SS Petriana 1903
Marker: recorded wreck position (Steam era).
Key facts
| Name | SS Petriana | Wikidata label |
|---|---|---|
| Year lost | 1903 | Wikidata P793 significant event, point-in-time qualifier |
| Era | Steam era | derived from year |
| Ship type | ship | Wikidata P31 instance of |
| Depth | 21.8 m | Wikidata P4511 vertical depth |
| Sea / ocean | Bass Strait | Natural Earth marine areas (public domain), point-in-polygon |
| Nearest coast | Australia | Natural Earth (public domain); approx. 10 km from land |
| Position | -38.3100, 144.6500 | Wikidata P625 coordinate location (CC0) |
About the wreck
SS Petriana was an iron screw steamer built in 1879 that was converted into an oil tanker. On 28 November 1903, while transporting 1,300 tonnes of petroleum from Borneo to Australia, it struck a reef near Point Nepean, Victoria, outside of Port Phillip Bay. The vessel was subsequently abandoned, but not before its cargo was released as part of efforts to save the ship, causing Australia's first major oil spill. Under the White Australia policy, the Chinese and Malay sailors crewing the Petriana were refused entry to Australia and forced to stay on a crowded tugboat for several days. Their treatment led to a political controversy in the lead-up to the 1903 federal election.
Diving & visiting
Petriana left Balikpapan in the Dutch East Indies with 1,300 tonnes of petroleum for the Australian market, travelling to Melbourne via Sydney. She was also carrying quantities of naphtha and benzene. The ship had a crew of 27 – 16 Chinese and 11 Malay – while the nine others on board were British.
On the morning of 28 November 1903, Petriana was boarded by Henry Press, a pilot of 20 years' experience, who was to guide the ship through The Heads into Port Phillip Bay. There was a heavy fog which Press hoped would lift, but it failed to do so. At 7 a.m. the ship struck a reef just east of Point Nepean, now known as the Petriana Reef (or misspelt as Patriana Reef).
Location
- Recorded position: -38.3100, 144.6500 (Wikidata P625 coordinate location (CC0); may be approximate)
- Sea / ocean: Bass Strait
- Nearest coast: Australia
Wreck positions on this site are for interest only and are not for navigation. Many wrecks are war graves or legally protected: never disturb human remains or remove artefacts, and check local law before diving.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article SS Petriana (revision 1359050100), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section and section(s) “Wreck”; condensed by selecting paragraphs; citations and formatting removed. No text added. This excerpt is available under the same licence.
Wreck facts from Wikidata (CC0).
Nearby wrecks
- HMS J3 9 km
- HMVS Cerberus 49 km
- HMS J7 51 km
- Falls of Halladale 160 km
Browse more: Oceania wrecks · wrecks off Australia · Steam era