A museum ship in two parts. HMAS Parramatta was the first ship ordered for the Commonwealth Naval Forces (which later became the RAN). She was one of six River class destroyers ordered by Australia - a class that has the distinction of being the last British destroyers with an outboard rudder. She was launched in 1910 and christened with the very first bottle of champagne ever exported from Australia. She served in New Guinea, China and the Mediterranean during WW1. She was disposed of in 1928 and operated as a hulk until 1935. While under tow to be broken up, she broke the tow and washed ashore in the Hawkesbury River, where the hulk remained - partially dismantled, until 1973. Her bow and stern were then salvaged to be used as a memorial, however in the end only the stern was used in the Parramatta memorial on the banks of the Parramatta River near the Parramatta CBD. Her bow was mounted at the RAN Heritage Centre, on the northern tip of Garden Island in Sydney Harbour about 25km away. The rest of the remains are still rusting away on the banks of the Hawkesbury River.
Links and References:
HMAS Parramatta – Australian National Maritime Museum
Andrews, G 2006. HMAS Parramatta and its namesakes. Afloat, 22-23.
Lind, L, 1974, H.M.A.S. Parramatta Memorial. British Pacific Fleet Memorial. The Foundation of the Sea, ACT Chapter, Naval Historical Society of Australia, Woden, ACT, 1974.
Gillett, R, 2021, Saving the old Parramatta, Australian Warship, 110, pp34-39.
Gillett, R, 2014, HMAS Parramatta - first of 42, Australian Warship, 82, pp62-66.
Lind, LJ, 1974, HMAS Parramatta. 1910-1928, Naval Historical Society of Australia, Garden Island, NSW.