Darling Harbour, Cape Bowling Green lighthouse

The Cape Bowling Green lighthouse is located at the Australian National Maritime Museum, at Darling Harbour. It was originally built in 1874 at Cape Bowling Green, a low sandy spit 70 kilometres south of Townsville, Queensland. It was one of 22 identical lighthouses built on the North Queensland coast to guide vessels around the Great Barrier Reef, where many ships had run aground. The frame of this 22 metre high lighthouse was built from local hardwood and clad with iron plates from Britain. It was staffed by a keeper and three assistants and moved twice, in 1878 and 1908, when threatened by the sea. In 1913, an incandescent mantle was installed, fuelled by vapourised kerosene. It was destaffed in 1920 when an automatic acetylene light was installed, operated by a sun valve. It was replaced by a modern tower in 1987 and then transported to the north wharf of the maritime museum in Sydney in 1994.

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Darling Harbour, Welcome Wall

The Welcome Wall, a memorial which honours immigrants to Australia, is located outside the Australian National Maritime Museum at Darling Harbour. The Welcome Wall is a 100 metre long bronze wall, inscribed with names of immigrants, their arrival dates and the place they came from. It is located near Pyrmont docks, where millions of new settlers first stepped ashore in Australia. Over the years, more than six million people have crossed the world to settle in Australia.

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Macquarie Street, Vivid Sydney

These blue lighthouses were installed throughout the city as part of the Macquarie Visions displays during the Vivid Sydney festival. Governor Lachlan Macquarie commissioned Australia’s first lighthouse in 1816 at South Head to guide ships to the new colony and emerging trading town of Sydney. He was so impressed with the design of what is now known as the Macquarie Lighthouse that he granted convict architect Francis Greenway his freedom. He went on to build many impressive Sydney buildings as Government Architect. This replica lighthouse (left) was located in Macquarie Street, close to the Hyde Park Barracks museum. The red illuminated traffic cones (right) provided a balance further down Macquarie Street, outside Parliament House.