Customs Officers Stairs - Sydney, NSW, Australia
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denben
S 33° 51.433 E 151° 12.569
56H E 334363 N 6252233
The plaque is located at the bottom end of the Customs Officers Stairs in the Rocks, Sydney's oldest and most central neighbourhood.
Waymark Code: WMN4DC
Location: New South Wales, Australia
Date Posted: 12/24/2014
Views: 15
The inscription on the plaque reads:
"Customs Officers Stairs
A pathway on this site gave customs officers access to Sydney Cove from the Custom House, which was located in the Argyle Stores from 1830 until the opening of the Cicular Quay Customs House in 1845.
To the north of the stairs is the Campbell Storehouse and to the south, the site of "Wharf House" the former residence of Robert Campbell. a prominent Sydney merchant who was Customs Naval Officer from 1807 to 1808 and again in 1810. "Wharf House" was demolished in 1877 for the construction of the Australasian Steam Navigation Company building, which now stands in its place.
Near these stairs, the most flamboyant of the early officers, Captain John Piper, occupied the Customs Naval Office (on the site of the present Mariners' Church at 100 George Street) between 1814 and 1827.
At the bottom of these stairs, in the A.S.N. Company building at 39 Circular Quay West, the Customs Bond Warehouse provided storage for contraband from the 1920's until 1989.
This sign was erected by the Australian Customs Service on 7th, June 1995 in recognition of its long association with the wharves and warehouses of waterfront Sydney."
John Piper (1773 – 1851) was a military officer, public servant and landowner in the colony of New South Wales. As Naval Officer, Piper was responsible for the collection of customs duties, excise on spirits, harbour dues, control of lighthouses, and crime on water. (
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