''Ellen'' (also known as SS ''Ellen'') was a

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

that was launched in 1883 and whose career involved coastal shipping firstly in the

Colony of Queensland The Colony of Queensland was a colony of the British Empire from 1859 to 1901, when it became a State in the federal Commonwealth of Australia on 1 January 1901. At its greatest extent, the colony included the present-day State of Queensland, t ...

and then in the Australian state of

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

. It was wrecked in

Gulf St Vincent Gulf St Vincent, sometimes referred to as St Vincent Gulf, St Vincent's Gulf or Gulf of St Vincent, is the eastern of two large inlets of water on the southern coast of Australia, in the state of South Australia, the other being the larger Sp ...

in South Australia at Morgan's Beach near the town of

Cape Jervis Cape Jervis is a town in the Australian state of South Australia located near the western tip of Fleurieu Peninsula on the southern end of the Main South Road approximately south of the state capital of Adelaide. It is named after the headla ...

on Saturday, 12 December 1908 during its return from

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

in waters around

Kangaroo Island Kangaroo Island, also known as Karta Pintingga (literally 'Island of the Dead' in the language of the Kaurna people), is Australia's third-largest island, after Tasmania and Melville Island. It lies in the state of South Australia, southwest ...

to a destination on the mainland.

History of vessel prior to loss

''Ellen'' was built in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

in 1883 for Messrs. Breslin and Watson for the purpose of trade from

Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-conse ...

Keppel Bay Keppel Bay is a bay in Central Queensland, Australia at the mouth of the Fitzroy River on the coast of the Coral Sea. Extent Keppel Bay extends from Station Point on Curtis Island () in the Gladstone Region to Zilzie Point at Zilzie () i ...

and other ports within Queensland. The ship purchased several years prior to 1908 for the purpose of 'coastal work' in South Australian waters by Messrs. W. R. Cave and Co. and Co., grain merchants, shipping and Customs agents based at

Port Adelaide Port Adelaide is a port-side region of Adelaide, approximately northwest of the Adelaide CBD. It is also the namesake of the City of Port Adelaide Enfield council, a suburb, a federal and state electoral division and is the main port for the ...

Historical account of loss

The vessel was chartered in November 1908 for 3 months by a delegation of Scottish fishermen consisting of Messrs. W. J. Newlands, W. Eaglesham, W. Grieve and M Grieve, and who were interested in establishing a fishing business in South Australia. On Thursday, 10 December 1908, ''Ellen'' under the command of Captain A. McMillan departed from Glenelg for

with Mr Newlands, and a crew of 6. On Saturday, 12 December 1908, ''Ellen'' returned from Hog Bay on Kangaroo Island en route to a destination on the mainland with a load of fish valued at £50. ''Ellen'' encountered very rough conditions when passing

. The rough conditions included a sudden swing in wind direction from the South West to the North West. As a result, the ship drifted astern towards the shore until its stern run aground on the rocky seabed. The bow was then swung around onto the rocks by the waves thereby completing the wrecking. The heavy sea then continued to pound the wrecked vessel, washing fittings and timber overboard and onto the shore. The crew escaped to shore via the use of a dinghy while Mr Newlands swam to the shore. At its meeting on Wednesday, 30 December 1908 the Marine Board of South Australia found that the wrecking was caused by the inability of the ship to regain control after the sudden change in wind direction because of its insufficient engine power.

Aftermath

Despite the wrecking event and the complete loss incurred, the Scottish fishermen resolved to continue with their enterprise. In 1962, the wreck site was extensively salvaged by

divers Diver or divers may refer to: *Diving (sport), the sport of performing acrobatics while jumping or falling into water *Practitioner of underwater diving, including: **scuba diving, **freediving, **surface-supplied diving, **saturation diving, a ...

visiting from New South Wales. The

Society for Underwater Historical Research The Society for Underwater Historical Research (SUHR) was an amateur maritime archaeology organisation operating in South Australia (SA). It was formed in 1974 by recreational scuba divers and other persons to pursue an interest in maritime ar ...

(SUHR) carried out a survey of the site in 2003. The SUHR study reveals that the principal feature of the wreck site at the time was a boiler sitting in the

intertidal zone The intertidal zone, also known as the foreshore, is the area above water level at low tide and underwater at high tide (in other words, the area within the tidal range). This area can include several types of habitats with various species o ...

.Cowan, David; (2003), 'The SS Ellen Project', ''Soundings'' (2nd series) Vol. 4 No.1, pages 8-14, in Cowan, David (editor), (2007), The Society for Underwater Historical Research: Publications 1974-2004, Society for Underwater Historical Research, Port Adelaide, SA. The wreck site is protected by the SA ''Historic Shipwrecks Act 1981'' and is located at .Ellen
.

Australian National Shipwreck Database __NOTOC__ The Australasian Underwater Cultural Heritage Database (AUCHD) is an online, searchable database containing data on shipwrecks, aircraft that have been submerged underwater or wrecked on the shore, and other artefacts of cultural sig ...

. Retrieved 14 June 2012.

References

Further Information

The online collection of the

State Library of South Australia The State Library of South Australia, or SLSA, formerly known as the Public Library of South Australia, located on North Terrace, Adelaide, is the official library of the Australian state of South Australia. It is the largest public research l ...

includes the following images of the ship after its grounding: * 'The SS ''Ellen'' wrecked near Cape Jervis, South Australia, 1909' at http://images.slsa.sa.gov.au/searcy/43/PRG280_1_43_72.htm, retrieved 20 June 2012. *'Distant view of the SS ''Ellen'' wrecked near Cape Jervis in South Australia, 1909,’ at http://images.slsa.sa.gov.au/searcy/43/PRG280_1_43_73.htm, retrieved 20 June 2012. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ellen 1883 ships Iron and steel steamships of Australia Maritime incidents in 1908 Shipwrecks of South Australia Gulf St Vincent

History of vessel prior to loss

Historical account of loss

Aftermath

See also

References

Further Information