HMAS Castlemaine

HMAS Castlemaine (1942) is owned and operated by the Maritime Trust of Australia Inc (MTA), which is a wholly volunteer organisation. Restoration of the ship started in 1976 and at that time Castlemaine was a rusted, stripped out hulk.

Castlemaine is one of only two surviving Bathurst Class minesweeper/corvettes of which sixty were built in Australia during World War II and is the only one still afloat.  

The ship attracts around 15,000 visitors per year and has become, in a way, ‘the face of the navy’ in Melbourne/Victoria and promotes interest in both the ‘old navy’ and today’s navy. The ship attracts around 6000 young people and students a year. An example of that is Tecoma Primary School, from the Dandenong Ranges, who have ‘adopted’ the ship over many years. Students from years 5 and 6 attend the Shrine service and then the ship every year. Other group visits include serving personnel, ex-service clubs, navy cadet units and scout groups.

With the very generous donation from the Geoffrey Evans Trust the MTA has been able to enhance the displays on the museum ship HMAS Castlemaine. Mannequins in naval uniforms are now on display in the Wardroom and Chief Petty Officers Mess. The donation also paid for new mooring lines and halyards for the main mast.