Oratava, Oruba and Ormuz are three handsome double fronted houses in Pigdon Street, Princes Hill. The houses were built by Joseph Hince between 1899 and 1900 and they are named after ships that brought immigrants to Australia in the late nineteenth century. Ormuz was built for the Orient line as a passenger ship and began voyages to Australia in 1877. The ships carried three classes of passengers. The Oratava and Oruba were built for the Pacific Steamship Company and initially sailed to Valparaiso. They commenced voyages to Australia in mid 1890. The Oratava was a troopship during the Boer War and in 1906 both the Oruba and the Oratava became Royal Mail vessels to the West Indies. Orotava became a merchant cruiser in World War 1.
by cchg on Sept. 27, 2018Please login to comment on this item