Hebe Reef is a reef located about northwest of the mouth of the

Tamar River The Tamar River, officially kanamaluka / River Tamar, is a estuary located in northern Tasmania, Australia. Despite being called a river, the waterway is a brackish and tidal estuary over its entire length. Location and features Formed by the ...

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

, Australia. Part of the reef is visible at low tide, however it is completely submerged at middle and high tide. Hebe Reef's unsuspected location in the middle of what one would believe to be the channel to the river has deceived many, and numerous ships have been wrecked on its rocks.

Name

Hebe Reef was named after the first ship that struck the reef, ''Hebe''. ''Hebe'' was "a full-rigged ship of 250 tons built at Chittagong, India in 1804". The ship departed from

Madras, India Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

in late March 1808 and was destined for

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

; when the decision was made on 15 June to turn into

George Town, Tasmania George Town (Palawa_kani: ''kinimathatakinta'') is a large town in north-east Tasmania, on the eastern bank of the mouth of the Tamar River. The Australian Bureau of Statistics records the George Town Council, George Town Municipal Area had a pop ...

- then Port Dalrymple - ''Hebe'' struck the reef due to a mixture of lack of knowledge and bad weather. One person on the ship died, and most of its fittings and cargo were salvaged and sold in

. Ever since, the reef has been known as ''Hebe Reef''.

Shipwrecks

There have been a total of six shipwrecks on Hebe Reef:

References

{{Reflist Coastline of Tasmania Reefs of Australia