Sydney Ferries Limited operated ferry services on Sydney Harbour from 1900 until June 1951. The company grew out of the North Shore Steam Ferry Company and took over smaller ferry operators to become the largest ferry operator in Sydney's history. Without a physical connection across the harbour, demand for ferry services to developing areas on the North Shore rose dramatically and Sydney Ferries commissioned 27 large ferries in its own right between 1900 and 1922. The company named its vessels with Australian Aboriginal words beginning with "K".