The Hesperus was a clipper ship on the London-Australia route in the 1870s and 1880s, then subsequently a coastal trader and training ship in Australian waters until 1899. The State Library of SA has a number of photographs of the Hesperus and the following information ttached to one of the ship at anchor 'The iron ship, 'Hesperus', 1777 tons, at anchor [iron ship, 1859 gross tons. ON68500, 262.2 x 39.7 x 23.5. Built 1873 (11) R Steele and Co. Greenock. Owners: J Anderson (Anderson,Anderson and Co.) registered London, sold 1890 to Devitt and Moore, sold in 1899 she became the Russian 'Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna' then British again as 'Silvana' and under that name was broken up at Genoa in the 1920s. As an Orient Line vessel she remained in the Adelaide trade almost without a break until sale in 1890 put her into the eastern coast trade as a training ship for cadets under Lord Brassey's scheme. After sale to the Russians she remained a training ship up to the time of the outbreak of WW1. In the Adelaide run she was always a favourite passenger ship and although not noted for speed was regarded as very comfortable and regular.' (SLSA PRG 1373/4/21) See also https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hesperus_(clipper_ship) Noting her sale in 1899, one Adelaide paper commented 'The dear old Hesperus sold to the Russians' (Evening Journal, 24 August 1899, p2).

The date of the image is most likely to be in the 1870s or 1880s when the Hesperus was owned by the Orient Line. Details are not clear enough to identify the dock or the other ships.