4 (right). Detail. Front view of concrete stanchion base in Photo 9 . 10 I (Extension No. 4 - engine room) I Detail. Engine room 11 Detail. Engine room 12 I Detail. View down wall/column line between engine room 13 (left) and Boiler Houses Nos. 3 and 4 (right). Looking west
I Detail. Engine room looking west 14
Detail. Remains of north facade and stair wells of 15 I Boiler Houses Nos. 3 and 4 looking east. Note window sills along top of remaining wall
I Detail. Remains of coal conveyor tunnel Boiler House 16 No. 4 looking north. North facade and stairwell remains I in background. Detail. Remains of coal conveyor tunnel and flanking 17 forced draft air ducts - Boiler House No. 3. Note remains I of original chimney stack base (top right) I I I I I I Anne Bickford and Associates Remains of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station February 1994 I I
I 4 I EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
I In 1993 and early 1994 the Pyrmont 'B' Power Station was demolished. The demolition of the coal storage area revealed the remains of the I Pyrmont 'A' Power Station. The construction of Pyrmont 'A' began in 1903 and changes to the Station were completed by 1925. It was i demolished in 1949 to make way for Pyrmont 'B'. The site was inspected and the remains recorded in black and white film. The approximately 400 construction drawings of the Power I Station, held as aperture cards by Pacific Power, were examined. The most significant drawings were printed at A2 size, collated in chronological order, and bound into a folder. Research to compile a I brief history of the site took place. A guide to the construction drawings and a brief analysis of them was prepared for this Report. Five copies of the Report and two copies of the folder of construction I drawings were produced.
It is considered that the remains of the Pyrmont 'A Power Station have I been examined and recorded to a sufficient level to allow its total demolition. No further work is needed on Pyrmont 'A'.
I However, it is possible, though unlikely, that remains of historic structures which were there before the construction of Pyrmont 'A' could still exist on the site. For example, a well from a 19th century I dwelling could have been dug into the bedrock and now be obscured by the remaining concrete footings of the 'A' Station. Therefore it is advisable that during any future demolition or construction on the site I provision is made for archaeological advice in case of unexpected I archaeological finds. I I 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 The Client The client is Pacific Power, formerly the Electricity Commission of I NSW. 1.2 Liaison I The liaison officer is Ms. Sue McIntyre of the Environment, Fuet and Technology Development section of Pacific Power, Sydney. Mr. Paul Hill, Project Officer Decommissioned Power Stations, briefed the study I team at the site. I Anne Bickford and Associates Remains ofPyrmont 'A' Power Station February 1994 I I FIGURE 1 I LOCATION MAP B ( REV. 237211 Dawes fit. I WALSH I . I I BAY
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I PY~MOt-lT ""7TItlii-ET I I I I PHASE I: 1903-1914 I I I I I I I FIGURE 3 I EVOLUTION OF PYRMONT 'A' POWER STATION I PHASE 2: (1914-1925) I A~(I)( IMAn! LO'ATl()J OF I ex~llJ~ &~~O~ WAU- I ni·-....·-=...... ,..-- '-'-'-'l'-'-'-'! I r!t~-- I I I LJ. I I .I I I I I &oIl.a.. ~~ ~~ 4- I 12 !:r-r-.,.. I I '7'&.~ I ~~ I: :_-----t & I PHASE 11 :1914-1925 I I I I I i j. ~( ':i· .\ V t , f Y 1. ~ ( ...- ~"Z~~Y ~ /" {L~' .. ~ __ . ..- '- .__._+--...... ',', ..... ,; '~~ .' , ~:~..;" ..;;'..' 'j ~r------=------ ISLAND LEGEND Coo.Ulna for 1836 CoooUlna for 199~ GeologIcal crosa Sectlon LJ Un.. - ••a FIgure 5 DARLING HARBOUR o 100 200m 1 ---_.'1=:===:::1 -I SCALE I I I PROPERTY SERVICES GROUP I CONTAMINATION ASSESSMENT OITY WEST REDEVELOPMENT PROJECl PYRMONT BAY MASTER PLAN I . FIGURE 4 I ORIGINAL FORESHORE AND . Souroe, Original foreshora digitized from GEOLOGICAL SECTION UNES' I plan of Estate of Pyrmont. 1636 ,I , .I ~ PSG-flG4 @I DAMES &. MOORE 08018.128.11 .. ~lI-H3 I I ------ 10 10 8 P)m1ont Road I Approximate I P)m1ont 8 ',location of I Pow"," orlglnal , SlaUon SRA Properly I foroshora • boundary I ~ 2 2 o '~,'!~!-~I~~ o . ~!~ &W~u&m~t -2 E . ~ aBly and dayoy _do ... ! ii! -0 ~'~, -8 -8 -10 ,- ,- -10 -12 -12 -14 --'------.:...------..:-1-14 A A SECTION A " A 10 P)m1onl 10 Rood 8 Approxlmato I Approxmato Power Station . · I' location at 8 .. ground level orlglnci !.P)m1ont 8 Power , toroahoro 8 .I 1Station SRA Properly L-~L.."';;:::'.....__ _ _ I boundary . 4 r I'orooh.... 1 I I Road .. .. 2 ',,-- \\I1art 11 2 '~ Fm: oandoton. and dayoy oando 0 ~,----- 0 E -2 , £otuarfne oodment ' _____ -2 E ~lyand dwiicindo ~, ApptoxImato lovol of cooling wat... ouUol ! ... canal entrance LEGEND !- f/J\Ir-, ..... ! ii! !'Jlll- ii! -8 ApproXimate rock levels prior .:I:. Groundwalor/Soawater level to construction at Power station -8 (reproduced from Dougloo and -8 PortnOlll report July 1992) Sandoton. bOcirodc Horizontal Seale 1:1000 -8 Vortlcol Exaggeration 5:1 -10 -10 -12 -12 PROPERTY SERVICES GROUP CONTAMINATION ASSESSMENT -14 -14 CITY WEST REDEVELOPMENT PROJECT PYRMONT BAY MASlER PLAN B B FIGURE 6 ...... SECTION B B GENERAUZED GEOLOGICAL· CROSS SECTIONS : ~ PSO-flCtl ~ ','. OAm 15-1-03 DAMES & MOORE ,'.. 08078.028.71 ..').. . I FIGURE 7 PYRMONT 'A' POWER STATION I DURING CONSTRUCTION OF BOILER HOUSE No. 3 I I I I I I I I I I ()~IGtIt..lAL &OILeR fo{OlA$S I ~oo~ Ta ~e 176MOU~+'ED Fo~ ~,t.e~ HO/,($ f-.l ~ 4 I I· I I I I I I ------_ __ .. __ ------FIGURE 9 SITE DURING 'B' STATION CHIMNEY STACK REMOVAL JUNE 1990 (PACIFIC POWER CN5.0031 1.3) -'~- I I 5 I 1.3 The Study Area The study area is the site of the Pyrmont 'A' Power Station at Darling I Harbour. The remains of Pyrmont 'A' were revealed during the demolition of the Pyrmont 'B' Power Station. During the life of I Pyrmont 'B' this area had been used for coal storage. Photographs' taken in 1987 and 1990 [Figures 8 & 9] show the site before demolition and excavation. The demolition involved the removal of the fill from I the coal storage area in order to remove any potential contaminants. The excavation of the fill revealed the footings of the walls, chimney I stacks, pits, etc. of Pyrmont 'A'. 1.4 The Brief The Brief required a brief report recording the area of Pyrmont 'A' I revealed by the excavation of the fill below the concrete base of the 'B' station. The report did not require an assessment of the cultural significance of Pyrmont 'A'. I The consultant was requested to: - Ensure that an adequate photographic record was taken. - Prepare sketch plans showing important features such as the I earlier shoreline - Prepare a brief report outlining the nature of the remains and how they relate to the power station I - Identify relevant plans and their location and illustrate the report with appropriate copies Five copies of the report were required. I In subsequent discussions with Ms. McIntyre it was agreed that the relevant construction drawings of Pyrmont 'A' would be collated and filed in an A2 size folder. Two copies of the A2 folder of drawings I were required. 1.5 The Study Team and Authorship I The study team consists of Anne Bickford historical archaeologist, and Anthony Reed, architect, of Anne Bickford and Associates Heritage I Consultants. Chapters I, 2, 6, 7, and 8 were written by Bickford. Chapters 3, 4, and 5 were written by Reed. The selection and analysis of I the drawings was carried out by Reed. 1.6 Timing Five person days was allowed for recording, analysis, and report I writing. 1.7 Constraints I The only constraint on the work was time. The work could not be completed in five person days, and ten person days was taken. I I Anne Bickford and Associates Remains of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station February 1994 I ------.... I I 6 I 2. BRIEF HISTORY OF PYRMONT 'A' I Construction for the first phase of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station began in 1903. The final stage was completed by 1925. In 1949 it was demolished I to make way for the Pyrmont 'B' Power Station to its south. The site of the 'A' Station became the coal storage area. Pyrmont 'B' was decommissioned in 1983. As part of its demolition in 1993-4 the coal I storage area was excavated to remove any potential contaminants. This revealed the footings and basement level of Pyrmont 'A' I 2.1 From: "Pyrmont and Ultimo :A History" by Michael R. Matthews. Sydney. Pyrmont Ultimo History Project 1982. pp 69-70. The Pyrmont Power Station has been through two distinct phases in its I history. In 1904 it was opened and conducted by the Sydney Municipal Corporation to supply power for the City. This is power station A. In 1936 the State Government took over from Council the function of I supplying electricity and established the Sydney County Council to operate Pyrmont Power Station and others such as Bunnerong. In 1949 the State Labor Government embarked on a large-scale remodelling I and expansion of the station. After years of industrial disputes this was completed by 1955. This is the present power station B [demolished 1993-4]. I In 1888 Tamworth became the first city in Australia and indeed in the southern hemisphere to have electric street lighting. In 1896 the Legislative Council passed the Sydney Electric Lighting bill which gave I the City Council the authority to proceed with the design and construction of the power house. The power house was opened on 8 July 1904 by Lord Mayor Lees. I Twenty-eight miles of underground cable carried power to five sub stations throughout the city and by the end of the year eighty-six customers were connected to the mains. The construction costs were I 183,000 pounds. Originally vertical reciprocating engines were used, these were I replaced by reaction turbines in 1907 and impulse turbines in 1914. The plant expanded to meet the increasing demands of the City's population and its industry; additionally from 1910 onwards power I was generated for and sold to other municipalities - Annandale, Mascot, Randwick and Woollahra. Originally 240 volt direct current was produced and sold for 2 I pence per kilowatt. In 1910 the change was made to alternating current and the output voltage raised from 5,000 to 10,000 volts. By 1916 this had been increased to 33,000 volts. The last expansion of the plant I whilst controlled by City Council was in 1924 when the generating capacity reached 61,500 kilowatts. In 1929 Bunnerong Power Station was built by the Council on I Botany Bay, generating 150,000 kilowatts. After this Pyrmont was I Anne Bickford and Associates Remains of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station February 1994 I I I 7 I wound down and by 1935 it was only used when Bunnerong failed. In that year the State stripped Council of its power production function I and set up the Sydney County Council to be responsible for providing power to Sydney. It was going to build a second plant at Bunnerong I but varied considerations led it back to Pyrmont for its expanded facilities. Plans were drawn up in 1941 but the war, politics and industrial i problems meant that Pyrmont B was not constructed until 1952 when the first stage began operations; in 1955 it came into full production I with 200,000 megawatts being generated. 2.2 From: "The Significance of White Bay and Balmain Power Stations I to Sydney's Industrial Heritage: A report to the Electricity Commission of NSW" by Don Godden and Associates 1989. pp. 25-26. ...By the 1890s a number of small, privately owned power companies I supplying consumers with light and power were established in the central business district. There were also a handful of municipally owned stations, the largest of them in Redfern. The construction of a I large power station to serve the entire central area was delayed by political rather than technological circumstance. Between 1887 and 1896, the NSW parliament dealt with six competing bills for the power I to reticulate electricity in Sydney, and eventually awarded that power to the Sydney Municipal CounciL.The Sydney Municipal Council's Pyrmont Power Station, which supplied street lighting and a rapidly I growing private clientele, came into service in July 1904. ...Pyrmont Power Station was decommissioned in 1983. I 2.3 From: "Report Pyrmont Power Station." Prepared by Rice Daubney Building Diagnostics for the Electricity Commission of NSW. March I 1990 pp. 1-4. ...construction started at Pyrmont in late 1902. The official I ceremony to mark completion of the station took place on the evening of 8 July 1904 and included illumination of 220 of the city's first electric I street lights. Post WorId War I increases in demand required rapid development in generation, transmission and distribution capacity, as well as in the I Undertaking's commercial activities. A final expansion of the Pyrmont Power Station, planned for 1924, would increase the total' installed rating to 75,500 KW. However the demand forecast for 1924 I was in excess of 60,000 KW and it was realized that another source of supply would soon be necessary. The Sydney Municipal Council expanded its supply system with the construction of the Bunnerong I Station which came on stream in 1930. I Anne Bickford and Associates Remains of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station February 1994 I I I 8 I ...The facade of the offices section was recognized as an item of heritage significance by the Heritage Council of NSW. [This is the only part of I Pyrmont 'A' remaining]. I At the time of completion of Pyrmont 'B' by the Electricity Commission, all that remained of the 1904 Pyrmont 'A' power station buildings were the original sandstone and brick masonry offices and I battery block fronting Pyrmont Street. The boiler and turbine buildings and the three brick chimneys were demolished to provide coal storage depots to the north west of and immediately adjacent the Pyrmont 'B' I boiler house. I I 3. DRAWINGS OF PYRMONT 'A' Substantial drawing records of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station are held by I the Sydney City Council Archives. The approximately 400 original drawings are held by the Council. In 1988 the Council copied the drawings onto transparencies. A set of aperture cards of the drawings I is held by Paul Hill of Pacific Power, who is a Project Officer for Decommissioned Power Stations. He obtained the set of cards to assist him in interpreting the excavations on the site during the demolition I of Pyrmont 'B', which revealed footings of Pyrmont 'A'. This set of about 400 aperture cards was examined for this Report with I a view to establishing the evolution of the Pyrmont 'A' power station, and collating a record of the drawings which would illustrate this I development. The aperture cards containing the drawings are not catalogued, and I must be viewed in an aperture card viewing machine in order to determine the contents. Each drawing does contain a production number stamped on the bottom left hand corner. However these I numbers are at best loosely grouped around drawings in a particular contract or stage of the work. I It was part of this team's task to examine all these drawings and produce a record of the work. We have collated the drawings for easy reference. From the original cAOO drawings we have chosen 79 as I being the most relevant for an understanding of the evolution of Pyrmont 'A'. Two sets of the drawings at A2 size have been prepared I to accompany this Report. I Anne Bickford and Associates Remains of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station February 1994 I I I 9 I The drawing record is intended to provide an overview or summation of the evolution of the Pyrmont 'A' Power Station. Consequently only I the main drawings of the principal stages of development have been included. It should be noted that drawings exist of a number of intermediate works (eg. Contract No. 14 foundations for additional I engines and boilers). In addition there are many detail drawings (eg. the steel shop drawings for the original generating station), and some I concept layout drawings dated as early as 1900 for the proposed original power station. Also of note are both unmarked plus signed and dated contract drawings for many of the earlier stages of the power station. I In most cases the unmarked drawings have been included in the drawing record, being more legible that the contract set. I A guide to the set of drawings in the form of a two page Contents list has been prepared and is listed below (Chapter 4). The evolution of Pyrmont 'A' has been divided into a series of chronological stages of I development. These stages are also shown in Figures 2 & 3 which show the development of the power station in two phases. Phase I I spans 1903 to 1914, and Phase 11 1914-1925. I 4. GUIDE TO THE SET OF DRAWINGS OF PYRMONT 'A' I CONTENTS 1 SITE PLANS 2 I Location plan of underground conduits [Extract from Contract No. 4 signed 7/8/1903] Unnamed undated site plan [Amended from earlier conduit plan] I Block plan of site and surroundings [Drawing dated 31/7/1917] UNDERGROUND CONDUITS 5 Plans, sections, and details of original underground salt water conduits from I Darling Harbour [Contract No. 4 dated 7/8/1903] Plans of condenser conduit to Iones Bay [Drawing dated 6/5/1919] STAGE 1: GENERATING STATION AND OFFICES 9 [Contract No. 3 signed 7/8/1903] I Plans, elevations, and sections of original generating station with front offices located on Pyrmont Street. Front offices remain today. Also included - drawing of chimney stack and details of central bayof office block STAGE lA: COAL CONVEYOR 20 I [Contract No. 9 signed 4/11/1904] Details of timber gantry for conveyor serving original boiler house STAGE 2: EXTENSION OF GENERATING STATION 21 [Contract No. 13 signed 1/3/1906] I Plans, elevations, and sections ofextensions to engine room and boiler house to the east of original generating station STAGE 3: EXTENSION No. 2 OF GENERATING STATION 30 [Contract No. 16 signed 15/9/1909] I Plans, elevations, and sections of new engine room and boiler house No. 2 to the south of the original generating station I Anne Bickford and Associates Remains ofPyrmont 'A' Power Station February 1994 I I I 10 I WORKSHOPS AND SMITHY 40 [Contract dated 31/5/1911] I Plans, elevations, and sections ofworkshops and smithy apparently located on Pyrmont Street but actual location unconfirmed STAGE 3A: CHIMNEY STACK No. 3 41 [Drawing dated 29/12/1912] I Drawing of second chimney stack serving boiler house No. 2 STAGE 4: EXTENSION No. 3 42 [Contract No. 18 signed 24/6/1913] Plans, elevations, and sections of extension of new engine room to the west I STAGE 5: EXTENSION OF BOILER HOUSE 44 [Drawings dated 5/8/1914] Additional coal bunkers and extension of roof over boiler house. Plans, elevations, and sections of extension to west of boiler house No. 2 I STAGE 6 : WORKSHOPS AND STORES 46 [Contract dated 31/7/1916] Plans, elevations, and sections STAGE 7: 33,000 VOLT SWITCHGEAR HOUSE 48 I [ Drawings dated 6/5/1918] Plans, sections, elevations, and elevation detail of switchgear house located on Pyrmont Street STAGE 8: EXTENSION No. 4 51 I [Contract signed 11/7/1919] Plans, elevation and sections of refurbishment and extension of engine room of original generating station STAGE 9: EXTENSION OF OFFICE BLOCK 57 I [Drawings dated 31/1/1920] Plans, elevations, sections, and facade detail of extension to north of existing office block located on Pyrmont Street. Some alterations to existing office block STAGE 10: 5,000 VOLT SWITCHGEAR HOUSE 61 I [Drawings dated 30/8/1920] Plans, elevations, sections, and facade detail of switchgear house located on Pyrmont Street. Also included amendment to fourth floor plan and facade dated 7/1/1921 I STAGE 11: BOILER HOUSE No. 3 68 [[Drawings dated 1921-1922] Plans, elevation and sections of boiler house No. 3 located over the western end of the original boiler house and extending north I STAGE 12: BOILER HOUSE No. 4 75 [Drawings dated 1922-1923] Plans and elevations ofboiler house No 4, similar and adjacent to boiler house No. 3 I STAGE 13 : 11,000 VOLT SWITCHGEAR HOUSE 79 [Drawing originally dated 31/10/1923] Plans and sections of switchgear house which now show a later use as a demolition drawing I STAGE 14: STORE 80 [Drawing dated 22/1/25] Plans, elevation and section ofnew store located onJones Bay Road to north of I boiler house Nos. 3 and 4 I 5. BRIEF ANALYSIS OF THE DRAWINGS The first observation to be made is that the Pyrmont 'A' Power Station I was not a single building but a rapidly expanding series of buildings and extensions. During the course of development spanning 1903-1925 there were effectively three power houses built, together with ancillary I buildings. I Anne Bickford and Associates Remains of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station February 1994 I I I 11 I The first power house consists of the original generating station with I offices on Pyrmont Street and the subsequent extension to the east [Stages 1 & 2]. I The second power house was located to the south of the first and was completed with the subsequent additions of a second chimney stack i and small extensions to the west [Stages 3, 4, & 5]. The third power house involved the virtual demolition and I resumption of the original generating station (with the exception of the front offices) and substantial extensions to the north [Stages 8, 11 & I 12]. There is evidence in the drawings to suggest that expansion of the power station to include the first two power houses had been I anticipated (though not perhaps the speed of the expansion). The underground conduits for the intake and outflow of salt water had been planned to serve a second power house. In addition the I elevations of each stage show temporary walls (apparently steel framed with galvanized iron cladding) to facades which were subsequently I added to. Intended permanent facades were in masonry construction. For example the east elevation of the original generating station shows the temporary construction described. The east elevation of the I subsequent extension is in masonry. The decorative masonry northern facade along the then site boundary was extended in the same decorative masonry style. However, the south elevation of both the I original building and the extension show the temporary construction which was subsequently removed to incorporate the second power I house. Similarly, the second power house has a masonry exterior, with the exception of the west elevation, where subsequent additions were to I complete the masonry building envelope. I The construction of the third power house resulted in the virtual destruction of the original generating station (though the front offices remained) and extension to the north on land which was not part of I the original site. Initially the original engine room was remodelled with all the stanchions (columns) replaced, the roof lifted to I accommodate a larger gantry crane, and an extension to the east. Next the offices on Pyrmont Street were extended to the north, and finally two new boiler houses (Boiler Houses Nos. 3 and 4) were added, I resulting in the demolition and resumption of the original boiler I Anne Bickford and Associates Remains of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station February 1994 I I I 12 I house and extension to the north. Figure 7 shows Pyrmont 'A' during this transitional stage when the original generating station was I replaced. Boiler House No. 3 is shown under construction. Part of the original boiler house and the chimney stack are still standing pending I the construction of Boiler House No. 4. A number of ancillary buildings were also part of the development of I Pyrmont 'A'. These included stores, workshops, and switchgear houses. These structures also represented the expanding requirements of the power station. For example, the switchgear was originally I located on a gallery platform within the original generating station. Drawings of these buildings have also been included in the I compilation of drawing records. I I 6. SITE SURVEY I 6.1 Fieldwork At some time before we were commissioned to carry out this work I Pacific Power took colour photographs of the site before excavation. Two of these are included in this Report as Figures 8 and 9. I Photographs were also taken by Pacific Power during demolition. On Friday 21 January for two hours the team was briefed on site by Paul I Hill, Project Officer, and inspected the site and some of the drawings. On Thursday 27 January for six hours fieldwork by the team took place at the site. Site features were related to the drawings, and significant I features were photographed. Because of the large size of the site and the limited time available for this Report all of the remains could not I be recorded in detail. Although a significance assessment was not required, it was considered that the remains of Pyrmont 'A' did not I warrant more recording than that carried out in this project. I I I Anne Bickford and Associates Remains of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station February 1994 I I I 13 I 6.2 Results of Fieldwork I The photographs in this Report show that the archaeological remains of Pyrmont 'A' were complex. The construction drawings were confirmed by the remains. Because of the detail of the construction I drawings it was decided that to draw scale plans and sections on the site would not provide more information than was already evidenced by I the drawings. Black and white film and colour slides of the remains were taken, and these show the size and scope of the site and some I detail elements. I I 7. DIRECTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH The time was not available to conduct further research in libraries or archives. For photographs, the Pictures Collection of the Mitchell I Library of the State Library of NSW should be searched. The Archives Office of NSW may also hold some photographs and records relating to the Power Station. The best resource would be the Council of the City I of Sydney Archives as the Power Station was built and managed by this Authority. Besides holding the construction drawings the Council archives also holds photographs of Pyrmont 'A'. For example Figure 7, I taken from Michael Matthews' book, is credited to the Sydney City Council. I The Pacific Power Photographic Section holds photographs of the site of Pyrmont 'A' when it was used as the coal storage area for the 'B' Station. This Section also took photographs of the demolition and I excavation of the Pyrmont 'A remains. I I I I I I Anne Bickford and Associates Remains ofPyrmont 'A' Power Station February 1994 I I I 14 I 8. THE ORIGINAL SHORE LINE I The Brief for this project required sketch plans showing the earlier shoreline. Plans from the report by Dames and Moore for the Property Services Group Contamination Assessment City West Redevelopment I Project Pyrmont Bay Master Plan 1993 [Figures 5 & 6 ] were provided by Pacific Power. These showed the old shoreline digitized from the Plan I of Pyrmont of 1836 [Figure 4 ]. This shows that the old shoreline came roughly half way across the site, and that the rest of the land to the east, I up to the current Darling Harbour shoreline, consists of fill. The site inspection showed that at some places in that half way area the junction of bedrock and fill could be seen. However we do not have I any evidence as to whether this rock has been cut back during construction of Pyrmont 'A'. Some of the construction drawings show the line of rock, but this is also not conclusive in terms of the old I shoreline. We do not feel that the archaeological remains could allow a sketch I plan of the shoreline to be drawn which would be any more accurate than that produced by superimposing the 1836 Plan over the Power Station site plan. Therefore no such site sketch plan has been I attempted. I I I I I I I I I Anne Bickford and Associates Remains of Pyrmont 'A' Power Station February 1994 I I FIGURE 10 KEY TO OVERVIEW I PHOTOGRAPHS I PYIlMONT I 2. ...:, I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I PHCfO J I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I rHOiO 3: ~~ Q.l;VATIQN OF ItEM,AJr.I,JtJG. ~ QFFIc.e:t'::7 I MSEMENT l,JSva.. REMAINS. of fowell:.. ~ATIoN ItoJ FO\\e: ~ROIAND I I I I I I I I I I I P'J.laiO 4-: VETAfL. OJltI(;.IAAL 9'fE.eL c;rrANt~ION. 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