Following the headlines in the Sydney Morning Herald about a private operator wanting to sell alcohol to commuters on the Manly ferries ('Boozy Manly ferry? Whatever floats your boat"'), I thought we might look at ferries. We have a fabulous article on ferries by Garry Wotherspoon, with great images and audio. For a harbour city, ferries are an important part of Sydney's transport. Whether for work or for leisure, a trip on the harbour is a very Sydney experience. Formal ferry services around Sydney Harbour go back to 1861, with the formation of the North Shore Ferry Company which operated the first commuter-style ferry across the harbour. But the true history of ferries goes back to the earliest days of the colony's history. The Rose Packet Hill Packet was a convict built ship that plied the route between Sydney town and Rose Hill (aka Parramatta) from 1789. As well as taking passengers back and forth, it brought much-needed produce from the farms of the Parramatta area back to the settlement at Sydney Cove. There is lots of folklore associated with ferries on the harbour. Many Sydneysiders will have heard of Billy Blue, a convict who had arrived in Sydney in December 1801 aboard the Minorca. Not long after he was ferrying passengers in a rowboat between the north side of the harbour and the south side. Blues Point commemorates his presence. A famous saying connected with our ferries is 'Seven miles from Sydney and a thousand miles from care'. This was the slogan coined by the Port Jackson and Manly Steamship Company in the 1920s to promote its ferries on the Manly run. Today, the Manly ferry is probably Sydney's busiest and most famous ferry service. But if they are going to introduce the selling of alcohol onto the Manly ferries, then I think it should be mandatory that people sing the popular song: 'Take me up the harbour', which was first recorded in 1909. We have a recording of it on the Dictionary by the folklore specialist Warren Fahey. It's a rollicking song - perfect for swaying on the Manly ferry as you down a beer. The chorus goes:

Take me up the harbour on a Sunday afternoon To Manly beach or Watsons Bay or round to Coogee for the day Call around to Clifton or Mosman, it will do Dear old harbour, Sydney harbour, they can't beat you!

If you missed it, you can listen to Lisa’s segment with Mitch here. Don’t forget to tune in next week for more Sydney history courtesy of the Dictionary on 2SER Breakfast at 8:20am.