The Lady Loch, a steam ferry built at Johnson's Tyne Foundry, commenced operation on August 29, 1884. She provided much needed access for passengers and vehicles over the Yarra River between the City and South Melbourne, crossing from Spencer Street to Clarendon Street.
The Age had a comprehensive report of the ferry a few days before the first journey -
As an evidence of the rapidly growing requirements of the city, and the consequent necessity of providing the most rapid means of transit for those engaged in business, the Harbor Trust authorities have just had completed to their order, by Messrs Johnson and Co., of the Tyne Foundry a steam ferry, which will ply for hire between Spencer and Clarendon Streets, thus connecting the two cities. The ferry, which is of particularly, massive construction, is so built as to convey vehicles of all descriptions across the river, so that in a few days drivers wishing to reach any part of South Melbourne from the north-western part of Melbourne will save considerable time by utilising the ferry instead of crossing the Falls bridge (1), as they have had to do hitherto.
The ferry was designed by W. R Rennick, who started his working life as an engineer with the Melbourne Harbour Trust, during which time he supervised the construction of Queen's Bridge. He later moved to the Railways Department and was responsible for the design of various station buildings, railway bridges and the the coal canal at West Melbourne amongst other work. William Robert Rennick retired in July 1924 and died in 1938 at the age of 78 (3).
The ferry was built by Messrs Johnson and Co., of the Tyne Foundry, on the south bank of the Yarra, at Lorimer and Tyne Street intersection, near South Wharf. The foundry was established by John Currie Johnson, around 1873 (4). There was a description of the foundry in The Age in October 1883 - The extensive works of this firm are situated to the west of Wright and Orr's docks, on the South bank of the Yarra. The area of ground is 2 acres 1 rood 4 perches, of which about 1 acre is covered with buildings. The latter comprise a carriage building shop, waggon shop, boiler yard and shed, shipbuilding yard, smiths' Bhop, engineers' shop, forge shop and pattern shop. The average number of men employed during the year is 300 a week, the wages sheet being about £800 per week (5).
Apart from the ferry the foundry built other vessels including the steam boat Sprightly (1875); the tug Pelican (1880) and the sand dredge, Pioneer (1949). The Pioneer is pictured, below. The Foundry also supplied the wrought iron work on the Eastern Market, which opened December 1879, built mining equipment and portable steam engines (6). The Foundry closed about 1970 (7).
John Currie Johnson had arrived in Melbourne in 1853 and worked at Langlands Foundry (8) before establishing his own company. Johnson and his family moved to Footscray in 1860. His obituary said he was elected a member of the Footscray Council in 1865, holding a similar position at South Melbourne at the same time (9). He was actually elected to the Footscray Council in 1867 and resigned in 1870, and to South Mebourne (or Emerald Hill as it was then called) Council in 1880. He successfully stood again for Footscray Council in 1881 and was Mayor the same year. He retired from South Melbourne Council in 1883 and Footscray in 1884 (10). John died in 1903 aged 77 (11). His son, James Ritchie Johnson, later managed the Foundry; he had undertaken his apprenticeship at Langlands. In common with his father, he was also a Councillor at Footscray, from 1903 until 1931, being the Mayor on two occasions. He died in 1945 aged 87 (12). John Currie Johnson had a numerous other sons (13) including one named Henry Langlands, a tribute perhaps to his old employer, Robert Langlands. On the subject of names, John was born in Newcastle on Tyne, so I presume that is the source of the name of the foundry, which gave its name to the street.
The steam ferry had been launched a few months previously on June 23 1884, at a ceremony attended by members of the Harbour Trust including the Commisioner, John Nimmo, M.L.A., representatives from the South Melbourne Council and various politicians. The vessel was then finished off in the water and the approaches on both sides of the river completed before she was put into service (14).
At the launch Miss Daisy Johnston, John Currie Johnson's daughter, broke the time-honoured bottle of wine said one report (15) or the customary bottle of champagne said another (16) and and christened the ferry the " Lady Loch," to honour the wife of the Victorian Governor, Sir Henry Brougham Loch (17).
There were comments from the start about the appearance of the vessel. Mr J. M. Bruce of the Harbour Trust addressed this issue at the launch -There was no doubt as to the ferry being a thing of much utility, though, perhaps, severe critics might be disposed to question its beauty. It was, perhaps, only a half compliment to name it after Lady Loch. Considering the nature of the locality, and its liability to floods, it would have been more appropriate to have called it the "Noah's Ark," and it would in the future probably be found very useful in conveying people from the dangerous low-lands of South Melbourne to the more secure levels on the north bank (18).
Ferries had been operating between Spencer Street and Clarendon Street from the 1850s. Archibald Cook was the licensee of the Spencer Street ferry from 1854, and due to the commencement of the Lady Loch, the Harbour Trust paid him £860 compensation to forfeit his licence (19). Cook's vessels were passenger only vessels and did not carry vehicles or livestock (20) and thus there had been agitation to have a bridge at this location from the 1850s (21). However Melbourne and South Melbourne had to wait until 1930 for a bridge - the Spencer Street bridge opened on February 12 (22).
The Lady Loch was still operating in 1920. There was a report in The Argus of June 1920 about her - Once again the ferry is being run with small boats, as the ponderous old steamer, with its square build and flat bottom, is laid up for a badly needed over-haul. Those accustomed to using the ferry are not altogether sorry for the change. A swift motor-launch does a continuous service from 5 a.m. to midnight, and the crossing is made in about a minute. So efficient is the working that the other morning a tally showed 523 passengers were carried in 20 minutes (23) These swift motor-launch were operated by a company which employed only returned soldiers (24). A report in 1924 on the retirement of Mr Rennick, the designer of the ferry, referred to it as the old steam ferrry that plied at Spencer Street for many years (25) which implies to me that it was no longer operating. The Lady Loch was auctioned off for scrap in May 1928 (26).
Trove list - I have created a list of articles relating to the Tyne Foundry and John Currie Johnson and his family, access it here.
Footnotes
(1) The Falls Bridge was built in 1860 and was replaced by Queen's bridge in 1889. It crosses the Yarra from Queensbridge Street, South Melbourne to Market Street. The Falls were caused by a rocky bar across the the Yarra, which were removed 1883 - 1885, to help alleviate flooding - see articles in The Argus of May 24, 1883, here and December 3, 1884 here. Princes Bridge at Swanston Street was built in 1850s and the current bridge dates to 1888. The bridge from Spencer Street to Clarendon Street in South Melbourne was opened in 1930 and the King Street Bridge, linking Kings Street to Kings Way was built in 1957. eMelbourne is a good source for the history of the early bridges and roads https://www.emelbourne.net.au/
(2) The Age August 25, 1884, see here.
(3) William Robert Rennick. Reports of his retirement which list some of his works and his career highlights can be found in The Herald July 8, 1924, see here and The Argus July 9, 1924, see here. His obituary was in The Argus, May 20, 1938, see here.
(4) Date of establishment. An article in The Age of October 1, 1883 (see here) said it was established in 1872; John Currie Johnson's obituary in the Footscray Independent of March 21, 1903 (see here) implies it was founded around 1875. It is listed in Sands McDougall Directory in 1875.
(5) The Age, October 1, 1883, see here.
(6) The other projects can be found in various newspapers reports, see my Trove list, here. Some examples of portable steam engines can be found on the Engineering Australia website here.
(7) Closure date comes from a City of Port Phillip Heritage Review, see here.
(8) Short history of Langlands foundry is on eMelbourne, here.
(12) James Ritchie Johnson - information about his life is from his obituary in The Argus, September 28, 1945, see here; an article about him in the Footscray Independent of March 3, 1904, see here and History of Footscray by John Lack (Hargreen / City of Footscray, 1991)
(13) John Currie Johnson married Ann Hughes in 1855. They had Thomas Watson (registered Emerald Hill, 1856), James Ritchie (Emerald Hill, 1858), John Currie (Emerald Hill, 1860), William Samuel (Emerald Hill, 1862), Annie Eleanor (1864 - 1878), Henry Langlands (Footscray, 1866), Albert Toney (Footscray, 1868), Francis Ernest (Footscray, 1870), Mary Charlotte (Footscray, 1872). They also had a daughter, Daisy, who launched the Lady Loch, but I cannot find any reference to her birth, in the Victorian Indexes to the Births, Deaths and Marriages. Daisy was possibly a pet name for Mary Charlotte. Ann, the daughter of Thomas and Margaret (nee Richardson) Hughes, died in 1892 at the age of 56. John then married Flora McInnes in 1892 and they had one son, Neil Laing Johnson in 1893, born when John was 67.
(14) Reports of the launch can be found in The Herald, June 23, 1884, see here; The Argus June 24, 1884, see here; and the Emerald Hill Record, June 27, 1884, see here.
(15) Emerald Hill Record, June 27, 1884, see here.
(16) The Argus June 24, 1884, see here.
(17) The Herald, June 23, 1884, see here.
(18) Emerald Hill Record, June 27, 1884, see here.
(19) The Argus, May 23, 1882, see here and The Argus, June 10 1885, see here.
(20) The Argus, August 30, 1884, see here, reported on the fares and timetable - The steam ferry will ply from 6 a.m to 7 p.m in summer, and from 7 a.m to 5 p.m in winter. The row boat will ply from 5 a.m to the time the steam ferry begins operations, and from the time the steam ferry ceases until midnight, the charge per passenger being 1d up to 10 p.m., afterwards 2d. Weekly tickets, not available after 10 p.m., will be issued at 6d each. For every vehicle drawn by one horse the charge will be 3d , or 1s. per day ; do, two horses, 4d , or 1s 3d per day ; do, three horses, 6d , or 1s 6d per day ; do , four horses, 1s , or 2s per day. For every horse, cow, or bullock, 2d ; for every pig, ½d , for every sheep, ½d , for each score of sheep 4d.
(21) Report in The Age, March 27 1856 (see here) is the earliest I can find - A meeting was held on Tuesday evening in the great iron store, for the purpose of taking into consideration the best route for the proposed road from Emerald Hill to, and bridge across, the River Yarra.....The Council had endeavored to procure a line of road from Clarendon street to the Yarra opposite Spencer street, and bridge across the river. It appeared that the Government were disposed to favor the views of the Council, but seemed inclined to substitute a steam-punt for a bridge.
