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SILVER CLOUD at the ANMM in March 2010
Silver Cloud
SILVER CLOUD at the ANMM in March 2010
SILVER CLOUD at the ANMM in March 2010
ANMM Collection, Photographer Andrew Frolows

Silver Cloud

Vessel numberHV000401
Vessel Registration Number56657
Previous owner (Australian, founded 1913)
Previous owner
Date1939
DimensionsVessel Dimensions: 19.81 m x 18.82 m x 5.06 m x 1.52 m (65 ft x 61.75 ft x 16.6 ft x 5 ft)
DescriptionSILVER CLOUD was commissioned from Lars Halvorsen Sons by Jack Bruce, a well known Sydney identity. It was his third cruiser from the same firm, and was designed by Harold Halvorsen. The cruiser was job number 209 and begun in May 1938. It has an Oregon carvel planked hull, and was originally fitted with two Buda diesel engines from Chicago USA. The bridge deck style superstructure was a favoured arrangement allowing entertaining in the saloon or outside on the bridge deck.

It was launched in 1939 and soon after chartered by American publisher Cleveland Putman for his honeymoon cruise on the Great Barrier Reef. The Second World War broke out later that year and during 1941 it was requisitioned by the Government and became part of the RAN as HMAS SILVER CLOUD with the number 52. As part of the so-called Hoolywood Fleet of luxury cruisers pressed into service, it was called to action during the Japanese Mini-Submarine attack in Sydney Harbour in May 1942, and later served as a patrol launch off Port Kembla.

After the war it caught fire while awaiting transfer back to Jack Bruce. The superstructure and hull were severely damaged, and it was bought by Halvorsens for 700 pounds and rebuilt at their Ryde yard. During the reconstruction they left some of the charred frames in place, and they are still visible today.

SILVER CLOUD was then bought by Stan Oldfield, but a year later it was sold to Norman Hannan. Under Hannan's ownership it began a decade long association with Sydney Harbour as a 'glamour craft', a relationship that continued under different owners. It was kept in top condition, and cruised extensively on the harbour and offshore doing short coastal trips. Hannan kept it the Royal Motor Yacht Club, but under Bob Ibbotson's ownership it became the flagship for the St George Motor Boat Club at Botany Bay. Dr Derek Freeman then returned it to the RMYC and his family used it for their holidays and entertaining.

Freeman was a significant supporter of Halvorsen craft and formed the Halvorsen Club during his ownership of SILVER CLOUD. He also added the flying bridge which fitted in seamlessly with the elegant profile, and gave it a slightly raked stem. When Dr Freeman purchased a newer, similar sized Halvorsen, KANAHOEE (renamed SILVER CLOUD II and listed as HV000025) the new owner of SILVER CLOUD Gary Rothwell refitted the interior and installed two Cummins diesels.

The current owner bought SILVER CLOUD in late 2005, and decided to completely overhaul the vessel. This was undertaken in Port Macquarie over an almost four year period, and the SILVER CLOUD now graces Sydney Harbour once again in immaculate condition. Early in 2010 it was given the honour of a relaunch gathering at the Australian National Maritime Museum, where past owners and members of the Halvorsen family joined guests to celebrate the return of SILVER CLOUD as a flagship for the heritage of Lars Halvorsen Sons and Australian boat building.






SignificanceSILVER CLOUD is a luxury Lars Halvorsen Sons bridge-deck cruiser from 1939. It has always been associated with Sydney and the nearby coastal areas. The vessel is the largest surviving Halvorsen built bridge-deck cruiser and showpieces the type of magnificent craft that were the epitome of classic boating in the middle of the 20th century. There were few craft of this calibre in private ownership in Australia, and the Halvorsen firm built most of the type. SILVER CLOUD saw war service from 1941 to 1945, and was rebuilt in the late 1940s after a fire destroyed the superstructure and interior. It then became well known around Sydney and Pittwater under a succession of owners and remains an eye-catching cruiser after a complete overhaul and restoration between 2007 and 2010.

SILVER CLOUD II cruising along at moderate speed, note the expanse of foredeck.
Lars Halvorsen Sons Pty Ltd
1968
AOMA on Pittwater in 2011
Lars Halvorsen Sons Pty Ltd
1963
KATHLEEN GILLETT racing in Gaffer's Day 2004 on Sydney Harbour.
Colin Archer
1939
BONA  in 1905 under full sail, an image from an album of original photos taken during a cruise …
Walter Reeks
1903
SILVER ARROW in 2016
Lars Halvorsen Sons Pty Ltd
1936
RACING in Victoria
Kroger Brothers
1946
HEBE on the Murray River, South Australia in 2007
James Pashley
1888
Berrimilla II during the Grand Veterans Race on Sydney Harbour 18 April 2010
Professor Peter Numa Joubert
1977
AOMA around 1900 coming past Neilson Park on Sydney Harbour in a good nor easter.
Logan Bros
1899
PENGHANA in 2011
RF Hickman Pty Ltd
1958
LIONHEART racing in a Skandia week event around 2006 at Geelong, Victoria.
Sparkman & Stevens
1980
KRAIT restored for the 75th Anniversary event on 26th September 2018 at the ANMM wharves.
c 1934