Feb 13, 2019 - National shipwreck exhibition opens at Cardwell

The free travelling exhibition, ‘Submerged – Stories of Australia’s Shipwrecks’, opens at Cardwell Visitor Information and Heritage Centre this Friday (February 15).

Queensland’s Sovereign and Foam are two of 14 wrecks whose stories feature in the nationally touring panel exhibition which uncovers Australia’s rich shipwreck history. Australia’s coast is the final resting place of more than 11,000 shipwrecks – roughly one wreck for every three kilometres of coastline.

Submerged is presented by the Australian National Maritime Museum and the Australian Maritime Museums Council following workshops held across the country to source shipwreck stories. Sixty-eight shipwreck stories were nominated by 46 maritime museums and heritage institutions from around Australia with 14 of the most compelling stories selected to feature in the exhibition.

Sovereign was a paddle steamer from Moreton Island which was bound for Sydney when it was swamped by waves in the treacherous South Passage Bar, Moreton Bay, in 1847. Aboriginal men risked their lives and rescued 10 people while the remaining 44 passengers and crew perished. Foam was a British topsail schooner which struck Myrmidon Reef on the Great Barrier Reef in 1893 on its way to the South Sea Islands.

The exhibition also features wrecks of merchant vessels, whalers, trawlers, motor vessels and a submarine. The oldest wreck featured is WA’s Batavia. Its 1629 loss on Beacon Island, and subsequent mutiny, is one of the most dramatic events in Dutch and Australian history. 

Other wrecks include Sanyo Maru, a Japanese motor vessel lost in 1937 in Boucaut Bay Northern Territory, British merchant ship Sydney Cove lost in 1797 off Preservation Island, Tasmania, and the Fijian fishing trawler Degei which struck rocks on Donington Reef, South Australia, in 1974.

The exhibition also features one shipwreck from outside Australia – Australia’s second submarine HMAS AE2 which was lost in 1915 during the First World War in the Sea of Marmara, Turkey. 

Australian National Maritime Museum director Kevin Sumption said: “As an island nation, shipwrecks are a very important part of Australia’s rich maritime heritage. The Australian National Maritime Museum is delighted to be partnering with the Australian Maritime Museums Council to unlock these fascinating stories and remember everyone who lost their lives on our coast.”

Submerged – Stories of Australia’s Shipwrecks is on a two-year national tour across regional Australia. All 68 submitted shipwreck stories are available now on the AMMC website in a digital archive – www.maritimemuseumsaustralia.com/page/submissions-1. 

The exhibition is assisted by the Australian Government Visions of Australia program.

The exhibition at the Cardwell Visitor Information and Heritage Centre in the old Telegraph Station at 51-53 Victoria Street, Cardwell, runs until Friday, March 15. The centre is open weekdays from 9am till 4.30pm. Admission is free.

ENDS