With the discovery of gold in 1851, Melbourne soon became a major entry point to Australia. By the end of the year and the following year, the demand for passage to Australia rose considerably. Rivalry between the many shipping companies intensified as they fought, through advertisements extolling the virtues of their speedy and comfortable ships, for the lucrative new emigration trade.  No doubt risks were taken with the aim of turning a quick profit, and no doubt ships were lost.  The Port Phillip district of New South Wales was declared a separate colony and named Victoria, on 1 July 1851. Melbourne grew into a vibrant metropolis, and trade between Melbourne and Sydney prospered. Access to coastal towns such as Port Albert, Warrnambool and Portland was quicker by ship until roads improved and the the motor vehicle dominated land transport. Bay ferries continued to run on Port Phillip, between Melbourne, Portarlington, Geelong, Queencliff, Portsea, Sorrento, Rye and Frankston well into the 1950s.

With respect to shipping losses, Victoria can be considered in three parts - Port Phillip and its entrance, and Westernport, in the middle of the state; the rich pastures of Gippsland to the east, and the beautiful rugged coastline  of the Great Oceans Road to the west. We should also consider the Bass Strait islands - King Island, the Furneaux Group and the Kent Group - they are listed separately (and are, incidentally, part of Tasmania). The western coast of Victoria contains, I am sure, more shipwrecks by number and tonnage than any other stretch of coast in Australia. And yet the loss of life has not been exceedingly high, with forty-nine lost with the wreck of the ship Loch Ard near Port Campbell in 1878 being the greatest, and the Children, at Childers Cove further west, with 38 lives:  the 'top ten' wrecks in terms of loss of life resulted in 221 lives give or take one or two. This is surprising low as the coastline is magnificent in its ruggedness, a fact not lost on the tourist operators who promote Victoria's Shipwreck Coast.

For the purposes of this listing, which includes over a thousand entries, Port Phillip and its entrance, the Rip, has been separated, as has Gabo Island to the far east of the state. Westernport and Phillip Island have been included in this main list. The vessels scuttled in Bass Strait have been included in the Port Phillip listing.

References.
Victoria, of all states, seems to have the most documented shipwreck data, in public format at least. Noted shipwreck historian Jack Loney lived on the west coast and later at Portarlington in Port Phillip, and most of his work was on the wrecks off the Victorian coast: three main publications are used as a base here, [LV], [LG], [LO], with several other monographs on individual wrecks and regions. Noble [NH], and Bateson [AS1] contribute significantly to the historic record. Several authors have provided greater detail in individual or a small group of regional wrecks: Charlwood [CWR], Mackenzie [MM] and Ronald [PR] in particular. Lewis [IL], Nayler [NSC, NWR], Denmead [DD], and Stone [DA] provide excellent material on the wrecksites.
[1022 records]

Associated links:  PORT PHILLIP    GABO ISLAND

Abstainer. Ketch, 49 tons. Built Latrobe, Tasmania, 1877. Lbd  55.7 x 16.5 x 6.5 ft. Captain Catterina. Was being towed out over the bar at Lakes Entrance by the steamer Rose Of Sharon when the tow rope was cast off with the vessel still in a dangerous position, and she foundered, 12 November 1889. Two drowned, the captain and the cook. They were the first casualties of the new entrance.
[LG],[ASR - built Melbourne],[LPA],[LV]

Achilles. Schooner, Lost at Apollo Bay, Victoria, 1856. [LV]

Active.  Sealer, brigantine. Captain J. Bader. Sailed from Sydney 11 December 1809, for New Zealand sealing grounds, landing a aprty of sealers on the west coast. Lost at sea with all hands after leaving New Zealand to return to Sydney, 1810. [LSS],[LG],[AS1]
In 1809, 11 June, stranded at Western Port, Gippsland coast; refloated and returned to Sydney.

Ada Burgess. Ketch, 32 tons.  Built 1907. Lbd 58 x 15.2 x 7.3 ft. Wrecked at Tarwin, Gippsland coast,  8 December 1934. Crew of three saved. [LG],[ASR - 28 tons, wrecked Cape Liptrap, 30 November 1934],[LV]

Ada. Schooner, 33 tons. Built 1863. Known to have operated in Victorian waters in the 1890s. Disappeared from Australian Shipping Register after 1915.  [LPA]

Adelaide H.M.A.S. Light cruiser, 5560 tons.  Built 1918. Broken up 1949. As a result of the loss of the Cambridge, ordered to search for a possible minelayer in Bass Strait, 1941. [LSW]

Adeline. Auxiliary fishing launch, 28ft. Stolen at Currie, King Island, on 18 March1950. Wreckage found spread along the beaches around Loch Ard Gorge, west coast Victoria. [TS2]

Adieu. Brigantine 174 tons.  Out of Melbourne, disappeared without trace, 1883. [LV]

Aeon.  Steel steamer, 3768 tons. Built, 1913.  Withdrawn from service in 1955. Destroyed a drifting mine six miles from Cape Everard, eastern Victoria, 23 February 1919. [LSW]

Agenoria. Brigantine, wood, 129 tons. Built at Prince Edward Island in 1837; reg. Hobart Town.  Lbd 72 x 20.7 x 12 ft. Ran on to the Port Albert bar early in March and could not be refloated, March 1852. [LG],[LPA],[LV]

Agnes & Elizabeth. Schooner. Built 1840. Known to have operated in eastern Victorian waters in the 1840s. Wrecked 1854.  [LPA]

Agnes. Lighter, 71 tons. Built 1873; reg.Melbourne. Broken up, Melbourne, 1894. [ASR]

Agnes. Two-masted wooden schooner, 50 tons. Built at Twofold Bay, 1837; reg. Hobart 8/1839. Lbd 52.4 x 15.5 x 8.6 ft. Master Thomas Gray. Sailed from Launceston for Port Phillip Bay on 23 September 1839 but failed to arrive. Captain Marr of the barque Britomart reported sighting wreckage drifting in Bass Strait that may have been from the missing vessel.  Finally, around June 1840 a quantity of wreckage was found on the beach near Cape Schanck, on the Victorian coast, including some gold-lettered drawers, part of fittings for a chemist’s shop in Melbourne which had been consigned on board the Agnes. [TS1],[LG],[AS1]

Ajax. Steamship. Involved in collision with steamer Leura, Port Phillip Bay, 4 September 1908.
[LV],[WPP]

Akuna. Pilot vessel, 970 tons. Built 1911 as the German yacht Comet; captured by the RAN off New Britain in 1914 and commissioned as the Una. Purchased by Port Phillip Sea Pilots in 1924 and renamed Akuna. Broken up in 1954. [LC]

Alacrity. Tug.
In June 1912, towed free the stranded steamer Leura in Lady Bay, Warrnambool.
In 1912, towed free the barque Joseph Craig, aground inside Point Nepean, Port Phillip.
On 11 February 1913, a vessel of this name was involved in collision with barque Arnoldus Vinnen, near Williamstown, Port Phillip. [LLB],[LR],[LV],[WPP]

Albert San. Trawler, 240 tons. Built 1915. Lbd 117 x 22 x 11.9 ft.  Captain J. Renton. Previously named Brolga. Left Sydney on a cruise to Melbourne, and was returning in thick weather when she ran on to Beware Reef off Point Hicks, eastern Victoria, 1 September 1926. Crew saved.  [LG]

Albert Victor. Steamer, iron, 14/10 tons,. Built at Melbourne, 1883. Lbd 43.1 x 9.2 x 4.8 ft. Was trading between Port Albert, Toora and Foster, Gippsland,  when destroyed by fire at Bentley’s Harbour, 3 February 1889. The crew, awakened by the noise and heat of the fire, jumped overboard and swam ashore to Snake Island where their signals were seen by SS Maitland, which took them on to Port Albert. [LG],[LPA],[ASR],[LPW],[LV]

Albert. Schooner, 37 tons. Built 1864; reg. Melbourne. Lbd 62.1 x 17.8 x 5.4 ft. Captain Lemschow. Went to pieces after running on to a bank in the west channel of Lakes Entrance, 27 March 1874. [ASR],[LG],[LPA - built 1865],[LPW - 19 tons],[LV]
In 1869, stranded at Lakes Entrance, Gippsland coast; apparently salvaged and returned to service.

Albert. Wooden schooner, 44 tons. Built on the Albert River, Gippsland coast, 1849. Lbd 50 x 15 x 7.7 ft. Hit the Fourth River bar, Tasmania, and continued her journey but dissapered at sea, 1850.  [LPA]

Alcandre Brigantine.
In 1870, saw wreckage, possibly ship Harlech Castle.
On 4 August 1875, involved in collision with schooner Gippslander, Hobsons Bay, Port Phillip.
In 1877, stranded in Waratah Bay.
[LG], [LV],[WPP- schooner]

Alert. Schooner. Built 1846. Lost near Cape Grim, 1854.  [LPA]

Alert. Schooner. Stranded at Port Fairy, Victoria,  1854. [LO]

Alert. Steamship, 243/116 tons. Built at Glasgow, 1877, for Huddart Parker. Lbd 169 x 19.6 x 9.8 ft. (Note - unusually long for her beam). Sailed to Australia as a three-masted schooner with her funnel and propeller stowed in the hold. Temporarily replaced SS Despatch on the Gippsland-Melbourne run in 1893 whilst the despatch was refitted. Captain Mathieson. Foundered in a tremendous gale with mountainous seas off Jubilee Point near Cape Schanck, Gippsland coast, 28 December 1893. Fifteen lives lost. The one survivor, Robert Ponting, grasped portion of a cabin door and clung to for sixteen hours in the water before staggering on to the beach about 15 km from where the Alert foundered. That morning he was found unconscious on the beach near Sorrento by four young ladies, partially dressed and half hidden in the sand. The ladies sheltered him as best they could with their cloaks and umbrellas until a m,an and his St. Bernard dog appeared and rendered first aid. The dog nestled close to Ponting and kept him warm while further assistance was sought. The loss of the vessel saw not only a Court of marine Inquiry, but also civil action against owners Huddard Parker, by the wife of the second engineer, lost in the disaster. She won her case.
[LPA],[LC],[LAH],[LG - has incorrect date of wrecking, 1892],[LV - refers to Richard (Ponting) as well as Robert],[#NH],[ASR],[DG]

Alexander. Cutter, 18 tons. Ashore at Apollo Bay, Victoria, during an easterly and broke up, 3 November 1883. [LO],[LV]

Alexandra. Brig, 239 tons. Captain L. Jones. Built 1863. Lbd 106.3 x 25.6 x 14.1 ft. In a gale,  ran stern on to the beach east of the jetties in Lady Bay, Warrnambool, wrecked, 30 March 1882. All saved.
On 15 July 1870, stranded on Swan Spit, Port Phillip.
[LO], [LV],[LLB],[#MM],[WPP]

Alexandra. Brigantine, wood, 287 tons. Built 1862. Lbd 116.5 x 26.5 x 16.6 ft.  While on a voyage from Newcastle to Melbourne, scuttled by the master and mate (who received long jail sentences), at Rabbit Island, east coast Wilsons Promontory near Corner Inlet, 1878. Refloated with relatively little damage. [LV],[LPA - refloated],[LWP - lbd 102 x 25 x 14.4 ft]
Also listed:
Alexandra. Brigantine, 254 tons. Built 1862; reg Melbourne. Out of  Melbourne, disappeared without trace, 1872. [LV], [ASR - schooner]

Alice. Cutter, 30 tons. Built 1839. Length 35 ft. Began trading in South Australian waters in 1839, and in Victoria c 1841. Broken up 1860. [LSS],[LPA]

Allara. Steamship, 3279 tons. Built 1924. Struck and sank the wooden tug J.W.Alexander in Coria Bay, 22 December 1936. [WPP],[LC],[LV - 2 December]

Alma Doepel. Wooden schooner, 150 tons. Built Bellinger, NSW, 1903 (and named after the daughter of the builder). Lbd 105 x 26.6 x 7.6 ft. Operated in NSW, Victorian and Tasmanian waters, and across the Tasman. During World War 2, derigged and used as a supply ship, Ak 82. Later resumed her Tasmanian run under sail. She lay idle at Electrona, Tasmania for many years; in 1976 brought to Melbourne to be rerigged and fitted out by Sail and Adeventure Limited as a training and adventure vessel. Still operating in 2002. [LC]

Almendra. Barque. Stranded in Waratah Bay, Gippsland coast, 1881. Apparently salvaged and returned to service. [LG]

Aloah. Fishing boat. Overturned on the Lakes Entrance bar, Gippsland coast, 28 June 1993. [LG]

Alpha. Cutter. Built 1842. Operated in eastern Victorian waters in the 1840s. Lost in New Zealand waters, 1865.  [LPA]

Amazon. Barque, wood, 363 tons. Captain Ogier. After being severely battered by a storm, was deliberately run ashore and stranded about a kilometre south-west of Anderson’s Inlet, about 13 kilometres east of Cape Paterson, Gippsland coast, 13 December 1863. Crew managed to reach shore and were eventually rescued by the Government steamer Victoria. Cargo salvaged by Captain Richard Leggett in the cutter Ben Bolt.  [LG],[LV],[LSS]

Amazone. Type not recorded. Involved in collision with Melbourne, Victoria Dock, Melbourne, 1901. [LV]

Amity. Brig. Built 1816. Wrecked in Bass Strait, 1845.  [LPA]

Anglo Svea. Vessel of 23 tons. Lost in Bass Strait, 1920. [LV]

Ann & Mary. Three-masted schooner, 202/185 tons. # 42578. Built at Quay Back, Cardiganshire, Wales, 1861; reg. Newcastle 3/1886. Lbd 109.4 x 23.1 x 12.0 ft. Captain Campbell. From the Mersey River for Brisbane with potatoes, encountered a heavy south-easterly gale and foundered north-east of the Kent Group, (possibly in Victorian waters), 27 June 1887. Two boats were lunched but the cook was missing, presumed drowned. They made the Gippsland coast but the surf was high and the master drowned when they were upset. [TS1]
Loney reports:
Sank due to leaking seams off the Ninety Mile Beach, Gippsland coast, 28 June 1887.  One crew member was washed overboard shortly before she sank. The crew of seven scrambled half dressed into a small dinghy, however the captain fell from the dinghy and drowned when about fifty nautical miles from land.  [LG],[LV]

Ann. Brigantine, 135 tons. Built 1869; reg Melbourne. Lost 1871. [ASR]

Anna. Brigantine, 137 tons. Built 1849. Lbd 74 x 19.5 x 11 ft. Ashore in a gale, wrecked, Apollo Bay, 29 July 1854. [LV]

Anne Moore. Brigantine, 90 tons. Built 1866. Known to have operated in eastern Victorian waters in the 1870s.  [LPA]

Anne. Schooner, 35 tons. Lost near Lorne, Victoria, 1863. [LO],[LV]
In 1858, stranded near Apollo Bay, Victoria, 1858.

Annie Beaton. Schooner, 85 tons. Built 1862. Operated in eastern Victorian waters in the 1860s under Captain McEachern. Sold overseas 1882.  [LPA]

Annie Taylor. Wooden ketch, 96 tons. Built at Port Albert, 1920. Lbd 88 x 22.5 x 8 ft. Wrecked 1923.  [LSS],[LPA - schooner]

Annie. Schooner, 103 tons. Struck Haley Reef near Apollo Bay in a gale, 30 November 1857. Her crew remained on board, hoping that she might be refloated, however after several days she began to break up and the crew were forced to abandon her. [LO],[LV]

Anser Island wreck. Unidentified. Located on a steel slope from 3 to 35 metres on the south-west side of Answer Island, off Wilsons Promontory. The vessel has not been identified. It appears she may have been a collier, and her timbers are indicative of shipbuilding in North America. The site is well scattered, with wreckage in the deep sloping gulliess of the island. The four anchors near the surface indicate she ran 'head-on' to the island.
@ Wrecksite discovered circa 1975, what little material that may have identified the vessel has been removed.  [DUP]

Ant. Wooden screw steamer, 149/87 tons. Built 1854. Lbd 100.8 x 17.8 x 9.2 ft. Captain Harrison. Struck a rock near Bream Creek, Victoria, about five miles west from Barwon Heads, (off Bancoora Beach), 12 June 1866. Fortunately the sea was moderate enabling boats to be lowered immediately, but as the vessel did not appear in immediate danger, only one boat was launched containing several passengers and crew members. However the vessel soon broke her back forcing those remaining on board to throw the sheep into the sea before taking to a boat. The tug Samson from Melbourne attended. Hopes were high that the Ant could be refloated, and eighty casks and two pumps were taken to the wreck to be placed in the hold to float her off, but the plan failed, leaving her hanging on the reef with her keel out of the water and her stern completely buried.
On 6 July 1865, stranded at Port Albert, Gippsland coast; salvaged and returned to service.
@ What little remains of the steamer lies, usually, buried in the sand on a heavy surf  line.
[LO],[NWP],[LV],[NSC],[DD][LG],[LPA]
Antares. Barque, 1749/1672 tons. Built at Glasgow, 1888 and originally named Sutlej. Lbd 260.3 x 38.2 x 23.1 ft. Reg. as Antares in Genoa, Italy, 1907. After a refit, 1761 reg. tons. Wrecked near Nullawarre, west of Peterborough, Victoria, 1914. A district lad went home one night remarking that the Germans had arrived off the Victorian coast and he had seen and heard them firing shells and flares against the night sky, but his story was passed off as a joke. About a month later, a local resident riding along the cuffs which tower sheer out of the sea more than 200 feet, saw what he thought were the remains of a ship.  Police were notified and the Warrnambool lifeboat was sent to investigate.The wreck was found in only eight feet of water. Only one body was found; tthe remains of the other twenty-four members of the crew were never found.
[LO],[#MM],[LV],[LAH],[DD],[DA]
@ Access to the wrecksite is difficult; the fore section has broken off from the hull, with three anchors, rudder, windlass and other wreckage visible. What little remains, lie in six metres. A kedging anchor, and section of the bow are visible.

Antillia. (Antilia). Steamship, 929 tons. Renamed Malaita (qv) and eventually scuttled in Bass Strait, 1927. [LV],[LC]

Antinous Wolf. Single screw steamship, 5809 tons. Built 1913 as the Wachtfels. German raider in World War 1. Also named Wolf (qv).  [LSW]

Antiope. Iron clipper, 1400 tons. Built 1866. British. Hulked after World War 1. Involved in rescue - see Paul Jones, 1886. [LO]

Apollo. Schooner, wood, 20 tons. Built at Brisbane Water, 1845. Lbd  46.1 x 14.3 x 5.6 ft. Purchased for the Port Phillip pilot Service in June 1846 and spent several years as a tender before returning to coastal trading. Wrecked at the entrance to the Gippsland Lakes, August 1864.
In 1850, assisted the stricken barque Victory, near Point Lonsdale, Port Phillip.
[LG],[LSS],[LPH],[AS1]

Apollo. Schooner. Built at Apollo Bay using timbers salvaged from the wreck of the Eric the Red, lost off Cape Otway, Victoria, 1880. Traded in Victorian and Tasmanian waters.  Lost c.1917. [LO],[LE - wooden ketch, 19 tons.]

Aquila. Schooner, 52 tons. Ashore east of the jetty in Lady Bay, Warrnambool, October 1866. Drifted free after cargo was jettisoned. [LLB],[LO - brigantine]
Also listed:
Aquila. Bringantine, 53 tons. Built Melbourne. Broken up, Melbourne, December 1895. [ASR]

Arawata. Steamer, 1100 tons. (Sister Ringarooma). Built on the Clyde, 1875 for McMeckan and Blackwood. Lb 245 x 30 ft.  One funnel and two masts gave her ‘a handsome appearance’. Engaged on the Melbourne- Dunedin service. At the end of her service, converted into a store ship on Wellington Harbour.  [WL]
Involved in collision with vessel Albert the Good,  Port Phillip, 1878. [LV]
Also listed:
Arawatta. Steamer. Ran down and sank the brig Sea Nymph in Sydney Harbour, 9 June 1882. The Sea Nympth was later raised and disappeared on a journey from Maryborough, Queensland, to Melbourne in 1883. [TS1]
And:
Arawatha. Involved in collision with vessel Chingtu, Victoria waters,  1898. [LV]
Possibly Arawata.

Arawatta. Steamer, 2114 tons. (Sister Aramac). Built Dumbarton, Scotland, 1889, for the A.U.S.N.Co. Lbd 300 x 37 x 15-8 ft. Reached Sydney Januaary 1890. Retired, scrapped, in 1924, having made 436 voyages between Melbourne and Normanton in the Gulf of Carpentaria.  [WL]

Archer. Barque, 237 tons. Having loaded wheat in Lady Bay, Warrnambool, Victoria, parted her chains in a light south-easterly and drifted ashore, much to the astonishment of local residents, 8 November 1853. She was refloated, but shortly after drifted ashore a second time about 100 yards east of the jetty and became a total wreck although her cargo of 1037 bags of wheat was unloaded, and her masts and rigging were also salvaged. [LO],[LLB],[LV]

Argo. Cutter, 17 tons. Lost off Portland, Victoria, 1883. [LV]

Argyle. Barque.  Inward bound from London, ashore near Point Lonsdale, Port Phillip Heads, 24 February 1841; refloated five days later.  [LO],[LPH]

Argyle. Wooden steamship, 163 tons gorss, 129 tons net. Built 1876.  Lbd 114.3 x 20 x 7.3 ft. . Stranded at Warrnambool, Victoria, 5 February, 1877. SS Lubra towed her clear. Broken up in 1915. [LLB],[LO]

Ariel. Brigantine, 138 tons. Built at Nova Scotia, 1848. Lbd 88.1 x 21.7 x 11.2 ft. Captain Gallois.
Destroyed by fire  when off Cape Schanck, Victoria, 26 April 1860. The crew were picked up by the schooner Mary & Rose, and later returned to Melbourne on the steamer Queen.
[LG],[LV - schooner]

Ariel. Two-masted schooner, wood, 140 tons. Built 1838. Register transferred from Glasgow, Scotland, to Sydney in 1840; reg. Hobart Town 1845. Lbd 73 x 18.5 x 11 ft. Captain Blackburn. Lost on the bar at Port Albert, Gippsland coast, 5 August 1846. All saved. She was outward bound to Hobart with about 50 head of cattle and about 100 sheep. When the tide commenced to fall the crew lowered a boat, put what few things they could recover into it, then headed for Snake Island. The livestock were less fortunate; forty cattle and 80 sheep drowned. [LG],[LPA]

Ariel.  Wooden steamer, 7 tons. Built at Melbourne.  Used as a tug on the Gippsland Lakes and occasionally steamed around to the Snowy River.  Disappeared from the Australian Shipping  Register after 1916. [LPA]

Arogus. Lug-rigged fishing vessel, 14/13 tons, 37.6 ft. # 177205. Built Melbourne 1946; reg. Melbourne 5/1949. Reg. closed 24 February 1964 with the comment 'Vessel reported sunk'.
Broxam and Nash suggest possibly lost in Tasmanian waters. [TS2]

Artisan. Barque, 1038 tons. Built 1881. Lbd 189.6 x 37.7 x 22.4 ft. Captain Purdy (Purdey?). Ashore in a gale near Cape Paterson, Victoria, 23 April 1901. [LG],[LV],[IL]
Some wreckage remains visible on the reef where she stranded, and more is scattered in nearby submerged gutters.

Asia. Barque, 308 tons. Built at Montrose, Scotland, 1859, Operated as a whaler out of Hobart for many years. Stranded on the Glennies, off Wilsons Promontory, 1878. Refloated with little damage and continued to operate in Australian waters until hulked in 1911. [LWP],[LG]

Asia. Cutter. Washed on to the beach by huge waves at Port Campbell, Victoria, 25 February 1879. She was later refloated. This stranding renewed local agitation for the installation of permanent government moorings and reawakened interest in the proposed jetty. [LO]

Athletic. Iron steamer,  43 tons. Built at Sydney, 1872. Lbd 80.2 x 13.2 x 5.3 ft. Wrecked in 1881. [LSS]

Auckland. Steamship, 698/533 tons. Built 1869. Lbd 212.8 x 28 x 16.3 ft. A.S.N.Co. Captain Walker. Wrecked in foggy weather on Beware Reef, near Point Hicks, and 11 km from the mouth of the Snowy River,  25 May 1870. There was no immediate danger so the passengers and crew remained on board until SS Macedon was sighted. Although a total wreck, much of her was salvaged.  [LG - 724 tons], [LV],[DG - wrecked 26 May 1871, near Cape Everard, and also, wrecked Ninety Mile  Beach, 25 May 1871] ]

Aurora. Fishing boat. Lost on the Lakes Entrance bar, Gippsland coast, 29 September 1986. [LG]

Australasia. Barque, 485 tons. Captain Lindsay. In a gale at Portland Bay, Victoria, dragged her anchors into the breakers and lay across a ledge of rocks, wrecked, 19 March 1855. The barque Constant was wrecked in the same gale. [LO], [LV],[AS6],[MM - named as Australasian]

Australasian Packet. (Australia Packet). Barque, 194 tons. Built 1838. Known to have operated in eastern Victorian waters in the 1850s. Burnt in the South Pacific, 1878.   [LPA]
On 13 August 1852, stranded at Point Gellibrand, Port Phillip. [WPP]

Australasian. See Australasia.

Australia. HMAS. Battlecruiser, 21300 tons displacemeent. Completed on the Clyde in 1913. Scuttled off Sydney in 1924. Sheltered in Corner Inlet in 1914. [LPW]

Australian Trader. Involved in collision with  Darwin Trader, Victoria waters, 1971. [LV]

Avoca. Steamer, 248 tons. Built 1855. Lbd 124.4 x 24.6 x 14.9 ft. In August 1877, sailed from Sydney to Melbourne carrying bullion. The ship’s carpenter used a duplicate key to steal the gold sovereigns, replacing the bullion with sawdust. In Melbourne, the boxes of ‘bullion’ were transfered to the SS China  which sailed for London. The theft was discovered in Colombo when the boxes were inspected. Martin Weiberg, the carpenter, settled soon after near the Tarwin River at Inverloch. A servant girl, attempting to cut into a bar of tallow, discovered it to be hollow and stuffed with sovereigns. She contacted police. Weiberg was arrested, and offered to show the police where the gold was hidden on the bank of the Tarwin River. He escaped, was recaptured and sentenced to five years imprisonment, not for theft but for receiving. Not all of the bullion was recovered. After Weiberg was released in 1883, he bought a yacht, Neva, and is supposed to have drowned when she capsized off the Glennies, off Wilsons Promontry. There is some suggestion that he did not drown, but escaped to Europe with his treasure horde. If not, perhaps someone will find the treasure of 3500 sovereigns, somehwre between Waratah and cape Liptrap.
[LSS],[LWP],[#DG - 1480 tons, built 1866]

Avon Dhu. Barque. Involved in collision with schooner Diligence, Port Phillip Bay, 30 July 1857. [LV],[WPP]

Avon. Tug, 110 tons. Built 1868. Came to assistance of barque Glaneuse, 1886. [LO]
Also listed:
Avon. Paddle steamer. Stranded at Port Albert, Gippsland coast, 25 June 1874; refloated and returned to service. Possibly same vessel involved in collision with Penguin, Hobsons Bay, Port Phillip, 1876. [LG],[LV],[LPA],[WPP]

Awaroa. Steamer, 352/150 tons. Built 1904. Lbd 139 x 25.4 x 13.3 ft. Owned by William Holyman & Son. Captain Holyman. Sprang a leak when about twelve nautical miles south of Cape Liptrap, Victoria, and abandoned, 25 July 1925. The crew of thirteen attempted to row ashore and were picked up by SS Huntingdon which happened to be passing on a voyage from Sydney to Melbourne and noticed the signals of distress. [LG],[RW],[LV],[DG]
On 10 July 1915, involved in collision with hopper barge Batman, Yarra River, Melbourne. The Awaroa was struck amidships and sank within five minutes. No lives lost. [WPP],[LV - 1913]
On 9 July 1921, involved in collision with steamer Katoomba, Yarra River, Melbourne.
[LV],[WPP]

Balclutha. Steamer, 456/432 tons.  (Sister - Aldinga). Built Greenock, 1860. Lbd 202.1 x 23.3 x 13.3 ft. Bought by A.S.N.Co. In 1863, sold 1881. Ran several trips to San Francisco. Left Melbourne for Sydney on 18 October 1881, and was last seen three days later  by the steamer Cahors steaming through heavy seas off Gabo Island, far eastern Victoria coast. Twenty two seamen disappeared without trace.
On 28 October 1861, involved in collision with steamer Aphrasia, Yarra River, Port Phillip.
[LG],[LV],[WL - lost 1885],[WPP]

Balmoral. Brigantine, 106 ton. Captain Thompson. Ashore in a gale, wrecked, whilst loading potatoes for Adelaide, at Port Fairy, Victoria, 9 July 1868. [LO], [LV],[MM - 1866]

Balti Sten. Steamship. See Saros, lost 1937. [LH]

Bancoora. Steamship, 2880 tons. Built 1880. Lbd 322.8 x 40.3 x 28.9 ft. Captain Britten. Stranded at Bream Creek, Victoria, 13 July 1891, later refloated. It appears that the stranding led to the death of an Indian rhinoceros at the Melbourne Zoo, believed due to the battering he had received while a passenger on the steamer as she lay stranded for almost two months. Towed free by the tugs Albatross and Eagle.; taken to Hobsons Bay, Port Phillip for repairs. [LO], [LV - date, 1892],[#LSS],[DD]

Bandicoot. Schooner, 55 tons. Built 1838. Operated in eastern Victorian waters in th 1840s. Wrecked, 1861.  [LPA]

Barbara. Cutter. Chartered by Captain Irvine to salvage cargo from wreck of schooner Joanna, western Victoria, 1843. [LO],[MM]

Bardowie. Steel ship, 2146 tons. Built 1891. Wrecked 1910. Visited Australia, (Geelong in 1904). [LC]

Barrabool. Steamship, 942 tons. Built at Durham, England, 1874. Lbd 224.8 x 30.5 x 15.2 ft. In 1902, after a memorable and controversial career, she was converted to a cargo vessel. In 1912 she was disamantled and converted to a coal hulk at Sydney.
On 3 August 1876, under Captain J. Pain, collided with and sank the passenger liner Queensland, off Wilsons Promontory. The Barrabool was crippled with her bow stove in but managed to reach Melbourne. The second- mate of the Barrabool was charged with neglect of duty, and the accident cost the Howard Smith Line £100,000.
In 1877, involved in rescue - see SS City of Hobart, 1877.
On 10 March 1879, collided with and sank the steamer Bonnie Dundee near Newcastle heads, NSW, with the loss of five lives.
On 10 August 1884, while steaming up Sydney Harbour, collided with steamer Birksgate.
[NH], [LG],[LV],[LWP],[DG - built Newcastle-on-Tyne]

Barwon. Iron screw steamer, 419/367 tons. # 45255, Built Greenock, Scotland, 1863; reg. Melbourne. Lbd 172.3 x 21.6 x 14 ft. Captain Shoobert. Struck a rock west of Cape Bridgewater, near Portland, Victoria, during a heavy fog, 3 April 1871. Crew and 28 passengers reached safety in her boats. It was decided to beach her in Bridgewater bay, but she sank before reaching shore. [LR]. [LO - date built 1868],[LPA],[LPW],[#MM],[LV - built 1868],[DG - paddle steamer]
On 11 June 1866, involved in collision with schooner Isabella, Hobsons Bay, Port Phillip. [LV],[WPP]
In 1866, under Captain James Lowrie, left Melbourne for Newcastle on 23 June with 20 passengers and crew of 23, collided with the paddle steamer Black Eagle in the Yarra; finally ran ashore near Queenscliff. Tugs Resolute and Sophia failed to budge her, and it was twelve months before she was refloated. During this time the schooner Boomerang, engaged in salvage operations, also went ashore near the Barwon but was later refloated. [LR],[WPH]
Williams and Searle do not mention the collision in the Yarra.

Bat. Brig, 194 tons.  Disappeared during a voyage from Belfast to Sydney, May 1882. She was last seen near Cape Otway, Victoria, and SS Despatch searched for her without success. [LO]
It is noted that no other reference is made to this vessel.

Beagle. HMS, sloop, 235 tons. Built 1820. Well known for its association with Charles Darwin when he sailed in her between 1831 and 1836. From 1837 to 1843, under Captain Wickham and Captain Stokes, she was surveying in Australian waters. [LSS]

Beautrice. Schooner, 81 tons. Lost in Bass Strait, 1921. [LV]

Beeswing. Steamer. Struck a reef off Cliffy Island, east of Wilsons Promontory, 1888. Apparently salvaged and returned to service. [LG]

Bella Vista. Barque. Wrecked In Bass Strait, 1872.  [LPA]

Bella Watson. Ketch, 26 tons. Built at Williamstown, 1887. Lbd 64 x 14.6 x 4.2 ft. Lost near Lakes Entrance, Gippsland coast, December 1901. [LG],[LV]

Bellarine. Paddle steamer. Stranded near Point Henry, Corio Bay, 1888. [LC]

Belle. Brigantine, 198 tons. Captain S. Morrison. On a voyage from Newcastle to Adelaide, mistook the Port Albert light for the one on Wilsons Promontory and struck a sand spit near the entrance, March 1875; refloated with only minor damage.  [LPA],[LG]

Ben Voirlich. Iron ship, 1474 tons. Built 1873. Lbd 255.6 x 37.1 x 21.8 ft. Operated in the wool and passenger trade until 1885; sold to German interests in 1891 and re-rigged as a barque. Sold in 1903, renamed Cognati, and almost lost after a collision with an iceberg off Cape Horn in 1908. [LC]

Bendigo. HMAS. Minesweeping corvette, 650 tons. Built at Cockatoo Dockyard, Sydney, 1941. Tried to locate the enemy submarine that attacked a convoy 19 miles off Cape Howe, 11 April 1943. [LSS]

Benjamin Elkin. Ship, 425 tons. Built 1849 Involved in the loss of the barque (barquentine?) Dundee, 1854. [LO]

Benjamin F.Packard.  Ship, 2130 tons. Built 1883. Captain Allen became master of this vessel after the loss of the ship Eric the Red, Victoria coast, 1880. [LE]

Berengaria. Iron steamer, 1394 tons. Built 1874. Lbd 239.9 x 36.9 x 22.2 ft. Foundered in December 1884 with the loss of twelve lives while carrying wheat from Melboure to Sunderland, England.
In 1883, 3 February, under Captain Bodil, ran ashore west of Barwon Heads, Victoria. Police were stationed on the beach to protect her cargo of wine, spirits, beer and general merchandise dumped into the sea, but more than 3,000 people eventually arrived on the scene and were soon in control.  Large quantities of beer and spirits were stolen and buried in the sandhills while others broke open tins of preserved meat and fish.  Buckets, jugs, bottles and pig tubs were filled with liquor and soon dozens of men, youths and boys were reeling over the beach. The steamer was freed two days later and towed to Melbourne.
[LO],[LV],[LSS],[DD]

Bertha. Schooner, 32 tons. Struck rocks and capsized off Cape Liptrap, 8 September 1870. Seven were trapped below. One man, Luke Cullen, reached the beach eight kilometres from Yanakie Homestead. [LG],[LV]

Bertha. See barque Muscoota.

Bessie. Schooner. In 1870, collided with barque Ecliptic (Eclyptic), west of Cape Schanck, Victoria. [LG] ,[LV]
On 28 October 1870, involved in collision with barque Ecliptic, Yarra River, Melbourne. [WPP],[LV - Eclyptic].
Hit the same vessel twice in the same year?

Biddie. Ketch, 14 ton. Wrecked on the Ninety Mile Beach, Gippsland coast, May 1919. [LG]

Birchgrove. Barque, 381 tons.  Built 1856.  Converted to lightering. Burned and scuttled off Westemport, 1932. [LV],[LC]

Bitter Beer. Schooner, 25 ton. Disappeared in a gale off Cape Otway while on a voyage from Melbourne to Belfast, 7 March 1866.  She was lost in the same gale that destroyed the barque Mandarin, ketch Victory, and the schooners Pomona and Victory.  [LG],[LO]

Black Swan. Sealing schooner, wood, 40 tons. Built at Swanport. Wrecked ‘on Prime Seal Island southeast of Wilsons Promontory’ sometime during 1829. It is presumed that the crew reached safety. [LG]

Black Warrior. Blackball clipper, 1828 tons. Renamed City of Melbourne (qv) when badly damaged by fire, 1867. [LV]

Black Watch. Schooner. Captain Stewart. From Adelaide to Melbourne, abandonded in a leaking condition off Cape Otway, April 1867. The captain and crew were picked up  25 miles west of Cape Otway by SS Coorong. [LO],[MM] Loney also records this loss as 1868.

Black Witch I. Schooner, 55 tons. Built 1914; originally a steel screw steamer Cheopis. Lbd 70 x 14 x 9 ft. Used initially by the Customs at Adelaide and then employed in the passenger trade to Kangaroo Island. Ashore, Apollo Bay, Victoria, 22 January 1954. Several attempts to refloat her failed and she was finally abandoned. [LO]

Black Witch II. Schooner, 60 tons. Built 1924; originally HMAS Cerberus. Lb 70 x 14 ft. In an easterly,  dragged into the surf and lost, Apollo Bay, 1958. [LO]

Blackbird. Steam ship, 655/531 tons. Built at Newcastle on Tyne, 1863. Lbd 196.4 x 29.4 x 16.7 ft. Captain McConach. In rough weather, wrecked a short distance west from the Kate Kearney Channel, Gippsland coast, 2 June 1878. No loss of life. Immediately, heavy seas broke over her but a lifeboat was soon launched and it left with the captain and thirteen hands to seek assistance, leaving the first officer in charge, and the passengers. Meanwhile, word had reached Port Albert and SS Tarra left at dawn with the lifeboat in tow. She lies in shallow water off Clonmel Island near the remains of the steamer Clonmel. The hull is intact to deck level with the engine and boiler easily identifiable. [LG],[LPA],[LV],[DG - wrecked Ninety Mile Beach],[DA]
In September 1873, involved in collision with brig Edith Haviland, Port Phillip. [LV],[WPP]
@ Wreck lies in only 5 m just off a sandy island west from Kate Kearney Channel entrance, east of  Port Albert.
~ Recovered items may be seen at the Port Albert Maritime Museum.

Blackwell. ‘Large ship’. Stranded off Wilsons Promontory. No date indicated. [LV]

Blairmore. Brig, 223 tons. Built 1861; reg Melbourne. Lost 1871. [ASR]

Blue Nabila. Rescue ship operated by the National Safety Council, out of Port Welshpool, Victoria. [LPW]

Bobbie Burns. Vessel of 141 tons. Built Brisbane 1897. Lbd 89.2 x 25 x 6.9. [LSS]

Bodalla.  Steamer,wood, 345 tons. Built at Sydney, 1914.  Wrecked at Narooma, NSW, January 1924.
In 1918, discovered and sunk a mine near Gabo Island. [LSW]

Bogong. Steamer, 30 tons. Built at Williamstown, 1878. Lbd 64 x 13 x 6 ft. Captain Stevenson. Ashore, wrecked,  near the mouth of the Snowy River, Gippsland coast, 23 September 1896. Five of her crew of seven drowned. [LG],[ASR]

Boomerang. Iron screw steamer, 445 tons. Lbd 185 x 22 x 12 ft. Launched Greenock, 28 January 1854. Owned by A.S.N.Co. Sailed from Glasgow 7 May 1854 under Captain J. Monroe. Under Captain O’Reilly, operated on a monthly mail service from Melbourne to Wellington, NZ, then coastal work in Australia till 1881 when sold.  [WL]

Boorara.  Steel steamer,  6570 tons. Built 1913 as the German steamship Pfalz (qv). Lbd 471.2 x 59.2 x 36.9 ft. Renamed AE2 when taken from the Germans, used as a war transport by the Commonweath Government Line. Sold to Greek interests in 1926. [LSW],[LC]

Boscarne. Schooner, 63 tons. Built 1852. Wrecked in the Kent Group, eastern Bass Strait, 1866. [LG]

Boscawen. HMS. Searched for the lost sloop HMS Sappho in Bass Strait without success, 1858. [LO]

Bowra. Steamship. Ashore at Apollo Bay for six days before being towed free by the tug Albatross, 15 December 1888. The inquiry into her stranding was the first investigation carried out by the newly-formed Court of Marine Inquiry. [LO]

Braeside. Motor vessel, 5876 tons. Buiit 1949. Owned by Burns Philp & Co. Rescued the motor vessel Golden Spring which had drifted dangerously toward Skull Rock, off Wilsons Promontory, with both engines out of action, 30 March 1969. [LWP]

Bravo. Brig. Beached in Waratah Bay, Gippsland coast, 1878. Apparently salvaged and returned to service. [LG],[LV]

Brazileira. Wooden barque, 294 tons. Built 1866. Known to have operated in Victorian waters in the 1890s. Wrecked on the China Coast, 1893.  [LPA],[LPW]

Breeze. Type unknown. Lost off Point Hicks, eastern Victoria, 2 March 1989.. [LG]

Bright Planet. Rig and type unknown. Involved in rescue - see schooner Wanderer, 1840. [LV]

Bright Wings. Steamship. Renamed Iron Prince when lost in 1923.  [LG]

Brighton. Barque, 373 tons. Built 1832. Lbd 108.9 x 23.3 x 9.1 ft.  Lost on shore near Cape Schanck when the cape was mistaken for Sandy Point, 14 July 1855. The schooner Caroline was chartered to save as much as possible as the crew stripped the wreck. [LG], [LV - 150 tons]

Brilliant. Ship, 555 tons. Visited Geelong during the 1850s to load bales of wool, and sometimes gold, for London. In the 1860 operated on the South American guano and nitrate run. Lost out of Callao. [LC]

Brisbane. Iron paddle steamer.  Built England for Australian Steam Navigation Company.  [WL]

Bristol. Brigantine. Stranded at Port Albert, Gippsland coast, 1856; apparently salvaged and returned to service.  Ashore near Cape Schanck, Victoria, 1858; apparently salvaged and returned to service. [LG]
Loney also records a brig of this name, built 1851, dismasted and condemned, 1858. [LPA]

Britannia. Wooden brig, 270 tons. Owned by Captain Hugh MacLean. Captain Morgan. Left Melbourne on 9 November 1839 for Sydney but probably foundered about a week later off the Gippsland coast. After she had been missing for several weeks the Revenue Cutter Prince George was despatched by Sydney authorities, following a report that Aborigines had seen a boat lying on the Ninety Mile Beach, and footprints had been observed in the sand. The cutter discovered a boat with a mast washed up on the beach near Cape Howe, but whether the occupants had reached the shore before it was swamped was not known.
[LG],[LPA],[AS1],[WPP],[LV],[LAH]

Britomart. Wooden barque, 243 ton. Built 1808. Sailing from Melbourne on 15 December 1839, for Hobart, disappeared and probably foundered off the Gippsland coast. The Government cutter Vansittart was sent in search of her, but no trace was ever found. There is a suggestion, through rumour,  that wreckers had lured her ashore on Flinders Island, however it appears that she foundered in Bass Strait. One of the Britomart’s female passengers was supposed to have fallen into the hands of Aborigines who lived in the Port Albert district, and when a half caste child was sighted, moves were initiated to search for her. Interest reached such strength that a public meeting was held at the Royal Hotel, Collins Street on 2 September 1846, during which it was stated that years earlier, five vessels, the Australia, Britannia, Britomart, Sarah and Yarra Yarra, all trading between Melbourne, Sydney and ports in Van Diemen's Land had disappeared without trace, and most carried female passengers. Angus McMillan, well known explorer and settler near Port Albert, claimed that in October 1840 he discovered an abandoned Aboriginal encampment on the Glengarry River where he found a dead white child about eight months old, a pair of prunella shoes, a child’s dress, some sandy coloured human hair and parts of a brass sextant and quadrant. Later, in 1846, two troopers reported seeing a white woman with red hair with a group of Aborigines, but said she was hustled off as they approached. For ten years, reports filtered in of sightings of a white women with aborigines, but nothing conclusive was determined. On 5 November 1847, a report reached Melbourne that the dead bodies of a white woman and child had been found at Jemmey’s Point on the Gippsland Lakes; this was the last heard of the supposed white woman of Gippsland.
[LG],[LPA],[#ASW1],[LAH]
Bateson adds that this Britomart has often been confused with the brig HMS Britomart.

Brolga. Steamship, 240 tons. Built Sydney, 1914. Requisition by RAN in 1917.In 1918, involved in minesweeping operations, Bass Strait. Captain Renton. Whilst steaming from Melbourne to Sydney, ashore in thick weather, wrecked, Cape Everard, 1926. All saved. [LV],[LSW]

Brothers. Brig. Built 1839. Sold overseas, 1845.  [LPA]

Bruthen. Schooner, 45 tons. Built at Footscray, Melbourne, 1889. Lbd 72 x 20.6 x 5.5 ft. Collided with SS Cloncurry off Wilsons Promontory, 1898, taking out her bulwarks and splitting the mainmast. She made Waterloo Bay, and after refpairs continued her voyage. She was lost on King island in 1901. [LG],[LWP],[LSS - ketch]

Buaja. Fishing boat. Lost at Lakes Entrance, Gippsland coast, February 1980. [LG]

Buckingham. See barque Muscoota.

Buonaparte. Wooden schooner, 120 tons. Foundered off NSW coast, 1864. [LPW]

Burnett. Ketch, 45 tons. Wrecked on the Port Albert bar, Gippsland coast, September 1900. [LG]

Burra Burra. Schooner, 112 ton. Captain Hutchinson. Struck Sisters Rocks in the Kent Group, eastern bass Strait, June 1859. All saved. [LV]

Burwah. Steamer, steel, 2273 tons gross. Built at Sunderland, England, 1908. Lbd 275.5 x 42.7 x 20.8 ft. [LH]
In 1937, involved in rescue - see SS Saros.[LG]

C-Shell. A vessel lost near the Fitzroy River, western Victoria, 1977. [LO]

Cacique. Barque. Built 1831. Converted to lighter.  [LPA]

Cahors. Steamer. The last to see the steamer Balclutha, off Gabo Island, Victoria, 1885.  [WL]

Caldare. Collier. Renamed Vicky when foundered, 1956. [LG]

Cambridge. British steamer, steel, 10846 tons. Built 1916 as the German ship Vogtland. Lbd 524.5 x 65.7 x 37.3 ft. Formely the German ship Vogtland, she was built during World War 1 and taken by Great Britain as a war prize.  Owned by the Federal Steam Navigation Company in 1940. Captain Angell. Bound from Melbourne to Sydney, sank after hitting a mine off Wilsons Promontory, two and a half nautical miles offshore, 7 November 1940. Of the ship’s company of fifty-eight, only one man was lost. HMAS Orara took the survivors from the boats and landed them at Welshpool. The mine had been laid by the German vessel Passat (qv) in October. Two days after the loss of the Cambridge, the Orara and the Durraween commenced minesweeping operations off Wilsons Promontory, and destroyed forty-three mines from Bass Strait.
[LG],LSS],[LSW],[LPA],[LPW],[LV],[LAH],[DA]
@ Although her location is known, and has been dived, the Cambridge lies in 67metres, too deep for recreational scuba diving.

Canberra.  Type not recorded. Involved in rescue - see SS Saros, 1937. [LG]

Cape Pigeon. Cutter, 26 tons. Lost on King island, 1874. [LV]

Cape Pillar. Steamship, steel, 2104 tons. Built at State Dockyards, Newcastle, 1964. Lbd 256.3 x 50.6 x 17.3 ft. Lighthouse tender, Victorian and Tasmanian waters. Commenced service in 1964 when she took over from SS Cape York. [LWP]

Cape York. Steel steamer, 1406 tons. Built Cockatoo Dockyard, Sydney, 1925. Lbd 225 x 35 x 20.1 ft. Lighthouse tender. Served the Wilsons Promontory light. Replaced by the Cape Pillar in 1964. Sold to Taiwan Steel and Mining Compnay in 1965. [LWP]

Captain Cook. Schooner, 74 tons. Built 1847. Lbd 62.2 x 17.4 x 10 ft.Captain Roberts. Wrecked in a gale between Lawrence Rocks and Cape Nelson, Victoria, 14 October 1850. All passengers and crew saved. [LO],[#MM]

Carl Vinnen. Five-masted auxiliary ship, steel, 1827 tons. A most beautiful ship; survived World War 2 and was broken up in the 1950s. Visited Corio Bay. [LC]

Carlisle. Barque, 1121 tons. Built 1864. Lbd 202.4 x 33.8 x 21.8 ft. Captain Arendup. Believe to have struck Crocodile Rock in eastern Bass Strait whilst travelling between Melbourne and Newcastle, 6 August 1890. Crew of twenty-one got way in two boats however one boat disappeared without trace leaving the captain, mate and ten crew as survivors. [LV]

Carmen. French sealer. Sold to a Melbourne company and hulked. [LC]

Caroline. Schooner. Stranded at Port Fairy, Victoria,1871. [LO]

Caroline. Schooner. Built 1854. Wrecked In New Zealand waters, 1867.  [LPA]
Also listed:
Caroline. Schooner. Involved in salvage of the barque Brighton, 1855. [LG]

Cascade. Schooner, 38 tons. Built at Hobart Town, 1841. Lbd 66.2 x 14.7 x 5.3 ft. Captain Patten. Bound from Cape Liptrap to the Gippsland Lakes, foundered near Welshpool, Gippsland coast, 16 January 1876. Two of the crew reached shore but the captain drowned. [LG],[LPW - wrecked on the Ninety Mile Beach in 1876]

Casino. Iron screw steamer, 425/274 tons, 3 masts, schooner rig. Built at Dundee, 1882. Lbd 160.4 x 24.1 x 10.2 ft. Captain John Middleton. Capsized and sank in heavy seas about a quarter of a mile off Apollo Bay (township, Victoria), 10 July 1932. In her early days.ihe was rigged as a topsail schooner and her big spread of canvas helped to keep down fuel consumption. Carrying a crew of seventeen and two passengers, she attempted to berth at the long Apollo Bay pier in a southerly gale; the bottom struck the sand several times, opening up her bow. Within two minutes of the order to launch lifeboats, the vessel had turned on her side and foundered. The vessel heeled over and sank, throwing all aboard into the sea.  All but five attempted to swim ashore; eight of these made the beach. Others clung to the upturned hull of the vessel, only to be washd off and drowned. In all, ten drowned. A considerable amount of the cargo washed ashore and then ‘disappeared’, despite the vigilance of police and officials.
[LO],[LV],[LSS],[MR],[MGS],[LC],]DG],[NWR],[NMC],[NSC],[LAH],[DD],[IL]
In 1894, stranded at Moyne River, Victoria.
In 1898, struck SS Flinders in calm seas when attempting to pass off Apollo Bay, Victoria, causing light structural damage.
On 27 August 1915, collided with the Batman off Point Gellibrand, Port Phillip, but both vessels suffered only minor damage. [WPP]
In 1924 she ran ashore on a reef off Point Hawdon near the Grey River. The tug Eagle was sent to her assistance but she could not be freed until most of her cargo had been unloaded or dumped into the sea.  Leaking badly she returned to Melbourne under her own steam, leaving workmen from a large road camp to enjoy the beer and spirits which made up part of her cargo.
In 1924, stranded near Kennett River, Victoria.
In February 1929, during a power blackout at Warrnambool, she attempted to enter Lady Bay when points of identification were difficult to locate and was almost safely in the harbour when she struck a submerged object, rapidly filled with water and developing a dangerous list.  Soundings showed twelve feet of water in the holds, and she was beached near Bay View until temporary views enabled her to return to Melbourne, still listing badly. [LO],[LLB]
@ Diver J. ‘’Johnno’ Johnstone inspected the ship on 13 July 1932 and reported that it was lying on its port side in twenty-two feet of water with its stem to the beach about 400 yards out. Geoff Nayler puts it at 250 metres offshore, one kilometre west of Wild Dog Creek.Wreck lies on her port side on the edge of a sandbank in eight metres.  The boiler, keel, a winch and other heavy fittings remain at the wreck site. It is still visited by recreational divers in calm weather.
~  Propellor at Port Fairy; wheel and binnacle at Apollo Bay Hotel.

Catadale. Collided with Kakariki, 19 January 1937. Five lives lost.  [LV]

Catalina. Barque. Renamed Victoria when wrecked, 1863. [LG]

Catherine. Brigantine, 414 tons. Built 1862; reg Melbourne. Lost 1871. [ASR]

Cecil Rhodes.  Steamer, iron, 160 tons Auxiliary minesweeper/tug.  Requisitioned by the R.A.N.in 1917. In late 1917, involved in minesweeping operations in Bass Strait. [LSW]

Cecilia. Schooner, timber carrier, 55/36 tons. Built 1847. Involved in the timber trade from Wilsons Promontory in the 1850s. Lost in New Zealand waters 1864.  [LPA],[LWP]
On 27 November 1850, dismasted in the Yarra, Victoria,. [WPP]

Centurion. Ketch, 13 tons. Lbd 39 x 11.9 x 4.8 ft. Built at Geelong, 1907. Caught fire off Phillip Island while returning to Melbourne with a cargo of lime and was beached, wrecked, July 1913. Her remains were visible at low tide on the Phillip Island mud flats, almost opposite San Remo until the mid 1980s. [LG],[LH - schooner, built at Fremantle, 1903.]
Also listed:
Centurion. Ketch, 91 tons. Built 1907. Lbd 77 x 25.1 x 9.5 ft. [LSS]

Cerberus. See also Protector.

Cerberus. Type not recorded. Stranded in Western Port, Victoria, 1940. Apparently salvaged and returned to service. [LG]

Challenge. Paddle steamer, tug. Built in 1856. Transferred to Newcastle in 1874; broken up in 1917. Attended the wreck of the ship Sussex, 1871. [LO]

Champion. Auxiliary minesweeper/tug, 360 tons. Built at London, 1894. Requisitioned by RAN  in 1918.  In 1901 towed the four-masted schooner Louis from Sydney to Melbourne. [LWP}
In 1902 was succesful in boarding the derelict full-rigged ship Port Patrick at Wilsons Promontory. [NH]
In 1917, July, attended stricken steamer Cumberland. [LSW]

Champion. Steamer, 229 tons. Built Shileds, England, 1854. Lbd 129.4 x 21.2 x 11.2 ft.  Captain Helpman. In fine, calm conditions, collided with  SS Lady Bird on the Melbourne side of Cape Otway, 24 August 1857. The stem of the Lady Bird cut seventeen feet into the Champion  near the main mast, cutting a gaping hole in the hull over the saloon, Most of her passengers on the Champion were in bed and the loss of life was heavy, thirty-two being drowned. After searching for an hour the Lady Bird returned to Geelong; only the forecastle bulkhead saved her from sinking as her bow plates were badly damaged along with her bowsprit and cutwater. Survivors told many tragic stories, however on a lighter notes, the Second Mate of the Lady Bird rescued the stewardess of the Champion and they were later married. A racehorse aboard Champion broke loose, swam seven miles to the shore, and raced again in the Western District. The Steam Navigation Board held an inquiry a fortnight later and found that the Masters of both vessels were guilty of want of action and non enforcement of discipline, and that the chief officers of both vessels were guilty of neglect of duty and recklessness, but recorded an open finding. [LO],[LSS],[#MM],[LV],[LAH]
On 23 December 1854, when passing through the Backstairs Passage (Kangaroo Island), collided with SS Melbourne and damaged her so badly that the Champion was forced to tow her back to Adelaide.

Charles Edward.  Iron paddle steamer, 141 tons. Buiilt at Dumbarton, 1864.  Sold to New Zealand interests and wrecked there in 1908. [LPA]
In 1866, saw wreckage of the barque Mandarin. [LG]

Charlotte. Schooner, 39 tons. Built at Melbourne, 1854. Lbd 54 x 15.1 x 6.1 ft. Foundered off Cape Schanck, Victoria, 5 March 1880. [LG]

Cheviot. Ship, wood, 251 tons. Built at Sunderland, 1827; reg. at Hobart Town. Lbd 91.3 x 25.1 x 5.3 ft. Foundered off Wilsons Promontory, 24 February 1854. [LG]

Children. Wooden, three-masted barque, 255 tons burden. Built at Liverpool, 1825. Captain H. Browne. lbd 92 x 25 x 16.7 ft. In poor weather, struck a reef close to a small inlet in the sheer cliffs, later to be known as Childers Cove., 15 January 1839. Left Launceston for Adelaide on 11 January  with 24 passengers including 9 children, 14 crew, a mixed cargo including livestock. As the ship disintegrated those still alive were forced to the forecastle, only to be washed off one by one.  Within two hours the wreck had disappeared. Those drowned included the Captain, six men, and a lady passenger and four of her children;  four other children also drowned. The barque Socrates and schooner Sally Ann returned the survivors to Launceston.  In 1951, shifting sands exposed skeletons believed t be from the wreck.
[LO],[AS1],[#MM],[LV],[LAH],[PR],[RP],[DA]
@ In 1963 divers recovered a cannon four feet six inches in length believed to have come from the wreck. In 1974 an anchor was raised. Bricks and ballast stones mark the exposed site in six metres.
~ Items, including an anchor and cannon, are on display at Flagstaff Maritime Village, Warrnambool.

Chittoor. Barque, 217 tons. Built 1875; reg. Sydney. Attended the wreck of the W.B.Godfrey 1891. [LO]

Christina. Brig .Built 1839. Stranded at Apollo Bay, Victoria, 1856. Sold Overseas 1856.  [LO], [LPA]

Chronos. Steel steamship, 4364 tons. Built Port Glasgow, 1915. Owned by Australian Steamships Pty Ltd. Sold to Hong Kong interests in 1929. Was towing the stricken ketch Eliza Davis when the latter foundered, 1924. [LG]

Chusan. Iron screw steamer, barque rigged, 699 tons. Owned by P. & O. Line. Under Captain Henry Dow, arrived Sydney 3 August 1852 and operated on the UK - Melbourne and Sydney run for only two return trips. Before being replaced by the Madras.   [WL]

Circassian. Schooner, 110 tons. Lbd 82.6 x 19.8 x 10.6 ft.Captain Pallant. Ashore, wrecked in a gale ten nautical miles west of Ram Head, Gippsland coast,  6 October 1864. The crew clung to the wreck for several hours, before one man drowned after jumping overboard and attempting to reach the shore with a line. During the night several others died from exhaustion and exposure. [LG]

Citizen. Paddle steamer, 173/146 tons. Built 1852. Lbd 156.9 x 16.3 x 8.3 ft. Captain Rooke. Left Melbourne for Dunedin, New Zealand on 11 October 1862, passed through the heads, and then disappeared. [LV],[DG - built 1843]

City of Hobart. Steamer, iron, 645/439 tons. Built Glasgow, 1853 for Tasmanian Steam Navigation Co.  Initially barque-rigged. Lbd 184.2 x 24.7 x 18.6 ft. Ran between Victoria and Tasmania. Operated a mail service between Melbourne and New Zealand. Captain Lowrie.   Whilst on a voyage from Melbourne to Sydney, her screw shaft broke and water penetrated her holds; abandoned, sank, about sixty nautical miles north east of Wilsons Promontory; July 1877. Crew picked up at daylight by SS Barrabool.
[LG], [LV - Captain Bowrie],[LPA],[LPW],[LAH],[DG]
In 1857, involved in salvage - see schooner Beacon, lost Swan Island, Tasmania, 1857. [TS1]
In 1860, involved in rescue - see brig Carrymore, lost Tasmania, 1860. [TS1]

City of Florence. Steamer collided with schooner Phillipine off Point Hicks, Victoria, 1916. [LG]

City of Sydney. Iron screw steamer.  Built England for Australian Steam Navigation Company.  [WL]

City of Agra. Barque, 1074 tons. Built 1860. Visited Australia, 1876. Wrecked on Cape Sable, 1907. [LC]

City of Adelaide. Barque. Involved in rescue - see brigantine Victory, 1892. [LG]

City of Rayville. Steamship, steel, 5883 tons. Built at Tampa, Florida, USA, 1920.  Owned by United States Shipping Line. Converted to diesel 1927. Lbd 401.9 x 54.2 x 31.2 ft. Captain Cronin. Foundered off Cape Otway after hitting a mine  laid by German raiders, the first American vessel sunk in World War 2, 8 November 1940. Thirty-seven crew members saved. The vessel sank in 35 minutes, bow first, the only casualty being the third engineer who returned to the vessel to recover personal effects. A bright flash, followed by the rumble of an explosion, alerted the Cape Otway lighthouse, who contacted Apollo Bay seeking help from the fishing fleet; conditions were not good but  three boats containing nine men left immediately to search for survivors. The townsfolk of Apollo Bay gave every assisted to the rescued men and later they were guests of the Governor of Victoria, Sir Winston Dugan at Government House. Minesweeping operations, commenced on 9 November; forty-three mines were recovered from Bass Strait. The crew of the City of Rayville returned to the USA and resumed service on American vessels, some being captured and killed by the Japanese. The City of Rayville was the second victim within 24 hours of an extensive minefield laid by German raiders. Today, the ship lies in about 200 feet of water, probably still intact, its exact location not publicly known. Divers have been searching for the ship for years; a reputed $34,000, pay for the crew in Melbourne, is locked in the strongroom.
@ Her location is known to a few, and salvage may have commenced.
[LO],[#LSW],[LH],[LV],[LAH]

City of Melbourne. Screw steamer, 838 tons. Built for A.S.N.Co. in 1862; then Australasian United Steam Navigation Company Engaged in coastal work and on the San Francisco run.
In 1876, under Captain Paddle, encountered heavy weather when out of Sydney for Melbourne, with passengers and race-horses for the Melbourne Cup, and had to return to Sydney with a damaged ship and seven dead horses out of nine.   [WL]

Clara. Schooner, 28 tons. Built 1870; reg. Melbourne. Stranded at Warrnambool, Victoria, 1847. Attended the wreck of the W.B. Godfrey 1891. [LO]

Cloncurry. Steamship, 2580/1639 tons. Built Sunderland, England, 1884. Traded in Australian and Far East waters for some twenty years. Sold to Japanese intests in 1904, renamed Yoneyama Maru. Wrecked in Japanese waters, 1911. [LWP]
In 1898, collided with schooner Bruthen (qv) off Wilsons Promontory. [LG],[LWP]
On 22 August 1903, stranded but later refloated, Corner Inlet, Gippsland coast. [LV],[LPA]

Clonmel. Paddle steamer, wood, 598 tons. Built Birkenhead, England, 1836; reg. Sydney 89/1840. Lbd 154.8 x 21.5 x 16.6 feet. Schooner-rigged. Captain John Sidney Tollervy (Tollervey). Sailed from UK to Australia, arriving Sydney 5 October 1840. Soon after her arrival in Sydney, engaged in a race with the small, Hunter River built, paddle steamer Victoria. ‘Heavy bets had been made and the Victoria sailed home an east winner’. Left Sydney on 31 December 1840, and after rounding Cape Howe in fine conditions set a course for Wilsons Promontory, however ran ashore near the entrance to Corner Inlet, 2 January 1841. Some cargo was jettisoned but when she refused to move anchors were dropped allowing passengers and crew to land safely on the beach where tents were improvised from sails and stores brought ashore and placed under guard. Two passengers and five crewmen set out later in a whale boat for Port Phillip to seek assistance, leaving the ship’s passengers and crew to explore the nearby coastline. The Sisters and Will Watch left for the wreck on 9 January with the Harbour Master and a detachment of the 28th Regiment.  The favourable reports of those left to explore the region resulted in the 300 ton vessel Singapore being chartered some months later to Corner Inlet, after which Port Albert was founded, and the regions, to be known as Gippsland (after the Governor in office at the time) to be developed.
@ Part of the Clonmel’s hull and some of her machinery, including a boiler, water tank, and cylinder from the steam engine lie on a sandy bottom in about five metres. [LAH]
~ Divers first recovered relics from the paddle-wheeler in 1968. A few items are displayed at the Port Albert Maritime Museum. Boiler may be seen at low tide.
[LG],[LH],[#LPA],[LPW],[AS1],[LV],[WL - 898 tons],[# PH - 524 tons],[DG]

Clyde. Schooner, 48 tons. Built 1874. Known to have operated in eastern Victorian waters in the 1890s. Broken Up 1923.  [LPA]

Clyde. Steamship, wood, 27 tons. Built at Williamstown, 1883. Lbd 59.9 x 13.3 x 5.1 ft. Caught fire and sank off Entrance Point, Gippsland coast, while all hands were ashore fishing, 25 July 1894. Although it was generally thought that thee was indeed something fishy about the whole episode, a Court of Inquiry exonerated the master and crew. [LG],[LPA],[LPW],[LWP]

Clyde. Wooden steamer, 15 tons. Built  Melbourne, 1883. Burnt Corner Inlet, Victoria, July 1894. [ASR],[LPA - 27 tons, built Williamstown]
In October 1869, under Master James Henderson, collided with and sank a whale boat in Hobsons Bay. [WPP]

Coila. Two masted schooner, 108 tons. Built 1845; reg. Melbourne. Lbd 77.8 18.2 x 10.9 ft. Captain Eddington. Was crossing the bar into Port Albert when forced on to the east spit near the remains of the Clonmel, 15 February 1857. Eventually abandoned. The new owners purchased the vessel at auction and succeeded in refloating her, believing she could be repaired and returned to service, however, she disappeared from the records shortly after so is presumed to have been broken up. [LG],[LPA],[LV]

Colchester. Brig, 154 tons. Built at Nova Scotia, 1849. Lbd 78.2 x 20 x 12.1 ft. Captain Williamson. Deliberately run in to shore on the Ninety Mile Beach about eight kilometres east of Shoal Inlet where she became a total wreck, 7 July 1863. The ship had been badly battered in a gale. All hands reached safety. [LG],[LV - 180 tons]
In 1863, aground in Port Phillip. [LR]

Colina. Schooner, 54 tons.Timber carrier, operating out of Sealer’s Cove, Wilsons Promontory, 1840s, 1850s. Lost at the mouth of the Wagonga River, NSW, 1865. [LWP]
In June 1853, capsized in a squall at Geelong, drowning a young lad of eleven (or perhaps fourteen). [WPP],[LC]
In 1860, almost wrecked at Bellambi, NSW.

Collingwood. Iron ship, 1011 tons. In Geelong 1873 and 1876 to load wool.  Sold to Norwegian interests. Sunk by a German submarine, 1917. [LC]

Columbine. Brig, 180 tons. Built at Aberdeen, 1839. Captain McLennan. Inward bound from Liverpool to Geelong with a general cargo, wrecked off Ocean Grove, Victoria, 1 April 1854. Four lives lost. The pilot was aboad but the captain, uneasy about his course, attempted to interfere, with negative results. Pilot Davidson was one of those drowned when the longboat capsized, together with the captain’s wife and two passengers. The pilot schoonr Boomrang rendered assistance. [LO],[LV],[LAH],[LPH]

Comet. Paddle steamer, 80 tons, 50 tons burden. # 36956. Built Williams River, NSW, 1843; reg. Melbourne 1854. Lbd 92 x 15.5 x 6.7 ft. Sold to New Zealand interests; from Melbourne to New Zealand, disappeared without trace, 1862. [LV],[WPP]
On 20 October 1855, under Captain Carder, collided with ironwork of the sunken West Wind, Hobsons Bay, Port Phillip. Damage was extensive, so vessel was run on to the beach to prevent her form sinking. Repairs and back in service after several months.  [WPP]
In 1859, a tug of this name attended the Swedish barque Leopold, destroyd by fire at Williamstown, Port Phillip. [LV]

Commissioner. Steam ship, ex-tug, wooden, 79 tons. Built Coode Island, Victoria, 1914. Lbd 84 x 16 x 7.9 ft. Owned by the Melbourne Harbour Trust. Foundered off Wilsons Promontory, 24 December 1966. Crew of seven was rescued by two trawlers. [LG],[LV],[LWP]

Commissioner. Steamship, 32 tons. Built for the Melbourne Harbour Trust in 1878, she was sold by auction to Sydney interests and was being towed to the new owners by the collier Alabama when gale force winds and high seas led to her loss off Point Hicks, eastern Victoria, December 1914. [LG],[LV]

Constance. Ship, 1100 tons. Captain Hewitt. Collided with the ship Tubal Cain which sank off Cape Otway, 1862.  [LO]

Constant. Barque, 525 tons. In a gale at Portland Bay, Victoria, parted her anchors and drove on to the beach where she remained upright with good prospects of being refloated, 19 March 1855. However, a survey a few days later recommended she be broken up. The barque Australasia was wrecked in the same  gale. [LO], [LV - rig, ship],[MM]

Content. brig 125 tons.  Out of Melbourne, disappeared without trace, 1877. [LV]

Coquette. Ketch,  41 tons. Built at Ulverstone, Tasmania, 1883; reg. Melbourne. Lbd 66.7 x 15.6 x 6.5 ft. Foundered 7 km from Walkerville in Waratah Bay, Gippsland coast, December 1892. [LG],[ASR],[LPA],[LPW],[LV]

Coquette. Schooner, 72 tons. Built 1840. Wrecked 1872.  [LPA],[LPW]

Coral. Ketch. Involved on rescue - see Zephyr, 1882. [LV]

Coramba. Steel twin-scew steamship, 531/221 tons. Built at Ayre, Scotland, 1911 for N.C.S.N.Co. Lbd 160.3 x 30 x 10 ft.  Sold 1932 to Belfast & Koroit S.N. Co. Captain Dowling. Disappeared without trace in a gale having left Warrnambool for Melbourne on 29 November 1934 with a crew of sixteen. On 1 December, two bodies were washed ashore at Newhaven, Gippsland coast, and several days later, two more bodies and a quantity of wreckage were recovered in the same area. The recovery of a lifeboat and bell confirmed the vessel’s fate. The wreck was eventually located about a mile and a half west of Seal Rocks. [LG], [LO],[MR],[LV],[LAH],[ASR],[#DW]
In 1934, stranded at Warrnambool, Victoria, 1934.

Corilla. Barque. Named Seagull when she sank after a collision, 1878. [LG]

Cornwall. HMS. Kent Class cruiser, 9800 tons. Built 1928.  Reconstructed 1936.  Main armament eight 8" guns. Sunk by Japanese in 1942. [LO],[LSW]
In 1941, 8 May, sank the German raider Pinguin, in the Indian Ocean.

Corsair.  Wooden paddle steamer, 185 tons. Built Glasgow in 1827.  Sold to Hong Kong interests in 1845. [LPA]

Cotopaxi. Steamship, 2583 tons. Built at Glasgow, 1873. Lbd 402.2 x 42.8 x 34.3 ft. Brought out the expert diver Armit from England to work on the SS Sorata stranded near Cape Jervis, 3 September 1880. [LSS]

County Antrim. Steel barque, 1199 tons. Built Londonderry 1890. Lbd 226 x 26.4 x 21.9 ft. Captain Hyland. Ashore on the Ninety Mile Beach 8 km west of Lakes Entrance, Gippsland coast, 12 January 1897. Ran into problems off the Kent Group and began taking water, forcing the master to run her ashore. Little was salvaged and the wreck was eventually sanded over. Crew of eighteen saved. [LG],[AS6],[LV],[LAH]

Courier. Brig. Stranded at Point Gellibrand, Port Phillip, 12 May 1853. [WPP]

Cremona. Schooner, 127 tons. Built 1842. Lbd  75 x 19 x 11.3 ft. From Launceston to Melbourne, wrecked near Tarwin, Gippsland coast, 1 August 1853. All hands saved. [LG],[LV]

Cromarty. A vessel lost near Warrnambool, Victoria, 1977. [LO]

Curlip. Paddle steamer, 9 tons. Built 1890. Lbd 43 x 10 x 3 feet. Torn from her moorings at Marlo, Gippsland coast, during a flood, washed out to sea, then stranded on the beach, a total wreck, 1918. [LG - indicates lost 1917]]

Dagmar. Ketch. Lost off Gippsland coast, 1885. [LV]

Dallum Tower. Arrived in Melbourne under jury rig after being partially dismasted and badly damaged in a gale during a voyage to Melbourne, 1874. Her bulwarks were gone, poop bulkhead smashed, cabin gutted and her masts broken off about twelve feet above deck. Laid up in Willimastown waiting for new equipment. Also damaged in the same gale were the vessels Loch Ard, John Kerr, and Cambridgeshire.  [LV]
Loney records a letter in LC, mentioning the ‘lovely ship’ Dalin Tower, wrecked on her first voyage out form England, ‘a few miles down the coast’ from Geelong. No date.

Dandenong. Barge, 121 tons. Lost off McHaffie's Reef, Phillip Island, February 1913.  [LG]
Also listed:
Dandenong. Barge, 121 tons. Wrecked near Flinders, Victoria, 1920. [LV]

Dandenong. Steamship, iron, 743 tons. Built 1865 as the Stella; renamed Dandenong 1867. Lbd 210 x 28.2 x 15.7 ft. Foundered off Jervis Bay, NSW, 1876. [LSS],[LWP]
In 1868, under command of Captain Pain, stranded but later refloated, Glennie Group, off Wilsons Promontory. [LV],[LG],[LWP]
In 1870, damaged her figurehead after colliding with SS Edina during a gale, Lady Bay, Warrnambool. [LV], [LO],[LLB]
In June 1871, involved in collision with paddle steamer Hercules, Port Phillip.  [LV],[WPP]
In 1872, involved in collision with  fishing boat,  Hobsons Bay, Port Phillip. [LV]
In 1873, under Captain Lapthorne, involved in collision with fishing boat Whitebait, Victorian waters. [LV],[WPP]

Daniel Sharp. Ship. Collided with the schooner Colina  west of Cape Otway after the Daniel Sharp had approached to confirm her position, 1853.  [LO], [LV]

Daphne. Brig, wood, 151 tons. Wrecked in the Kent Group, eastern Bass Strait, 1819. [LG]

Dargo. Steamer. Collided with SS Gippsland in the Gippsland Lakes, 1912. [LG]

Dart. Auxiliary brigantine, wood, 353 tons. Lbd 139.3 x 24.9 x 15 ft. Formerly named Cruiser, when attached to the Royal Navy as a tender for the training ship John Murray; then owned by the Victorian Government Defence Department for a time on survey work before being sold to a private owner in 1919. She left Sydney in 1920 flying a French flag. [LC]

Dart. Brigantine, 79 tons. Captain Connor. Stranded at Warrnambool, Victoria, 1868. Refloated a day later. [LO],[LLB]

Darwin Trader. Involved in collision with  Australian Trader, Victoria waters, 1971. [LV]

Dawn. Ketch. Built 1869. Broken Up 1893.  [LPA]

Dawn. Steam ship, 522 tons.  Built 1876. Captain Jones.  Operated around the Victroian west coast from 1877 until 1898, finally being condemned and sunk at Suva, Fiji, in 1928.
In 1879, involved in collision with vessel Macedon, Yarra River, Melbourne. [LV]
In 1880, involved in rescue - see Eric the Red, 1880. [#LE],[#MM]
In 1882, struck by the brigantine Yarra in Lady Bay, Victoria, 1882 but only superficially damaged; the brig drifted ashore and was wrecked.
In 1883, involved in the salvage of the barque George Roper off Port Phillip Heads.  [LO]

De Bay. Steamship. Picked up the crew from the wrecked barque Lune on Cliffy Island, 1885. [LG]

Deccan. Captain barrett. Steel ship, 1985 tons. Built 1897. Vissited Australia, (Geelong in 1904). Wrecked near Cape Horn, 1908. [LC]

Defiance. Fishing vessel. Master D. Huggins. Out of Apollo Bay, broke her moorings off New Year Island, King Island, and drifted off with her three crew ashore, August 1975. Crew picked up by the fishing vessel Gurya and taken to Currie. The Defiance went aground on a reef on the western side of Christmas Island, with sufficient damage to her bottom to render her unsalvageable. [TS2]

Defiance. Schooner, 31 tons. Lost in Bass Strait, 1833. [LV]

Derry Castle. Barque, 1367 tons. Lewft Geelong for falmouth with a cargo of wheat in March 1887. After 192 days she was posted missing. On 21 September 1887, eight survivors were landed at Melbourne. She had driven ashore on Enderby Island, south of New Zealand. The survivors lived on seals, rabbits and wheat washed ashore from the wreck, until rescued three months later. [LC]

Derwent.  Iron steamer, 478 tons. Built 1864.  Lbd 196 x 25.3 x 13.3 ft. Hulked in Queensland 1915.  Scuttled 1925. [LG],[LPA],[LWP]
In 1892, collided with SS Despatch (qv)off Wilsons Promontory.
On 19 June 1899, stranded at Basket reef, Port Phillip. [WPP]

Despatch. Coastal trader, government steamer, iron, 237 tons. Built 1869. Lbd 151 x 20.1 x 10.3 ft. Entered the Port Phillip Bay trade in 1869 and then served as a Government steamer and lighthouse tender until 1893 when she commenced to operate off  the Gippsland coast on the Melbourne to Lakes Entrance run. Struck the Lakes Entrance pier, Gippsland coast, floating clear and sinking outside the entrance after the crew had abandoned her, 29 September 1911. No loss of life.
[LG],[LV],[LPA],[LPW],[LWP],[DG],[LC]
In July 1873, under Captain Thomas Webb, collided with the lighter Victoria, mouth of the Yarra River, Port Phillip. The lighter was to blame; badly damaged but salvaged. [LV],[WPP]
In 1881, involved in collision with  Drumlaurig, Hobsons Bay, Port Phillip. [LV]
In 1882, searched for the lost brig Bat. [LO]
In 1882, involved in rescue - see Romeo, 1882.
In 1885, struck the pier at Lakes Entrance; salvaged and returned to service.
In 1886, sank the burned hulk of the ship Paul Jones.[LO]
In 1890 or 1893 [LG indicates both dates] struck the boilers of the wrecked paddle steamer Clonmel near Port Albert, Gippsland coast. [LV indicates date of 1892]
In 1891, involved in collision with vessel  Elingamite, Yarra River, Melbourne. [LV]
In 1892, collided with SS Derwent off Wilsons Promontory. [LWP]
In 1892, dented several plates when she struck the boilers of the wrecked Clonmel, 1892.  [LPA]
In 1893, withdrawn from service for extensive alterations, being temporarily replaced by SS Alert, subsequently lost off Cape Schank, 1893. [NH]
In 1897, involved in collision with vessel Barrier,  Port Phillip Bay. [LV]
In 1899, ashore at Cunninghame, Gippsland coast.

Dewdrop. Wooden schooner, 92 tons. Built 1832. Lbd 65 x 18.2 x 11.1 ft. Captain Abson. Wrecked on the Port Albert bar, Gippsland coast, January 1849. No loss of life. [LG],[LPA],[AS1]

Diamond. Barque, 391, Melbourne, 1863. Wrecked Malden Island, June 1888. [ASR]

Diana.  Barque, wood, 199 tons. Built 1823. Mentioned in relation to the loss of the ship Eric the Red, Victoria, 1880. Diana was the first vessel built by the Sewall family, who built Eric the Red. [LE]

Diana. Brig, 103 or 161 tons. Built 1840. Captain Tulloch. Ashore, wrecked, at Port Fairy, 1 October 1844. [AS1],[MM],[LV]
On 3 July 1843, stranded at Portland, Victoria. Refloated on an exceptionally high tide.
[LO],[LV],[LPA],[AS1],[MM]
Also listed:
Diana. Brig, 103 tons. Ashore at Port Albert on 22 August 1850, but was floated off two days later.  [LPA],[LG - reports a brig of this name stranded at Port Albert, 1860]
Speculation - the brig built in 1840 was 161 tons; a second brig of 103 tons was constructed after her loss. Or perhaps the two vessels were identical, with 161/103 tons. Or there is only one vessel and the dates are incorrect.

Dobsons. Wooden schooner, 112 tons. Built at Port Albert 1852; reg. Launceston. Known to have operated to Victorian waters, 1850s. Lbd 76.6 x 21.7 x 9.5 ft. Wrecked on Ninth Island, Bass Strait 1860.  [LPA]

Dolphin. Cutter, 8 tons. Built 1869. Lost off Wingan Inlet, Gippsland coast, 30 August 1874. [LG]

Dolphin. Steamer, 152 tons. Ran between Launceston and Port Welshpool via Flinders Island. No dates indicated. [LPW]

Dom Pedro I. Steamship, 6338 tons. See Wyreema.

Domain. Cutter, wood, 18 tons. Built Hobart 1834; reg. Melbourne 1/1846. Lbd 33.9 x 12.8 x 6.5 ft. From Melbourne to Westerport and Port Albert, capsized in a gale about 4 nautical miles south of Shoal Lagoon, between Wilsons Promontory and Cape Liptrap, Victoria, August 1846. Fifteen occupants, which included five children, were thrown into the sea. Attracted by the waving of a flag on Wilsons Promontory, crewmen on the trader Vanguard, bound for Port Albert, took on board a lad of 14 years named Daniel Anthony, the sole survivor - he had been washed ashore on a hatch.
[LG],[LPA - sloop],[LWP],[AS1 - loss of eleven lives],[LV]

Donald Mackay.  Ship, 2486 tons.  Built 1855. Finished up as a coal hulk at Madeira. [LO]

Dorothy. Wooden steamer, wood, 29 tons. Built at Lake Tyers, Gippsland, 1902 as the Wanda. Lbd 46.8 x 9.4 x 4.6 ft. Lost on a  mudbank in Lake Colac, Victoria, possibly 1916. [LSS],[LV - sank at its moorings, possible sabotage],[LAH - sunk by vandals]

Dorset. Brig, 82 tons. Built 1838. Wrecked in the Kent Group, eastern Bass Strait, 1852. [LG]

Dover Castle. Ship, 1003 tons. Built 1858. Broken up. [LO]

Drumblair. Iron four masted barque, 1907 tons. Lbd 267.4 x 40.2 x 243.1 ft. Captain Goulding.  Captain Golding. Port Pirie for Newcastle, stranded but later refloated, Waratah Bay, west of Wilsons Promontory, 1892. [LV], [LG],[LWP]
Loney reports that she sank following a collision on 22 October 1915, but does not indicate location.

Duke of Bedford. Clipper ship, 720 tons. Captain Dugdale. Disappeared without trace after having cleared Port Phillip Heads, for London via Adelaide, loaded with wool, 1852. The inexperience and poor quality of her scratch crew (due to many mariners deserting for the gold fields), also probable faulty loading of her cargo were presented as the most likely causes of her loss. She may lie off the western Victoria coast. [LO],[LV - 150 tons]

Duke of Wellington. Barque, 388 tons. Built 1840. Lbd 114.5 x 23 x 16.6 ft. Captain Brady. Left Port Phillip for Newcastle in ballast but when about seven nautical miles west of Wilsons Promontory drifted into the breakers and wrecked at Tarwin Beach in seven fathoms of water, 3 April 1853. Crew saved.  See also loss of schooner Favourite, 1852. [LG],[LV]

Dumosa. Steamship. Involved in rescue - see SS Kanowna, lost off Wilsons promontory, 1929. [AS1]

Dundee. Barque, 345 ton. Loaded with 900 bales of wool for London, she was riding at one of the Government moorings but the ropes parted, tearing out her windlass, and she began to drag towards the beach at Armstrong Bay, two miles east of Port Fairy, Victoria, during one of the worst storms in history, fouled the ship Benjamin Elkin,  and became a total wreck on the beach, 17 or 20 February 1854. Wrecked within a 100 yards of, and at the same time as, the barque Inellan. No lives lost. [LO], [LV],[AS6],[MM]
On 21 January 1854, a schooner of this name was involved in a collision with the vessel Osprey at Corio Bay.  [LV],[WPP],[LC]

Dunkeld. Barque, 363 tons. Built 1863. Lbd 170 x 30.3 x 19.3 ft. Captain Hook. Disappeared without trace after leaving Newcastle for Melbourne on 6 June 1870; was last seen about 40 nautical miles east of Wilsons Promontory on 27 June. [LG],[LV - 390 tons]

Dunkery Beacon. Steamer, 7069 tons. Built 1941. Lost her propeller off Wilsons Promontory. Date not recorded. [LWP].

Durraween. HMAS. 271 tons. Built 1919 as the trawler Seville. Comissioned into the RAN, July 1940 as an auxiliary minesweeper. Ended her days when sold for scrap.
In 1940, located and destroyed mines off Wilsons Promontory, 1940. [LSS],[LSW]

Dusty Miller. Schooner, 90 tons. Built Launceston, reg. Launceston 11/1840. Captain Saunders. Bound from Melbourne to Adelaide wrecked in a gale on a reef off Griffith Island, off Port Fairy, Victoria, 25 November 1842.
[LO - from Launceston to Portland,],[LV],[AS1],[MM]
Loney puts the date of loss as 21 November. Bateson indicates that the 25 November came from the Port Phillip Herald at the time of her loss. Loney and MacKenzie list her master as Captain Saunders, and state he nearly drowned; Loney (in LV) and Bateson list the master as Captain Jenkins, who drowned.

Dutchess of Kent. Ketch. Built 1875. Wrecked 1895.   [LPA]

Earl of Charlemont. Three-masted wooden ship, 945/883 tons. Built at St. John, New Brunswick, Canada, 1849. Lbd 147.8 x 30.6 x 22.7 ft. Captain William Garner. Inward bound from Liverpool with 435 emigrants, in fog, went ashore through breakers and on to a reef off The Bluff near Barwon Heads, Victoria, 18 June 1853. Three boats were launched in an attempt to get a line to shore but all capsized, leaving their crews to struggle'ashore.  Other members of the crew clambered down the chains, along the fallen mast, then swam ashore. An undamaged lifeboat was slung to a line by the bow and stern like a cradle, enabling the passengers to land - ladies and children first, then the invalids, married men, single men, and last of all the captain. One passenger died from shock soon after the vessel struck. Pilot Schooner Anonyma and vessel Boomerang attended the wreck. Although a Steam Navigation Board Inquiry decided that Captain Garner and his officers had seemed indifferent to the safety of the ship and the welfare of the passengers, no action was taken. Some believed that the ship was deliberately wrecked to obtain insurance money, and witnesses claimed that the master stood quietly and unconcerned on deck smoking a cigar as the Earl of Charlemont headed for certain destruction on a beautifully clear night with the land distinctly seen. Captain Garner and his wife left for England on the ship Madagascar but it disappeared without trace carrying £25,000 in gold.
@ The wreck site, directly beneath Barwon Heads Bluff beacon, is very shallow and often sanded over. Divers have recovered bottles, crockery and cutlery.
~ An anchor was raised in 1972 and is now on display beside the Barwon River at Barwon Heads.
[LO],[AS6],[LH],[LPH],[DD],[NWR],[LV],[NSC],[LAH],[DA]

Earl of Windsor. Wooden ship, 738 tons. Built 1855; reg. London. Lbd  163.5 x 30.7 x 20.5 ft. Inward bound to Port Welhpool from Otago, New Zealand, wrecked on the Middle Bank inside Rabbit Island, Corner Inlet, Gippsland coast, 12 October 1863. Crew rescued by ship Hydra.  [LG],[LPA],[LPW],[LWP],[LV]

Ebenezer. Cutter. Unloaded cargo from the stricken Laurence Frost, Eden, 1856. [AS6]

Eclipse. Schooner, 19 tons. Lost in Bass Strait, 1900. [LV]

Eclipse. Schooner, 45 tons. Inward bound from Hobart, stranded in the old bar channel at Port Albert, 6 March 1860. While the Geelong Advertiser of 9 March says she had become a total wreck, she was later refloated.  [LG],[LPA],[LPA indicates a schooner of this name which once operated into Port Albert, Victoria, wrecked In New Zealand Waters, 1866]

Ecliptic. (Eclyptic). Three-masted wooden barque, 314 tons. Built Melbourne 1854. Lbd 117 x 23.8 x 16 ft. Captain Eldridge. Struck Clonmel Island near Port Albert, Gippsland coast, 30 March 1874. Eight lives lost, many dropping from the rigging, exhausted. Only a young lad survived. [LG],[LV - built 1870, lbd 101 x 23.8 x 12.9 ft],[ASR],[LPA],[LV]
In 1870, collided with schooner Bessie west of Cape Schanck, Victoria. [LG]
On 28 October 1870, collided with schooner Bessie, Yarra River, Melbourne. [WPP],[LV]
Williams spells the vessel as Ecliptic, Loney as Eclyptic. ASR lists as barque Ecliptic.

Eden. Involved in collision with  Claude Hamilton, Victoria waters, 1879. [LV]

Edinburgh Castle. Barque, 627 tons register. Built 1863.  Lbd 176.3 x 29.5 x 18.7 ft. Captain Darling. From London to Warrnambool, ashore due to ‘an error of judgement’ by the pilot, at Lady Bay, Warrnambool, Victoria, 15 January 1888.  The Julia Percy, sent from Portland, tried vainly to tow her clear, but when the hawser parted the attempt was abandoned.  All crew saved. Commenced to break up as she lay broadside on to the beach. Within a day her back broke, leaving only the bow and stern visible, and scattering wreckage and cargo for miles along the beach.  [LO],[AS6],[LBB],[#MM],[LV],[LAH],[DA]
@ Site located, well sanded over. The iron hull is very badly broken up but the point of the bow is discernable. A deck winch, rows of barels, and timber decking can be seen. An anchor is partly visible. Considering the sand shifts, conditions on the site vary considerably.  [PR]

Edward Bechervaisse. Vessel of 122 tons. Built 1896. [LSS]

Elanora. Brig, 180 tons. Was anchored off Apollo Bay loading sleepers for the Geelong to Ballarat railway when a strong easterly gale sprang up and washed her ashore where she became a wreck, 30 December 1856. [LO],[LV]

Eldorado. Ship, 841 tons. Built 1852. Purchased by James Baines of the Black Ball Line. Visited Victoria. Wrecked in 1877. [LC]

Eleanor Johnstone. Fore and aft schooner, 32 tons. Built at Sandridge, 1872. Lbd 66.9 x 16.1 x 5.2 ft. Captain Dawson. Ashore in a gale shortly after crossing the bar at Mallacoota, eastern Victoria, December 1882. [LG],[LPA]

Eleanor King. Schooner. Sank in Lake King, Gippsland coast; refloated, 1877. [LG]

PPPElentheria. Vessel type not recorded. Sunk, total loss of Frankston, Port Phillip, 1866. ‘A notice to mariners of October 1866 stated that the sunken wreck had her masts removed and was lying with seven fathoms over her’. [WPP],[LV]

Eli  Lafont. (Eli Lafonde). French barque. Stranded between two rocks near Black Head, Western Port, 13 February 1858. Bound from Hong Kong to Melbourne with a cargo of tea valued at about £30,000 but after an inspection by marine surveyors, the vessel was condemned, stores were removed, and the wreck abandoned. [LG], [LV - , 385 tons, name Eli Lfonde]

Eliza Ann. Schooner. Built 1841. Wrecked 1847.  [LPA]

Eliza Davis. (Eliza Davies). Ketch, 61 tons. Built Brisbane Water, NSW, 1887. Lbd 73.6 x 20.8 x 6.2 ft. Foundered off Wilsons Promontory, whilst under tow from SS Chronos, 2 August 1924. One life lost from the crew of four. She had left Wynyard, Tasmania for Melbourne with a caargo of timber when disabled in a galee, and taken in tow by the steamer. However she had become badly strained and waterlogged, and was sunk in a squall by a sea which came over her beam. [LWP],[LG],[LPA]

Eliza Goddard. Brigantine, 192 tons. Built 1851. Wrecked at Port Fairy, Victoria, 1867. Salvaged; condemned 1877. At some stage called Tower Hill.
[LPA],[LPA],[LPW],[LO indicates stranded at Port Fairy, 1868]

Eliza. Schooner, 14 tons. Built 1836; reg. Melbourne. Lbd 33.7 x 10.8 x 5.6 ft. Lost near Cape Schanck, Gippsland coast, 9 January 1873.  [LPA], [ASR],[LG - cutter],[LV - cutter],

Eliza. Schooner, 93 tons. Captain Stobaus. Ashore in heavy winds opposite the botanical gardens at Port Fairy, Victoria, 19 June 1866. The crew took to the rigging to escape the seas, which were sweeping over the wreck but Captain Mills and a crew launched a boat, and eventually took them off.  [LO], [LV],[MM - indicates 17 December 1866]

Eliza. Sloop-rigged decked longboat, 10 tons. Captain Archibald Amstrong (Master of HMS Supply).  Foundered with the loss of all on board after taking on board survivors from the wrecked Sydney Cove in the Furneaux Group, Bass Strait, 1797. On 21 June 1797, sailed from Preservation Island with such crew and cargo as she could carry , in company with the vessel Francis. The Francis arrived back in Sydney on 6 July but the Eliza was never seen again. In 1803 when HMS Calcutta was on survey duties, a large boat was found between port Phillip and Westernport, suggesting it may have been the Eliza. [LG],[LV],[AS1]

Eliza. Steamer. Captain Burn. Sprang a leak when on her way from Mebourne to Geelong and sank, 25 January 1855. The crew took to the boat and were rescued next day by the schooner Susan and taken to Geelong.  [LV],[WPP]

Elizabeth & William. Type unknown. Stranded at Anderson’s Inlet, Gippsland coast, 1872. Apparently salvaged and returned to service.  [LG]

Elizabeth Ann Bright. Ship, 1836 tons. Built 1856. Black Ball Line; purchased by James Baines in 1860.  Later added an extra deck, making her 1920 tons. In 1870, forced to make Lisbon leaking badly; was beached and then set on fire, possibly for insurance. [LC]

Elizabeth Mason. Schooner, 79 tons. Wrecked in the Kent Group, eastern Bass Strait, 1855. [LG]
Elk. HMS. A sailing vessel of 12 guns attached to the East India Station, which included Australia. Searched for the lost sloop HMS Sappho in Bass Strait without success, 1858. [LO]

Elizabeth William. Cutter, 11 tons. Built 1866; reg Melbourne. Lost 1872. [ASR]

Elizabeth. Brig, 230 tons. American built; reg Sydney 33/1846. Rode out a south easterly gale at Portland, Victoria for two days before going ashore on 26 November 1846. No loss of life. She had called to load whale oil and wool for London. [AS6],[LO],[AS1],[LV]

Elizabeth. Brig, 106 tons.  Built at Launceston, 1848. Lbd 64.1 x 18.5 x 11.6 ft. Master Alfred H. Farley. On her second voyage from Geelong to Hobart Town with 600 sheep, was lost during a sudden storm near Cape Schanck, Victoria, 28 October 1848. Crew saved.
[LG], [LV - 200 tons],[AS1 - from Geelong to Launceston]

Elizabeth. Cutter. Captain Hardwicke. Ashore on Seal Island off Wilsons Promontory,  25 April 1816. No loss of life. [LG],[TS1]
Broxam and Nash suggest that ‘Seal Island’ may in fact be Prime Seal Island in the Furneaux Group, [TS1]. Bateson indicates ‘wrecked on Seal Island, largest of the Seal or Direction Islands off Wilsons Promontory’, [AS1]

Elizabeth. Schooner, 80 tons. Captain Wyse. Ashore somewhere near Cape Otway after springing a leak when bound for Adelaide from Williamstown, 14 May 1852. Passengers and crew landed and erected sails for shelter before returning for provisions and a supply of spirits. Some of the crew set out for Geelong; others were rescued by the vessel Colina. [LO]

Elizabeth. Schooner, 58 tons. Captain Tipley. On a voyage from Melbourne to Adelaide, took shelter in a gale at Portland Bay but was blown ashore, wrecked, 18 November 1844. The gale also caused the loss of the schooner Sally Ann. [LO],[AS1],[MM]

Ella. Schooner, 49 tons. Built at Williamstown, 1868. Lbd 69.3 x 18.9 x 5.5 ft. Captain Davidson.  From Melbourne, sprang a leak and eventually capsized on the bar at Lakes Entrance, 21 March 1870. The captain and cook drowned.  [LG],[LPA],[LV]

Ellen & Elizabeth. Schooner. Built 1841. Broken Up 1889.  [LPA]

Ellen Simpson. Barque, 297 tons. Built 1847. Lbd 101.7 x 24.8 x 15.9 ft. Captain Poole. Lost in a gale off Cape Howe, 17 May 1866. As the damaged vessel wallowed helplessly in a huge sea a boat was launched, only to be smashed to matchwood in a few minutes. All the crew clung to the rigging except the second officer who jumped overboard and was eventually washed ashore insensible, but when the masts fell only the first mate survived. Nine lives lost.
[LG],[LV - 310 tons]

Ellora. Steamer. Owned by P. & O. Line. Captain Dundas. The captain ordered the helmsman to steer directly for the shore when approaching Wilsons Promontory, convinced that there was a passage through the rock. The helmsman refused. The Victorian Chief commissioner of Police was aboard, and after a short struggle, the cpatain was subdued. He later could not remember the incident. [LWP]
Loney does not indicate a date for the incident.

Elmgrove. Barque, 255 tons. Built at New Brunswick U.S.A., 1863. Lbd 109 x 24 x 14.5 ft. Captain Leddra. Bound from Newcastle to Adelaide with a crew of nine, ran into a gale off Cape Howe and was buffeted for three days before striking a reef off Wilsons Promontory, 9 September 1876. Immediately she struck, heavy seas washed over her sweeping seven men to their deaths but the captain, who was also swept off her succeeded in reaching the beach he met with second mate Hoyle, who had also been washed ashore. They existed for three days on limpets and pigface before being rescued by the Government steamer Pharos. The bodies of the other men, dreadfully mutilated, were buried in the Alberton Cemetery. [LG],[LWP],[LV]

Elsie Black. Barque. Missing in Bass Strait, 1876. [LV]

Elsinore Schooner. Built 1875. Broken Up 1929.  [LPA]
In 1900, stranded at Apollo Bay, Victoria. [LO - ketch]

Emerald Wings. Steel steamer, 3139 tons. Built at Glasgow, Scotland, 1911. Renambed Kilbaha (qv). [LSW]

Emily Allison. Schooner. Built 1850. Operated in Victorian waters. Wrecked In New Zealand waters 1865.  [LPA]

Emily S. Stern fishing trawler, 240 tons. Length 30m. Scuttled in 24 metres by local dive club, near Lawrence Rocks, off Portland, 1990. [DA]
@ Sitting upright between two reefs, with excellent marine life.

Emily. Brigantine, 46 tons. Built on the River Tamar,1862. Lbd 58.8 x 16.2 x 8 ft. Captain Griffiths. Left Sydney for Melbourne with a cargo of maize and drove ashore in a gale about three kilometres east of the entrance to Shoal Inlet after passing Cape Howe, 7 July 1863. All hands saved.  [LG],[LV - 20 tons]

Emily. Cutter, 14 tons. Built 1891; reg. Paynesville. Disappeared with her crew of two after leaving Eden for Mallacoota, Gippsland coast, 30 July 1898. [LG]

Emily. Cutter, 26 tons. Built Sydney, 1840; reg. Melbourne 7/1844. Lbd 40.7 x 12.6 x 7.3 ft. Master Andrew Murray. Sailed from Melbourne for Circular Head, Tasmania, on 4 April 1846 and was never heard of again, presumably foundering in Bass Strait. [AS1]
Also listed:
Emily. Cutter. Assisted the crew of the stricken William Salthouse, lost in Port Phillip 1841, to return to Melbourne. [LR]
And:
Emily. Involved in collision, Yarra River, 19 January 1841.[WPP],[LV]

Emily. Ketch, 16 tons. Built 1878. Captain Forbes. Ashore when her anchor parted in heavy seas, wrecked, off the Joanna River, western Victoria, 1888. [LO],[LPA]

Emita. Steal screw steamship, 3347 tons. Built 1921. Name changed to Milora (qv) at a later date. Cripled when a boiler explosion burned two firemen. No date, no location but presume off Wilsons Promontory. [LWP]

Emma Paterson. Schooner, 69 tons. Built 1868; reg Melbourne. Lost 1871. [ASR]

Empire. Schooner, 55 tons. Lost at Warrnambool, Victoria, 1850. [LV]

Emu. Steamer. Stranded at Lakes Entrance, Gippsland coast, 1889. Apparently salvaged and returned to service. [LG]

Encounter HMAS. Cruiser, 5880 tons displacement. Built 1902. Transferred to RAN in 1912. Scuttled. Mentioned in relation to mining operations in Bass Strait. [LSW]

Endeavour. Schooner, 140 tons. Stranded at Breamlea, Victoria, whilst attempting to recover an anchor and chain from the stranded steamer Bancoora, November 1892. [DD],[LO]
In 1903, a schooner of this name attempted vainly to salvage the bulk oil carrier Petriana, 1903. [LG]

Endeavour.  Type not listed. Melbourne to Adelaide, disappeared without trace, 1852. [LV]

Engelkens. Dutch salvage vessel - chartered to salvage the Schomberg, 1855. [LO]

Enterprise. Schooner, wood, 84 tons. Built 1866. Wrecked in the Kent Group, eastern Bass Strait, 1881. In 1877, a schooner of this name was stranded at Lakes Entrance, Gippsland coast. [LG]

Enterprise. Two-masted schooner, 58 tons. Built Waiheke, New Zealand, 1847; reg. Auckland 25/1847, transfered to Melbourne 23 February 1848. Lbd 49 x 16.6 x 9 ft. Captain James Gardiner Caught. In a gale, wrecked ashore in Lady Bay, Warrnambool, 14 September 1850. An aboriginal named Buckawall swam out with a rope tied around his waist, and despite a terrific buffeting succeeded in getting a line aboard, enabling all crew to land.  [LO],[#LSS],[LLB],[AS1][see also MM],[LAH]
Not to be confused with the historic vessel of the same name which John Pascoe Fawkner used to cross Bass Strait to the Port Phillip District. MacKenzie is so confused.

Eric the Red. Three-masted wooden ship,  1580 tons. Built at Bath, Maine, USA, 1871.  Reconditioned 1879.  Lbd 198.7 x 41.1 x 17.5 ft. Captain Z. Allen. Wrecked the Otway Reef, which extends about two miles out to sea in a south-easterly direction from the Cape Otway lighthouse, 3 September 1880. Four lives lost. Commissioned by American trade representatives, left New York on 12 June 1880, for the International Exhibition in Melbourne, loaded with exhibits, two passengers and a crew of twenty-five. Eighty-four days out, the captain believed the ship to be at least six miles off Cape Otway and steered towards the light but he had badly misjudged his position. The captain, second mate and others clung to the mizzen mast which then fell into the sea, taking them with it. Fortunately the small coastal steamer Dawn, commanded by Captain Jones, was returning to Warrnambool from Melbourne and was about six miles off Cape Otway. Captain Jones spent several hours searching for survivors without success, and soon after dawn signalled the lighthouse with news of the disaster, which was immediately telegraphed to Melboume. All that remained of the ship was a large piece of wreckage awash on the north-east comer of the reef.  An immense quantity of wreckage floated on to Point Franklin.  More wreckage was picked up at Apollo Bay, Western Port, Port Campbell and Peterborough. The Government steamers Pharos and Victoria left Melbourne soon after the wreck to clear the sailing lanes and the Pharos discovered the first large piece of wreckage near the Henty Reef south of Apollo Bay.  The Victoria and the steamer Otway, bound from Adelaide to Melbourne, also recovered wreckage. Several residents at Apollo Bay rebuilt their homes with timber salvaged from the wreck. Within a year of her loss, an auxiliary red warning light was shown from Cape Otway lighthouse, screened so as to be visible only to vessels approaching on a dangerous course.  [#LE],[LO],[LSS],[NH],[LPA],[#MM],[LV],[LAH],[NWR - Captain Jones],[NSC],[DD]
@ The exact location of her final loss is not known but substantial wreckage has been found along the coast.

Erskine. Ketch, wood, 89 tons. Built at Geelong, 1922, as the auxiliary vessel Lorne.  Lbd 88.8 x 23 x 7.2 ft. Spent many years in the Lorne-Melbourne-Geelong timber trade before moving to Tasmania (when presumably her name was changed). Wrecked at Museel Roe Bay, 1935. [LSS],[LC]

Esperance Belle. Ketch. Built 1867. Wrecked at Gippsland Lakes, 1870.  [LPA]

Essie Black. Barque, 281 tons. Built at Bordeaux, 1856 as the Gironde. Lbd 110.6 x 26 x 13.8 ft. Disappeared during a voyage between Newcastle and Adelaide, January 1874. She may have foundered off the Gippsland coast, or she may have struck an island in Bass Strait. In May, a headboard with the name Essie Black, surrounded by various fittings and spars was found washed up on one of the Sisters Islands. In 1881, more wreckage  included a lifebuoy identified as coming from her was found on Hunters Island. [LG]

Essington. Brig, 123 tons. Captain Mills. After springing a leak while anchored at Port Fairy, was beached near the mouth of the Moyne River and eventually became a total wreck, 3 May 1852. [LO], [LV] ,[MM]
MacKenzie lists her as the Essendon.

Ethel B.T. Ketch, 49 tons. Built 1886. Lbd 69 x 19.4 x 5.5 ft. Captain Lemschow.  Struck the western side of Lakes Entrance, wrecked, December 1903. No loss of life. [LG], [LV],[LM indicates schooner],[LV].

Ethel Jackson.  Composite paddle steamer of 159 tons built at Echuca in 1876.  Sold to Gippsland interests in 1884 and used on the lakes.  Hulked and broken up in 1918. [LPA]

Ettrick. Cutter. Built 1842. Register closed 1876.  [LPA]

Eucalyptus. Barque. Built 1852. Wrecked In Bass Strait 1870.  [LPA]

Euphemia. Schooner, wood, 250 tons. Ran on to the Sisters Rocks, off Gippsland coast, during a voyage from Newcastle to Melbourne, 19 July 1858. The master, his wife, servants and crew, totalling sixteen reached safety and were picked up about seven hours later by the schooner Twins. [LG], [LV - rigged as barque]

Euroa. Steamship, steel, 3353 tons. Built at Williamstown, Port Phillip, 1922. Lbd 331 x 47.9 x 26.1 ft.  Renamed Iron Crown, sank after being struck by a torpedo when forty-four nautical miles of Gabo Island, 4 June 1942. [LSS]

Europa.  Steamer, iron, 1533 tons. Built 1879. Wreckage from the ship Eric the Red was initially thought to have been from this vessel. [LE]

Eurynome. Ship, 1346 tons.  Geelong to Le Havre, disappeared without trace, .1882. [LV]
Also listed:
Euroynome. Ship, 1404 tons. Built 1862. Disappeared from Geelong to England, 1881  [LAH]

Eva. Cutter, 33 tons. Built at Port Fairy, 1875. Broken up Port Fairy, February, 1895. [ASR]

Eva. Paddle steamer, 35 tons. Lost near Phillip Island, 30 March 1876. [LG],[LV]

Eva. Schooner, 45 tons. On 30 March 1877, was struck by the steamship General Pell which approached too close, mistaking the schooner for the pilot boat. [LR]
In 1860, a schooner of this name stranded at Portland, Victoria. [LO],[MM - indicates wrecked]
In 1877, November, a vessel by this name was badly damaged in a gale off Cape Howe, but repaired and continued service, November 1877. [LV]

Evergreen. Ketch, 20 tons. Built 1849. Lbd 46.6 x 12 x 5.4 ft. Disappeared without trace after having called at Welshpool, Gippsland coast, 9 June 1906. Wreckage from her was recovered on Cape Barren Island. [LG]

Evergreen. Ketch, 17 tons. Disappeared in a gale off Cape Woolamai, Gippsland coast, 1914. [LG]

Examiner. Barque. Built 1870. Known to have visited Victorian waters in the 1890s. Broken up at Auckland 1910.  [LPA]

Excelsior. Barque, 683 tons. Built Melbourne, 1878. Broken up. [ASR]

Excelsior. Schooner, 47 tons.  Out of Melbourne, disappeared without trace, 1878. [LV]
Also listed:
Excelsior. Cutter. Australasian Shipping Register records "Missing Since 1878".  [LPA]

Fair Tasmanian. Brig, brigantine or schooner, 144 tons reg., 200 tons burthen. Built Hobart, 1850. Captain Francis. Ashore, wrecked, in heavy weather, Lady Bay, Warmambool, 27 May 1864. Rocket crews assisted in rescuing all on board, although there were anxious moments when the captain’s four- year-old daughter was tossed in the surf, eventually to be rescued, and his wife had her hair caught in the running block. [LO],[LPA - schooner, built 1848],[LLB],[#MM],[LV]

Falcon. Ketch, 17 tons. Lbd 46.4 x 13.8 x 5.3 ft. Lost near the Snowy River, Gippsland coast, November 1903. [LG]

Falcon. Schooner. Built 1840. Wrecked 1850.  [LPA]

Falls of Halladale. Four-masted iron barque, 2085 tons. Built at Glasgow, 1886.  Lbd 275.2 x 41.6 x 23.9 ft. Captain Thomson. Out of New York with general cargo, grounded on a reef west of Peterborough in hazy conditions, 14 November 1908. Crew of twenty-nine saved. The ship, firmly wedged between two reefs with all sail set, attracted hundreds of sightseers over a period of nearly two months and is perhaps the most photographed wreck on the Australian coast. Several salvage attempts of moderate success were made but the vessel was beyond saving; the paddle steamer Gem was involved in salvage of her extensive cargo for eighteen months and had a diver aboard.  [LO],[NWR@],[#MM],[LV],[NSC],[PR],[RP],[DD],[DA]
@ The wrecksite lies in 10 metres, well flattened, several hundred yards offshore. Most of the hull structure is recognisable, as is her cargo of roofing slate. A huge anchor was recovered in 1974.  ~ Twenty-two thousand roofing slates, part of the cargo of 56,763, were recovered in the 1980s and used on eight buildings at Flagstaff Maritime Village in Warrnambool. The anchor is on display at the village.

Fantome. HM Brig. (HMS 12-gun sloop). Formed part of the British East India Station, based in Australian waters. Dismantled in 1841. Her cannon was purchased and fitted to the brig Sir John Byng, and recovered when the brig was wrecked in 1852. [LO]
On 10 November 1855, came across the stranded barque flying Arrow on King Island. [LSS]

Favourite. Schooner, 96 tons. Built in 1849. Lbd 84.6 x 19.3 x 8.7 ft. Captain Stericker. Went missing after leaving Melbourne on 9 May 1852 for Sydney with 13 passengers, a crew of 8, about 20,000 ounces of gold dust and some general cargo. On the 17th she was seen by the vessels Margaret Howe and Spencer near Cape Howe, under reduced sail, and she appeared to have sustained some storm damage. After a month, SS Acheron searched the coast as some believed she had driven ashore on the Ninety Mile Beach, or perhaps near Cape Liptrap. [LG]

Fear Not. Schooner. Built 1875. Wrecked in Bass Strait 1882.  [LPA]

Fenella.  Iron paddle steamer, 261 tons. Built at Liverpool, 1831. Sold to overseas interests. [LPA]

Ferdinand Fischer. Barque, 1673 tons.  Built 1886. Geelong to Queenstown, disappeared without trace, 1906. [LV],[LAH]

Fezara. Steamship,  5826 tons. Built at Glasgow, 1923. Renamed Orungal (qv). [LSW].

Fiji. Three masted iron barque, 1436 tons. Built at Belfast, 1875. Lbd 229.3 x 36.3 x 23.1 ft. Captain Vickers. Inward bound from Hamburg to Melbourne with a crew of twenty and a general cargo including 200 cases of dynamite, was nearing Cape Otway, Victoria, when she struck rocks at Moonlight Head about 300 yards from the shore, only a short distance west from where the Marie Gabrielle had been lost twenty-two years earlier, 6 September 1891. Within minutes, the twenty-six  crew were driven to the forecastle head, bowsprit and jibboom and there they clung expecting the ship to go to pieces or be washed off into the raging surf. Several men made it to shore whilst others drowned in the surf. Telve lives were lost. Strong criticism was levelled through the press at the complete failure of the sea rescue attempts, and the comparative failure of those by land.  The Warrnambool lifeboat did not arrive, the Goverrunent steamer, Lady Loch, reached the scene a day too late and the tug, Racer, started for the wreck but also failed to arrive. The continuous heavy seas which roll in onto Wreck Beach prevented organised salvage attempts but in 1894 several divers managed to salvage some of the hundreds of tons of coiled wire rope which had formed part of her cargo
[LO],[LSS],[LH],[#LFJ],[#MM],[LV],[NSC],[DD],[NWR]
@ The site is virtually impossible to dive except in the rare situiation of an absolutely flat calm sea.
Florence. Schooner. Built 1865. Broken up 1900.  [LPA]
In 1881, stranded at Portland, Victoria, 1881. [LO]

Flying Arrow. Barque, 1100 tons. Found deserted off King Island with her decks completely swept, her anchors gone and only the lower mizzen mast standing, 10 November 1855. The steamer Marion towed her to Hobsons Bay, where it was found that one of her boats had reached Melbourne to obtain a tug.  The barque was repaired and renamed. [LV]

Flying Cloud. See barque Muscoota.

Flying Dutchman. Brig, 30 tons,. Sprang a leak while going into Port Albert and was run ashore, 15 August 1850. After being repaired on the beach she was refloated.  [LPA],[LG]

Flying Squirrel. Brigantine. Built 1810. Wrecked 1875.  [LPA]

Foam. Ketch, 21 tons. Built 1887. Lbd 45.6 x 17.3 x 4.4 ft. Captain G. Angelo. Capsized off Lakes Entrance, Gippsland coast, 3 December 1905. No loss of life. [LG],[LV]

Foam. Ketch, 30 tons. Built 1877. Captain William Anderson. During a regular trading voyage between Loutit Bay (Lorne) and Melbourne, disappeared without trace off Bream Creek, Victoria, 30 January 1880.  She apparently ran into a squall and foundered.  Her crew of three and a boy passenger were not seen again, although a few days later a lifebuoy and wreckage was washed ashore. [LO]

Fortunato Figari. (Fortunato Figaro). Ship, iron, 2419 tons. Collided with SS Coogee (qv) south of Cape Schanck, Victoria, 25 December 1903. Both ships made Melbourne for repairs.  [LG],[LSS],[DG]

Four Winds II. Schooner, 21 tons. Lost in Victorian waters, 1928. [LV]

Four Winds. Yawl, 26 tons. On a voyage around Australia, lost her mast off Venus Bay, Gippsland coast,  and was swept ashore, 1 July 1923. Crew of five survived.  [LG]

Fox. Captain Irvine. The captain reported that he had exchanged signals with a French whaler when near Kangaroo Island, and saw her again off Cape Northumberland. Wreckage found near the mouth of the Fitzroy River, Vic, in 1840 could have been from the whaler.  [AS1]

Francis. Schooner. Involved in the rescue of survivors - see Sydney Cove, 1797. See also Eliza, lost 1797. [LG]

Freak. Fore and aft schooner. Ashore, wrecked, in a gale, south west of Cape Howe, Victoria, 1865. Two members of the crew clung to the mainmast and drifted ashore, but the remainder perished. [LG]

Freddy. Schooner. Built 1873. Wrecked 1887.  [LPA]

Frederick. Barque. Built 1846. Known to have operated in Victorian waters. Wrecked in New Zealand waters, 1867.  [LPA]

Freedom. Schooner, 165 tons. Captain Noon. Anchored in Warrnambool harbour (Lady Bay) when her chains parted during a gale and drifted ashore near the jetty, 11 July 1853. She was refloated soon after with some of her cargo still aboard, but on 11 October was again driven ashore where she became a total wreck, her hull being sold by auction. [LO],[LLB],[#MM],[LV]

Freetrader. (Free Tader). Wooden barque, 188 tons gross.. Built Hobart, 1850. Lbd 111 x 22.2 x 11 ft. Captain Bowden. Drifted ashore near the mouth of the Hopkins River, on to the piling which carried pipes connecting with the local swimming baths, and in a short time they had battered a hole in the hull, August 1894. She lay in about four feet of water at low tide, about midway between the remains of the Enterprise and the Olivia Davis, totally wrecked.  [LO],[LSS],[LPA],[ASR],[#LLB],[LPW - 206 tons],[#MM],[LV]

Frolic. Cutter, 17 tons. Built at Bunbury, 1849. Lbd 38.4 x 10.4 x 5 ft. Left Port Albert, then drifted on to Snake Island, wrecked, 24 March 1870.  [LG],[LPA]

Fury. Barque, wood, 378 tons. Lbd 123.4 x 27.5 x 17 ft. Master C. McBurney. From Newcastle to Melbourne with coal, struck a reef nine nautical miles from the Wilsons Promontory light, and sank just off the northern point of Sealers Cove, near Rabbit Island, 26 August 1869.  [LG],[LPA],[LWP],[LV]

G.H.Peake. Brig, 271 tons. Built 1867; reg Melbourne. Lost 1874. [ASR]

Gardner. Fishing boat. Lost near Cape Otway, Victoria, 1980. [LO]

Garthsnaid. Three-masted steel barque, 1360 tons. Built 1892. Dismasted seventy miles south of Gabo Island, then towed to Melbourne and converted into a coal hulk, 1923. [LV], [LG - stranded on the Ninety Mile Beach, Gippsland coast, 1923],[LAH]

Gazelle. Wooden steamer, 47 tons. Built 1852; reg. Melbourne. Ran in the lime trade to Waratah Bay, Victoria, calling also at other Gippsland ports to load general cargo; converted into a lighter and used to carry timber to vessels loading in Apollo Bay.  Blown ashore during a gale, wrecked, February, 1884. [LV],[LPA],[ASR]

Gem. Paddle steamer. Used for salvage on the Falls of Halladale, lost western Victoria, 1908. [#MM]
In 1898, involved in collision with Albert, Hobsons Bay, Port Phillip. [LV]

General Nowell.. Ship. Involved in collision with brig Gertrude off Cape Otway, Victoria, 1857. [LO]

Genista. Steamer. Stranded near Hastings, Victoria, 1906. Apparently salvaged and returned to service. [LG]

George E. Billings. Ashore in Waratah Bay, Gippsland coast, 1904. Apparently salvaged and returned to service. [LG],[LV]

George Kermode. Bucket dredge. Scuttled by Fisheries and Wildlife  to form an artificial reef off Smith's Beach, Phillip Island, circa 1970s. [DA]
@  The dredge is lying on its port side in 25m. Excellent fish life.

George M. Embiricos. Involved in collision with Koonda, Port Phillip Bay, 1943. [LV]

George Marshall. Ship, 1361/1208 tons. #26496. Built at Shields, UK, by her owner George Marshall & Co.,  1854; reg. London. Lbd 179.8 x 34.8 x 28.0 ft. Captain John Davison. Wrecked west coast Flinders Island, Furneaux Group, 14 January 1862. [TS1]
On 8 June 1859, stranded at Gellibrand’s Point, Hobson’s Bay; refloated.

Georgic. Steamship. Collided with SS Potomac in a dense smoky haze about eight kilometres off Cape Patten, 8 February 1912. Damage to either vessel was not serious. [LO]

Georgina Smith. Schooner, wood, 45 tons. Built at Melbourne, 1857. Lbd 63.1 x 15.3 x 6.6 ft. Captain Malcolm Campbell. Was the first vessel to enter Lakes Entrance from the sea, sailing up to Tambo to unload cargo, 13 April 1858. Broken up 1899, [LV],[LSS],[LPA]

Georgina. Barque, 315 tons.  Out of Melbourne, disappeared without trace, 1880. [LV]
On 17 October 1852 (a barque of the above name), under Captain Murray, was involved in a mutiny in Corio Bay, whereby the captain shot dead a crewman armed with a knife, he and several others attempting to lower a boat to defect to the goldfields. The captain ws overpowerewd and lashed to the wheel, but soon released when the mutineers left. [LC]

Geranium. HMAS. Minesweeper/sloop, 1250 tons. Built 1915. Served with Royal Navy, then RAN. Scuttled in 1935. Involvd in minesweeping operations off Cape Everard, Victoria, late 918. [LSW]

Gertrude. Brig, 206 tons. Built 1854. Lbd 113.2 x 23 x 13.7 ft. Captain John McArthur. Between Newcastle and Melbourne, struck rocks, wrecked, in Waterloo Bay, Wilsons Promontory, 13 August 1858. Crew rescued by SS Stormbird and taken on to Melbourne. [LG],[LWP],[LV]
In 1857, involved in collision with ship vessel General Nowell off Cape Otway, Victoria. [LO]
Loney is inconsistent with tonnage and dimensions. LWP lists as 119 tons, lbd 74.4 x 19.7 x 11.7 ft.

Gilgai. Steamship. Stranded near Barwon Heads, Victoria, 1920. [LO]

Gippsland. Steamer. Collided with SS Dargo in the Gippsland Lakes, 1912. [LG]

Glasgow Citizen. Paddle steamer, 173 tons. Built on the Clyde, 1852. Lbd 156.9 x 16.3 x 8.3 ft. A popular ferry between Geelong and Melbourne. On 15 October 1862, left for Dunedin loaded with passengers for the New Zealand goldfields, but was not seen again. [LC]

Glaslyn. Barque, 372, Melbourne, 1870. Wrecked Ombay Passage, February 1887. [ASR]

Glaucus. Steamer, 1363 tons.  James Patterson & Co. After useful service in Australia and the Pacific, laid up in Melbourne and dismantled and converted into a hulk, August 1927.  [DG]
In 1893, involved in collision with vessel Kannanook, Port Phillip Bay.
In 1911, collided with SS Wareatea near Point Nepean, Port Phillip Heads, suffering only minor damage. [LR],[LG gives date as 1907]

Glencoe. Barque, 160 tons. Built 1847. Known to have oprated in eastern Victorian waters in the 1850s, in the timber trade around Wilsons Promontory. Wrecked in Gore Bay, New Zealand, 1878.  [LPA],[LWP]

Glenelg. Steamship, 210 tons. Built Glasgow, 1874. Lbd 133.8 x 21.1 x 11.3 ft. Captain Ingles. Out of Lakes Entrance with passengers and a cargo of wool and electric light poles, foundered forty miles west of the entrance, 25 March 1900. Only three men survived - thirty-one lives were lost. The ship had sprung a leak during a gale and sank almost immediately. Two lifeboats were launched, but only one reached safety. [LV],[LSS],[LAH]
This important loss is not listed in LG.

Glenfruin. Steamer, 2981 tons. See Kalgoorlie.

Glengarry. Schooner, 47 tons. Built 1876. Lbd 68.8 x 18.3 x 5.6 ft. Wrecked at Marlo, 1898. [LG],[LV],[LPA],ASR]
In 1877, stranded near Lakes Entrance, Gippsland coast; salvaged and returned to service
In 1881, stranded at Lakes Entrance, Gippsland coast; salvaged and returned to service.
In 1882, ashore  on the Ninety Mile Beach during a storm late in May but was eventually refloated.
In 1886, involved in collision with vessel Trader, Point Gellibrand, Port Phillip.

Glenreach. Steam ship. Attempted to salvage SS Riverina, 1927. [LG]

Glomar III. Oil drilling ship, 5800 tons. Operated in Bass Strait, 1960s. [LPW]

Gneisenau.  German armoured cruiser, 11,600 tons.  Destroyed by the British in South Atlantic, 1914. Mentioned briefly. [LSW]

Golden Age. Barque, 381 tons. Built 1856; reg Melbourne. Lost 1871. [ASR]

Golden Spring. Brig, 170 tons. Built in America. Captain Kelly. In a gale, dragged her anchors into the surf, appearing to strike the wreck of the Maid of Julpha about 150 yards out, Lady Bay, Warrnambool, 6 July 1863. The brig broke in two. [LO],[LLB],[MM],[LV]

Golden Spring. Motor vessel, 7253 tons. Built 1945. With both engines out of action she drifted toward Skull Rock, off Wilsons Promontory, but was recued in the nick of time by the Burns Philp flagship MV Braeside, 30 March 1969. [LWP]

Governor Macquarie. Brig, 106 tons. Bound from Hobart to Sydney, was lost in eastern bass Strair, December 1829. [LV]

Governor-General. Wooden paddle steamer, 761 tons. Built New York, 1848 as the New Orleans (qv).. Renamed in when purchased by the newly formed Melbourne Steam Packet Company, and later purchased by the A.S.N.Co. Operated on the east coast until 1861, then ssold to China interests. [WL]

Graciosa. See barque Strathgryfe.

Great Victoria. Steamer, full rigged as a ship, 2320 tons. Built Nantes, France, 1854, as the Jacquard. After the Crimean War. sold to the Black Ball Line; lengthened to 300 ft, renamed. Mader several trips between Australia and UK. Later, engines removed, converted to a sailing ship under new owners.

Greyhound. Schooner. Stranded near Tarwin, Gippsland coast, 1855. Apparently salvaged and returned to service. [LG]

Gulf of Carpentaria. Steamship,  2434/1569 tons. Built West Hartlepool, UK, 1881. Lbd 287.7 x 39.1 x 17.7 ft. Captain Thomson. From Sydney to London with a valuable cargo of wool, struck a rock at the western entrance to the channel between Cleft and Anser Islands, off Wilsons Promontory, sinking within fifteen minutes, 15 September 1885. Three lifeboats were launched in a calm sea and the thirty crew members and one passenger rowed to the Wilsons Promontory lighthouse where they remained until a passing ship took them on to Melbourne. A Court of Inquiry exonerated the master of all blame as the rock was uncharted; it is now shown on charts as Carpentaria Rock. The remains of the ship lie in 50 metres of water, and it is not recommended that inexperienced divers visit her The bow is the most broken up section, with the stern reasonably intact. [LG],[AS6],[LWP],[LAH],[DG]

Gunnadale. Steam trawler, 217 tons.  Built 1915. Lbd 115 x 22 x 11.9 ft. Ashore, wrecked, on Cape Howe, 1917. Wreckage from her is still visible on the rocks.
[LG],[LV],[LB],[LH],LSW]
In late 1917, involved in minesweeping operations off Cape Everard.
It appears Loney could not decide on the correct spelling:
LV indicates name Gunnundale, 83 tons.
LB indicates name Gunundael, minesweeper/trawler, 221 tons, served in the RAN 1917-18, wrecked near Cape Howe, 1929.
LH indicated Gunundaal.]

Gurya. Fishing vessel. Involved in rescue - see fishing vessel Defiance.

Hallgrim.  Steam ship, 6,598 tons. Built at Sunderland, England, 1921. Named Selje when sank after colliding with SS Kaituna, 1929. [LO]

Handa Isle. Three masted schooner, wood, 275 tons. Built Auckland, 1881; reg. Hobart. Lbd 125.6 x 26.8 x 12.1 ft Owned by Hobart Sailing Ship Company. Having left Sydney with a cargo for Melbourne, apparently caught fire and was destroyed about midway between Cape Schanck and Wilsons Promontory, September 1918. There were no survivors. Badly charred wreckage indicated a possible explosion and fire; a mine from the field laid by the German raider Wolf was believed responsible. [LG],[LSS],[LB],[LWP],[LV],[LC]

Hannah Nicholson. Barque, 252 tons. Built 1858. Lbd 116.4 x 23.6 x 14.4 ft. In 1873, left Port Louis in Mauritius with sugar for Melbourne. The captain was reported as being mad, firing shots which did some but little injury, and confined himself to his cabin until the vessel made Portland. On breaking down the captain’s cabin door he was found dead, with a note attached saying he had been murdered by the crew. [LSS]

Hannah Thompson. Cutter, wood,14 tons. Built Willimastown, Port Phillip, 1872. Lbd 41.8 x 12.1 x 5.2 ft. A regular trader to Port Campbell for half a century, she had several narrow escapes off the rugged coast west of Cape Otway. However, after being converted to fishing, was lost in Oberon Bay, Wilsons Promontory, July 1923. No loss of life. [LWP],[LG],[LSS]
@ The site, 200 m south of Oberon Point, has been known for many years but only recently identified. The wreck material is scattered amongst boulders in 5 to 8 metres - a small quantity of iron plate, deck bollards and timber. [DUP]

Harcon. Wooden scallop boat, 50 ft. Inward bound from Lakes Entrance, attempted to enter Port Phillip at night; sheered down the face of a wave, borached and bounced across Lonmsdale reef, 15 November 1972. Although the diesel engine was saved, the wreck was burnt to eliminate any damngerous wreckage.  [DD]

Harlech Castle. Ship, 1112/600 tons. Built Liverpool, 1867. Lbd 174.2 x 28.3 x 17.9 ft. Captain Davies. Disappeared after leaving  Melbourne for Newcastle on 26 June 1870 with a crew of twenty-three. A vessel resembling her was seen by the schooner Alcandre about sixty nautical miles south of Cape Howe, and she appeared to be listing badly. The Government steamer Pharos searched Bass Strait and its eastern approaches without result. [LG], [LV],[LAH - built 1870]

Harmony. Local craft.  Known to have operated in the timber trade around Wilsons Promontory in the 1850s, carrying timber from Sealers cove to Port Albert.  [LWP]

Harriet Nathan. Barque. Built 1834. Operated in eastern victorian waters in 1840s. Wrecked 1872.  [LPA]

Harriet. Schooner, 45 tons. Lbd 51 x 16.5 x 7.4 ft. Captain Williams. Left Geelong for Hobart Town on 13 November 1848 and was last seen close in to shore near Cape Schanck. She was on her first voyage, carrying 200 sheep but no passengers. [LG]

Harry Wood. Ketch, 35 tons. Built 1878. Lost at Westernport, Victoria, 1916. [LV],[LPA]

Hauroto. Involved in collision with  King Arthur, Victoria waters,  1889. [LV]

Hazard. Ketch, 25 gross. # 40912. Built at Brisbane Water, NSW, 1851; reg. Sydney 39/1851, Launceston 5/1898.  Lbd 51.0 x 15.4 x 5.6 ft. Wrecked west coast Tasmania, 19 May 1908.  [LPA]
On 27 March 1873, involved in collision with steamer Macedon, Hobsons Bay, Port Phillip. [WPP],[LV]
On 22 October 1873, ashore at Portarlington, Port Phillip. [LC]
On or about 6 October 1879, sank after a collision with the brigantine Rachel Cohen, Port Phillip Bay. [TS2],[LV - 1878]

Helen Ann. Schooner, 31 tons. Lost on King Island, 1868. [LV]

Helen Ramsay. Vessel type not recorded. Apprentice Tom Pearce, later to be the hero of the Loch Ard disaster, west coast Victoria, 1877, was on the Helen Ramsay when she was lost off Port Phillip Heads (date not recorded). [MM]
This is incorrect. There is no record of a Helen Ramsay being lost off Port Phillip. Pearce was first wrecked when on the Eliza Ramsden, lost inside the heads 1875.

Helen S. Page. Barque, 217 tons. Built 1847. Lost at Newcastle, 1868. [LSS],[LPA]

Helen. Schooner, 69 tons. Built 1846. Captain Georgeson. Ashore in a gale whilst at anchor in Lady Bay, Warrnambool, 25 September 1856. Not badly damaged, and refloated on next tide. [LLB],[LPA]
Also listed:
Helen. Schooner. Stranded near Point Lonsdale, Port Phillip Heads, 1856. [LO]

Helen. Schooner. Wrecked on the Gippsland coast after being seized by convicts, 1850. She had left Hobart Town in March with passengers and cargo; when only a short distance down the coast she was seized by escaped convicts who escaped into the bush after the wrecking. Vague reports give the wreck site as somewhere on the Ninety Mile Beach. The remains of the burnt vessel still lie buried in the sand and in 1921 were partially uncovered and photographed but more recent searches have been unsuccessful. [LG]

Helen. Whaler. Built Greenoch, 1864.Ran in the Australia-China trade, then took up whaling in 1894.  Last of the Hobart Town whalers. Eventually sold in Melbourne after the turn of the century in a poor condition. [LC]

Hellen. Type not recorded. Lost at Lakes Entrance, June 1971. [LG]

Henry & Edward. Schooner. Lost in Bass Strait, 1849. [LV]

Henry Edward. Brigantine, 83 tons. Built 1839. Foundered after collision 1868.  [LPA]

Henry Leonard. Ketch. Stranded near Mallacoota, Gippsland coast, 1885. Apparently salvaged and returned to service. [LG]

Henry. Ketch, 32 tons. Ashore in a strong wind near Lorne, Victoria, wrecked, 1878. [LO]

Henry. Schooner, 48 tons. Wrecked at Portland, Victoria, September 1853. [LO]
A schooner of this name, 48 tons, involved in whaling visited Portland on several occasions under the command of Captain McLean.[LSS]
In 1834, a schooner of this name went ashore in a gale near Portland, Victoria, waiting to load wha