page_title: Rodney disaster
section_title: Background
hierarchical_section_title: Rodney disaster / Background
caption_attribution_description: English: US cruiser LOUISVILLE in Sydney Harbour 13 February 1938
context_page_description: The ferry Rodney capsized and sank on Sydney Harbour 12 February 1938 with the loss of 19 lives. The ferry was carrying well-wishers and girlfriends of sailors on the heavy cruiser USS Louisville as cruiser left the Harbour.
context_section_description: In the early twentieth century, Sydney Harbour had one of the largest ferry fleets in the world. However, the 1932 opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge quickly saw annual patronage fall from a peak of 40 million passengers to 15 million. The largest operator, Sydney Ferries Limited, laid up in excess of a dozen vessels. Ferry operators sought new markets including excursion, concert, and spectator business. Smaller operators including Charles Rosman did quite well in this trade. Many of their smaller single deck ferries were fitted with rails and seating on their roofs for the enjoyment of passengers. 
  Rodney at the time was a new ferry, built in 1937 for the Rosman fleet. She was built by W L Holmes and Co of North Sydney. Her 80 hp Vivian diesel engines could push her to 8 knots. The wooden ferry was 16.9 m long, had a beam of 4.7 m and was 33 tons. She was licensed to carry 211 passengers, 60 upstairs and 151 on the main deck. 
  In January and February 1938, Louisville (CL/CA-28), a Northampton-class cruiser, undertook a Pacific goodwill tour which took her to Hawaii, Samoa, Australia, and Tahiti. In the harbour for 18 days, she was one of seven foreign warships in Sydney for the sesquicentenary of the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove.
caption: USS Louisville on Sydney Harbour, 13 February 1938
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