Williamstown’s integral connection to the Royal Australian Navy is now cemented in perpetuity, thanks to a permanent exhibition at Seaworks.
Delivered via the State Government’s Victoria Remembers grant program and with support from the Victorian Veterans Council, the exhibition includes large museum-quality display cases for the ship models and artifacts, large interpretive photographic panels and an interactive screen to display the large collection of photographs of the dockyard.
The exhibition also details the tales of the ships built at the Williamstown dockyard (now BAE Systems), which was one of the Commonwealth’s most important naval shipbuilding facilities.
Seaworks Foundation chief executive Glenn Jones said the exhibition tells a “vital and important” part of Seaworks’ and Williamstown’s history.
“We strongly believe this will be of great benefit not only to our museum guests and school groups but also a place where veterans and dockyard workers can gather and share their own stories,” he said.
The exhibition tells the story of Williamstown’s maritime precinct, its industrial capabilities and the dry dock allowing for the construction of a number of the Navy’s warships, including some still in service, as well as the tales of Navy personnel who called the Williamstown area home.
Veterans Minister Natalie Suleyman said the State Government is thrilled to highlight Williamstown’s connection with the Navy.
“We are proud to support projects like this which shine a light on the lesser-known stories of our defence history and honour the invaluable contributions of our veteran community,” she said.
The Victoria Remembers grant program honours and commemorates veterans’ service and educates Victorians about veterans’ contributions.
The Seaworks Maritime Museum is open from 11am to 3pm on Wednesdays and Sundays.
Details: seaworks.com.au/melbourne-maritime-museum
Matthew Sims
