HMSMermaid(1817)
 The cutterMermaid
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | Mermaid |
| Builder | Thompson, Howrah[1] |
| Launched | 1816 |
| Fate | Sold 1817 |
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | HMSMermaid |
| Acquired | 1817 by purchase |
| Commissioned | 16 October 1817 |
| Fate | Sold 1823 |
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | Mermaid |
| Owner | Government of New South Wales |
| Acquired | 1823 by purchase |
| Fate | Wrecked on 13 June 1829, Flora Reef, Queensland |
| General characteristics | |
| Tons burthen | 83,[2]84,[1]or 85 (bm) |
| Length | 56 ft (17 m) |
| Beam | 18 ft 6 in (5.6 m) |
| Draught | 8 ft 10 in (2.7 m) |
| Sail plan |
|
| Notes | Teak-built |
HMSMermaidwas acutterbuilt inHowrah,India, in 1816. The BritishRoyal Navypurchased her atPort Jacksonin 1817. The Navy then used her to survey the Australian coasts. In 1820 she grounded and in 1823 was condemned for survey work. The Navy sold her to the colonial government which used her to run errands until she was wrecked in 1829.
Career
[edit]Mermaidwas launched at Howrah in 1816 and the Royal Navy purchased her atPort Jacksonin 1817.[2][3]
Phillip Parker Kingused her between December 1817 and December 1820 to survey parts of the Australian coast thatMatthew Flindershad not already surveyed.[4] King circumnavigated the Australian mainland and conducted a survey of the Inner Route through theGreat Barrier Reef.
In 1820Mermaidgrounded at Careening Bay,Kimberley, Western Australia;[5]gotten off, she only reached Sydney with difficulty. A survey resulted in her condemnation for survey work and her sale in 1823 to the colonial government.[3]
In September 1823MermaidcarriedJohn Oxleyas he explored the Queensland coast south ofPort Curtis,discovering theBrisbaneandTweedrivers. At Moreton Bay he rescuedThomas PamphlettandJohn Finnegan,who had been ship-wrecked earlier in the year. These events led to the establishment ofBrisbaneand theSeparation of Queensland.[6][7]
In September 1825MermaidtransportedEdmund LockyertoMoreton Bayso he could explore the upper reaches of theBrisbane River.[8]
In August 1826John Richardsontravelled onMermaidfromFort Dundas,onMelville Island,toTimorto obtain seeds.[9]
Around 1829 the ship was rigged as a two-mastedschooner.[citation needed]
Loss
[edit]Captain Samuel Nolbrow andMermaiddeparted Sydney on 16 May 1829, bound forPort Raffleswith government dispatches and provisions for King George's Sound. She proceeded on the inner passage to Torres Straits. At 6 a.m. on 13 June she struck an uncharted reef on the southern side ofFlora Reef,Queensland. (Nolbrow gave the location as at17°7′S146°10′E/ 17.117°S 146.167°E.) She bilged and her crew abandoned her that evening with no loss of life.[10]
Post-script
[edit]An underwater archaeology team led by theAustralian National Maritime Museumin early 2009 rediscovered the wreck.[11][12]
See also
[edit]Citations
[edit]- ^abPhipps (1840),p. 108.
- ^abPhipps (1840),p. 142.
- ^abColledge & Warlow (2006),p. 257.
- ^ "King, Phillip Parker (1791–1856)".Australian Dictionary of Biography.Vol. 2. Canberra: National Centre of Biography,Australian National University.1967.ISBN978-0-522-84459-7.ISSN1833-7538.OCLC70677943.Retrieved3 December2014.
- ^"Careening Bay".kimberleytravelandcruise.com.Retrieved26 October2019.
- ^"Pamphlett, Thomas (1789–1838)".Australian Dictionary of Biography.Vol. 2. Canberra: National Centre of Biography,Australian National University.1967.ISBN978-0-522-84459-7.ISSN1833-7538.OCLC70677943.Retrieved4 December2014.
- ^"Founding of Brisbane".National Museum of Australia.Retrieved22 September2024.
- ^"Lockyer, Edmund (1784–1860)".Australian Dictionary of Biography.Vol. 2. Canberra: National Centre of Biography,Australian National University.1967.ISBN978-0-522-84459-7.ISSN1833-7538.OCLC70677943.Retrieved4 December2014.
- ^"Richardson, John Matthew (1797–1882)".Australian Dictionary of Biography.Vol. 2. Canberra: National Centre of Biography,Australian National University.1967.ISBN978-0-522-84459-7.ISSN1833-7538.OCLC70677943.Retrieved4 December2014.
- ^"A CONDISCIPULUS" BOARDING ROUND "".The Australian (Sydney, NSW: 1824 - 1848).Sydney, NSW: National Library of Australia. 25 November 1829. p. 3.Retrieved4 December2014.
- ^"A Model Tale".Australian National Maritime Museum.Retrieved3 December2014.
- ^"Mermaid HMCS".Australian National Shipwreck Database.Archived fromthe originalon 6 May 2018.Retrieved4 December2014.
References
[edit]- Colledge, J. J.;Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969].Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy(Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing.ISBN978-1-86176-281-8.
- Nicholson, Ian Hawkins (1996)Via Torres Strait – A maritime history of the Torres Strait route and the ship's post office at Booby Island.(Roebuck Society Publication No.48).ISBN0646250833
- Phipps, John (1840).A Collection of Papers Relative to Ship Building in India...: Also a Register Comprehending All the Ships... Built in India to the Present Time...Calcutta: Master Attendant's Office.
External links
[edit]
Media related toHMS Mermaid (ship, 1817)at Wikimedia Commons
