Street Manhole Covers - the Banner programme

Banners for the 2010 French Film Festival. I have purchased my tickets!

At Christmas, I showed you the banners flying in the streets of the city. Here are some more banners that have been flying along our streets over the last few weeks.

Just under 2,000 city street Banners are prominently positioned throughout the City.

Top: Rupert Bunny at the Art-Gallery, tick Second: Chinese New Year, tick Last: Left the Martin Sharp exhibit at the Museum of Sydney, no tick! Last: Right, the current exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art - no tick!

The programme is administered by the City Council. Banners must:

visually enhance the City’s streetscape; and,

promote arts and cultural activities including events, festivals, tourism or civic programs, as well as major sporting and retail events of public interest.

They are not cheap though - but I guess things are relative. Top tier commercials pay $85 per banner. Second tier commercials pay $70 per banner. Whereas, Not-for-Profits pay $18 per banner. In addition, the advertiser has to pay to put the banners up, to take them down, and to launder them, if required. As a ballpark, 100 banners for two weeks could cost $21,500.

I like them. They are jolly and colourful, AND remind me of the things that are on in the City.

The manhole covers for the poles, on which the banners fly

Street Manhole Covers - Hydraulic power

THe SHPC Pump House, located adjacent to the Entertainment Centre, is now a bar and grill.

Following the failure of the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference to produce any practical actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Australia has entered a period of public debate comparing Cap & Trade systems with incentive systems and whether 5% is a sufficient reduction or should our economy and our taxpayers endeavour to aim for a greater reduction. Similarly, at the end of the 19th century, industrial smoke and smog was choking cities. With gas powered engines, petroleum and electricity still in the future, the solution was the development of centralised steam powered pumps producing high pressure water.

The pump house is wedged in by flyovers and gaudy entertainment venues. This manhole cover is immediately outside the pump house.

The Sydney Hydraulic Power Company commenced supply of hydraulic power in January 1891. The reticulation system comprised a series of cast iron pipes with control valves outside the customer’s premises. The system covered the area between The Rocks, Woolloomooloo, Pyrmont and Ultimo. It was used to power cranes on the wharves, public and goods lifts in department stores and commercial buildings, orchestra lifts in theatres such as the State Theatre, wool presses, bullion lifts in banks and a variety of machinery such as forges. By 1919, there were 2,369 lifts alone connected.

Down at the beginning of Kent Street in Millers Point is the old wool Bond store, where a hydraulic powered lift can still be seen on the outside of the building with yet another variation on a manhole cover.

Over its lifetime, the SHPC had laid some 80 kms of pipe throughout Sydney CBD. However, hydraulic lifts tended to be quite slow in operation and faster electric lifts over time replaced the water powered ones. Hydraulic lifts also had height limitations due to mechanical combinations. The peak period for hydraulic power was in the mid 1930s, with the break-even point being reached in 1965. By 1968 there were no more than 150 customers on the system which ceased operation in 1975.

The Bond store is adjacent to the Lord Nelson pub. These two manhole covers are in the courtyard that houses the hydraulic lift.

I am indebted to the NSW Department of Education & Training, and Charles Sturt University for the basic material for this summary.

Street Manhole Covers - Gas

Manhole (or valve) covers seem to be frequently associated with public utilities like gas, water (drainage), sewer (plumbing), electricity and telecommunications. These covers assist with the supply of gas around Paddington, Woollahra and Bondi Junction.


Established as a penal colony in 1788, Sydney was only incorporated in 1842. Until May 1841, the population of 30,000 was reliant upon oil for heating and cooking and light after dark, oil and the extensive hours of sunshine that Sydney enjoys to this day. The 24th May was the first night of reticulated gas supply in Australia provided by The Australian Gas Light Company which had been formed in 1837. Of the lamps lighted, 22 were street lights and about 160 were households. After incorporation, the City of Sydney began an extensive lighting of the streets but still left it to AGL to provide the power source for the next 50 years.


Fidax Foundry was established in 1947 and is located in Silverwater, a suburb in the inner West. The Jenco 4035 G trap is manufactured by DEKS Industies which was also established in 1947.

Street Manhole Covers - an obsession with detail

The older inner city suburbs of Sydney have excellent examples of early business cards. These manhole covers were found within 1km of my apartment, the drainer from Glebe Point left his calling card in Paddington!


Truth is, being a photographer forces one to look at EVERYTHING!