Sites Of Significance
| Year | Historical event |
|---|---|
| 1802 | Acting Lieutenant Captain John Murray arrives in the Lady Nelson and names Swan Bay/Swan Harbour. Later that year, Captain Mathew Flinders RN arrives on The Investigator and refers to Swan Harbour as Swan Pond due to its shallow depth. |
| 1856 | 24th September Mountain Maid shipwrecked off Swan Island after collision with SS Queen. |
| 1860s–70s | Various families (Langabiers’, Watsons’, McLeods’, Keys’, and Locks’) establish farms on the island, but rabbits were a constant problem. |
| 1881 | The Barque Omeo collides with and destroys the Swan Spit Lighthouse. |
| 1882 | Construction of Swan Island Fort and defence facilities commences. |
| 1887 | Bulk of Swan Island Fort construction work completed with construction of two jetties, one for submarine mining and the other for torpedo boat defence stores. |
| 1890s | Locals establish a sailing club on Swan Bay foreshore at end of Stokes St. |
| 1901 | Ownership of Swan Island transferred from Victorian Government to the Commonwealth. |
| 1907 | Opening of the Queenscliff Golf Club in the southwest section of Swan Island as an early initiative of the Queenscliff District Progress Association. |
| 1922 | Swan Island becomes a Naval Mine Depot. |
| 1925 | Hull of HMVS Countess of Hopetoun scuttled off Swan Bay. |
| 1926 | J3 Submarine scuttled by the RAN off Swan Island to form a breakwater. |
| 1928 | On June 23, three local boys, sons of fishermen, drown whilst sailing across Swan Bay during a storm. |
| 1936 | Channel cut through the sand-spit giving easier access for boats from Swan Bay to Port Philip Bay. |
| 1941–45 | (WW11) Expansion of facilities on Swan Island. |
| 1945–61 | Naval storage facility for excess war ordinance and mines. |
| 1947 | Swan Bay Boat Club reformed and new club rooms opened on the corner King St and Nankervis Parade. |
| 1961 | The Navy hands over Swan Island to the Army for a defence training facility for ASIS and SAS. |
| 1964 | The trestle bridge to Swan Island replaced with new steel bridge. |
| 1964 | Opening of the Queenscliff Cruising Yacht Club on Swan Island spit. |
| 1982 | Swan Bay wetlands significance recognised by Ramsar Convention. |
| 1983 | Proposal to build major airstrip for Hercules aircraft provokes environmental concerns and protests. |
| 1983 | On 30th November, the ‘Sheraton Hotel’ incident throws political spotlight on ASIS training activities on Swan Island. |
| 1990 | Swan Bay placed on the Register of the National Estate. |
| 2004 | Swan Island Defence Precinct listed on the Commonwealth Heritage List. |
| 2007 | Three SAS soldiers drown when their car plunges from Swan Bridge into Swan Bay. |
| 2010 | Swan Island Peace Convergence begin annual protests outside the Bridge Street gate to Swan Island Bridge. |
| 2022 | On December 20, four teenage paddleboarders blown off-course from Rosebud were rescued from Swan Island. |