Snapper Island
Location: Sydney Harbour
Like Cockatoo, Snapper Island is part of the series of drowned knolls along the ridges between the flooded river valleys. The island has been flattened and formed into a rectangular shape with longer sides oriented to the north west and south east. In 1879 Snapper Island was declared a public recreation reserve but it remained a rarely visited rocky outcrop. During World War I it was leased to the Cockatoo Island Dockyard for additional storage.
Between 1931-2 the island was flattened and expanded by blasting and reclamation to set up the Sydney training depot for naval cadets. The stone sea walls created the shape of a ship with a bow and a stern. In 1932 building work commenced on a signal station and other main buildings. Their names and layout model that of a naval ship.
The Navy League Sea Cadets salvaged many items from HMAS Sydney when it was stripped on Cockatoo Island in 1931. This collection forms the basis of a museum which still exists on the island. Snapper Island remains, as it has for many years, a collage of makeshift waterfront buildings in tin and timber, slipways, boat storage, gardens, flagpoles, a jetty x all arranged in the pattern of a ship. These structures are in varying states of repair. The island is home to a collection of naval artifacts and memorabilia. It is currently closed to the public and run by a private company, Sydney Training Depot Snapper Island Limited.
