SS Australian
GPS: -34.534287 137.364728
Last Edited: 2/24/2021, 7:11:24 AM
Description
SS Australian was built in Dundee, Scotland, in 1879. The vessel worked as a steam coaster carrying wheat from and between South Australian outports. On its final voyage the vessel was carrying 3,300 bags of wheat from Elliston, Eyre Peninsula, to Port Victoria under the command of Captain Gustafsen.
On 8 May 1912, during a blinding sand storm, SS Australian ran onto a reef on the south-eastern corner of Wardang Island.
Today, the wreck lies underwater at a depth of about 8m.
Access
This wreck is part of the Wardang Island Maritime Heritage Trail and can be accessed by boat from the Port Victoria Boat Ramp.
The Wardang Island Maritime Heritage Trail features eight shipwrecks located around Wardang Island, near Port Victoria in Spencer Gulf.
Port Victoria, on the west coast of Yorke Peninsula, was an important trading port in the early 1900s and was one of the last Australian ports to see large square-rigged sailing vessels operate on a commercial basis. The last 'Grain Race' from Australia to Britain began from Port Victoria in 1949.