The wheelhouse of the depot ship HMAS KUTTABUL has been laid to rest in the Australian War Memorial's new Anzac Hall in Canberra.

The historic wheelhouse earned memorial status when a midget Japanese submarine fired a torpedo at the USS CHICAGO and missed, hitting the sea wall of KUTTABUL in Sydney Harbour on the night of May 31, 1942, killing 19 Australian and two British sailors.

The $11.9 million gallery was officially opened by Prime Minister John Howard on Thursday, June 21.