Sydney’s shipwrecks

The Dictionary of Sydney was archived in 2021.

2016

Last week news broke that HMS Terror, the long-lost ship of British polar explorer (and former Governor of Tasmania) Sir John Franklin, has been found 168 years after its sinking. I thought I’d delve into the Dictionary of Sydney and explore some of Sydney’s shipwrecks for 2SER Breakfast this morning.

Wreck of Dunbar, South Head c1862-1863 by ST Gill Credit: Mitchell Library, State Library of NSW (a939035 / PXA 1983, f34 )

This city’s worst maritime tragedy would be the wreck of the Dunbar. On the night of Thursday 20 August 1857, after 81 days at sea, the Dunbar arrived off Sydney Heads. Treacherous weather conditions forced Dunbar aground at The Gap. The impact shattered the ship and the lifeboats were destroyed by the pounding seas. All but one of the 122 people on board perished that night. The lone survivor, crewman James Johnson, was hurled onto the rocks where he somehow managed to climb to safety, while his fellow passengers were flung up against the cliffs below. At the funeral procession four days later every ship in harbour flew their ensigns at half mast, guns were fired every minute, banks and offices were closed, and over 100 carriages passed in front of the 20,000 people lined on George Street.

'Tragic Collision in the Harbour between the mail steamer Tahiti and the ferry steamer Greycliffe', Sydney Morning Herald, November 4, 1927, p 16

Another tragic incident occurred not far from the Opera House. On 3 November 1927 a ferry named Greycliffe collided with the mail steamer, Tahiti, as she made her usual trip from Circular Quay to Watsons Bay. Newspapers published witness accounts of Tahiti cutting through the Greycliffe ferry like a knife, ‘shearing through the steelwork and wooden superstructure as though it were so much as a matchboard’. Within seconds, one half of the ferry slipped under the water while the other was still afloat with people scrambling for their lives. The space in front of the Fort Macquarie Tram Depot, which is where the Opera House now stands, became a temporary casualty station as ambulance vehicles rushed between the site and Sydney Hospital. In total, 40 people lost their lives with the victim’s ages ranging from 2 to 81 years old. Along with the Dunbar wreck, the Greycliffe sinking is considered one of the city’s worst maritime tragedies. Maroubra Beach has been the site of many maritime disasters. In 1898, the iron clipper Hereward was on her way to Newcastle when she encountered a storm and was flung toward the shore of Maroubra Beach. The ship luckily avoided two rocky reefs and the 25 crew members were brought safely ashore. The wreck lay on the beach for decades until the local council began blasting the remnants in 1950 as a result of safety concerns. However, pieces of hull have re-emerged in more recent years, reminding beachgoers of Sydney’s shipwreck past. Listen to the Nicole & Nic's chat here and tune in to 2SER Breakfast with Nic Healey on 107.3 every Wednesday morning at 8:15-8:20 am to hear more from the Dictionary of Sydney. Listen now

Crowds viewing the Hereward, aground at Maroubra c1898, Credit: State Library of Victoria (Acc No: H99.220/3951)