[peacock prose] Lady Ferguson and her four sisters survived the 1932 opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and were converted to diesel power that decade.

Lady Ferguson was sold out of Sydney ferry service in 1975 to be used as a relief vessel in Hobart following the collapse of the Tasman Bridge.

In common with most Sydney Harbour ferries at the time, Lady Ferguson and her four sisters were wooden double-ended screw steamers.

They were relatively small and had a veed shape and shallow draft to navigate the muddy and silted upper reaches of their upstream runs.

[2] From 1900, the Balmain New Ferry Company began a period of expansion to keep up and compete with the tram network expanding into what is now referred to as Sydney's Inner West.

As part of economy measures, almost older and/or larger steamers were put up for sale, and the five "Lady-class" ferries were converted to diesel power in the 1930s with Lady Chelmsford first.

In 1937, Lady Ferguson re-entered service with a six-cylinder 65 hp Henty & Gardner diesel that pushed her to 9 knots.

In 1951, annual patronage dropped to 9 million and the NSW State Government took over Sydney Ferries Limited and its remaining fleet and assets.

Their routes were expanded to all inner-harbour (ie, non-Manly) services including Taronga Park Zoo, Milsons Point, Cremorne and Hunters Hill.

In the 1970s, the fleet were painted in the Public Transport Commission's blue and white scheme, except for Lady Ferguson who was the last ferry to wear the green and cream.

[7] She was towed to Hobart with Kosciusko in 1975 to assist following the collapse of the Tasman Bridge, however, upon arrival she was found to be in too poor condition to be used.

A 1972 fire destroyed her superstructure and she was rebuilt as the John Cadman and undertook a successful career as a cruise boat before being sold in 2000s and falling into disrepair and broken up in 2014.