Geelong’s early story is of the sea with passenger arrivals and departures or trade, scientific and naval activities.
The museum at Osborne House displays a mix of sailing ships and submarines, naval heroes and navigation aids. There are photographs, large-scale ship models flags, uniforms, items from shipwrecks and medals. For MHHV members, of especial interest is the information on wartime naval battles and Geelong’s early maritime history from 1838.
Osborne House (pictured) was Australia’s first Naval College in 1913-14 and a submarine base in 1920-22
In addition, the Museum is the home of a replica section of an HMVS Cerberus Gun Turret and enhanced display of the Georgian Line-Of-Battleship, HMVS Nelson. The Friends of the Cerberus displays on Victoria’s Colonial Navy are superb. The Victorian Navy, which was Australia’s most powerful colonial navy, comprised sixteen ships which included an ex Line-Of-Battleship, a powerful Monitor warship, gunboats, torpedo boats and modified Government, Harbour Trust and commercial vessels.