The Contribution of Maudslay, Sons & Field to the Development of Time Balls in Australia

Abstract

Maudslay, Sons & Field supplied the apparatus for the first public time ball, which became operational at Greenwich, England, in 1833 and included a chain hoist for the ball. In Australia, Maudslay's built the time ball apparatus for Sydney, NSW, but with a rack and pinion hoist. The 1877 apparatus for Newcastle, NSW was derived from the Sydney design and built in Australia. The 1875 apparatus for Semaphore, South Australia is deduced to be a development of a design by Charles Todd who was responsible at Greenwich for time ball operation before his departure for Adelaide in 1855 and who had a high regard for Maudslay's. Like that at Greenwich it used a chain hoist, but explicit statements about its designer and manufacturer have not yet been found. It is likely that Semaphore had the first heavy-duty time ball apparatus to be manufactured in Australia and that its design was rooted in Maudslay's experience.