SS Petriana facts for kids

The SS Petriana was a large iron ship built in 1879. It started as a cargo ship and later became an oil tanker. On November 28, 1903, the Petriana was carrying 1,300 tonnes of petroleum from Borneo to Australia. It hit a hidden reef near Point Nepean, Victoria, just outside Port Phillip Bay.

The ship was badly damaged and had to be left behind. Before it sank, its oil cargo was released into the sea. This caused Australia's very first major oil spill. There was also a big controversy after the accident. The Chinese and Malay sailors on board were not allowed to enter Australia. This was because of a rule called the White Australia policy. They had to stay on a crowded tugboat for several days. Their difficult treatment led to a big discussion during the 1903 federal election.

The Petriana Ship: What Was It?

The Petriana was built in 1879 by a company called A. Leslie and Company. Its shipyard was in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. The ship was about 260.5 feet (79.4 m) long. It weighed 1,821 imperial tons.

From Cargo Ship to Oil Tanker

The Petriana was first built as a cargo ship. It carried goods for different owners. In 1886, a person named Alfred Suart bought it. He was a pioneer in the oil industry. In 1891, the ship was changed into an oil tanker. This meant it could carry large amounts of oil. Later, in 1898, the Shell Transport & Trading Company bought the Petriana. By 1903, it was owned by the Asiatic Petroleum Company. This company was a new partnership with Royal Dutch.

The Shipwreck of the Petriana

The Petriana left Balikpapan in the Dutch East Indies. It was carrying 1,300 tonnes of petroleum for Australia. The ship was heading to Melbourne after a stop in Sydney. It also had some naphtha and benzene on board. The crew included 27 people. Sixteen were Chinese, and eleven were Malay. There were also nine British people on the ship.

Hitting the Reef

On the morning of November 28, 1903, a pilot named Henry Press boarded the Petriana. He had 20 years of experience. His job was to guide the ship through The Heads into Port Phillip Bay. There was a very thick fog that morning. The pilot hoped it would clear, but it did not. At 7 a.m., the ship hit a reef. This reef was just east of Point Nepean. Today, it is known as the Petriana Reef. The ship's engine room quickly filled with water. This left the ship without any power.

Trying to Save the Ship

For the rest of that day, a tugboat named James Paterson tried to help. It belonged to the Melbourne Harbor Trust. The tugboat tried to push the Petriana off the reef, but it failed. The next day, two more ships came to help. These were the tugboat Eagle and the salvage schooner Enterprise. However, the pumps on the Enterprise broke down. The Petriana remained full of water. After one last try by the James Paterson on November 30, the ship was given up. It eventually sank. Today, its pieces lie about 200 metres (660 ft) off Point Nepean. The wreck is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register.

Australia's First Major Oil Spill

To make the ship lighter, the crew decided to pump the oil cargo into the sea. This caused Australia's first big oil spill. The beaches nearby were covered in oil for months. One person said the spill looked like "a film of great beauty, radiating all the colours of the rainbow." However, the Petriana oil spill had "catastrophic environmental consequences." It was Australia's largest oil spill until 1975. That year, the Princess Anne Marie spilled oil off Western Australia.

What Happened After the Wreck?

An investigation looked into the shipwreck. A Court of Marine Inquiry decided that the pilot, Henry Press, was to blame. On December 9, he was found responsible for his actions. His pilot's licence was stopped for twelve months. He also had to pay for the investigation costs.

How the Crew Was Treated

On the evening the ship sank, the James Paterson tugboat took the rescued people to Queenscliff. The ship's captain, William Kerr, and his wife were allowed to go ashore. They were given a place to stay in the town. However, the other officers and crew had to stay on the tugboat. At first, they were told they might be needed for recovery efforts.

Once the ship was officially abandoned, immigration officials stepped in. They used the Immigration Restriction Act 1901. This law stopped the Asian crew members from landing in Australia. The tugboat was forced to anchor off Williamstown. The British officers were also stopped from landing at first. But after five hours, officials changed their minds. The government later said there was no delay for them. On the evening of November 30, the 27 Asian crew members were moved. They went onto the Kasuga Maru, a Japanese mail ship going to Hong Kong. From there, they were to be sent back to Singapore. This was required by the Merchant Shipping Act 1854.

Captain Kerr spoke to the newspapers. He was very upset about how his crew was treated. He said:

I have sailed in many seas the world over, but have never before seen or heard of a country where the shipwrecked mariner was not allowed to set his foot on dry land. [...] If this treatment of my crew is a fair specimen of your humanity it is about equal to the worst barbarity of other nations, and if it is forced on you by your laws, I regret to say they are a disgrace to the British Empire.

Political Impact of the Incident

There was a strong public reaction to how the government handled the shipwreck. This happened right in the middle of the 1903 Australian federal election campaign. The Argus newspaper published many letters. These letters said the government was cruel. They also said it was harming Australia's reputation around the world. People compared this situation to an earlier one in 1891. Back then, the Victorian government had helped the Afro-Canadian crew of the shipwrecked Joseph H. Scammell. The Age newspaper first seemed unsure. But it supported the government when criticism continued. In Sydney, The Sydney Morning Herald and Daily Telegraph agreed with The Argus. However, The Bulletin used offensive words to describe the crew. It called them "very undesirable immigrants." It also accused other newspapers of slandering the government.

Prime Minister Alfred Deakin used this event to support his strong stance on the White Australia policy. When newspapers started asking questions, he said the ship's owners were actually responsible. Deakin's secretary, Atlee Hunt, had told the shipping agency that the crew could land. But they would have to pay a £100 fine for each crew member who escaped. The agency did not want to take that risk. So, they arranged for the crew to be moved to another ship instead of landing. Deakin publicly defended Hunt and the immigration officials. He said they acted with "utmost humanity."

The Petriana incident was "constantly raised" at election meetings. This happened in Victoria and Tasmania. The Attorney-General, James Drake, spoke at a meeting in Sydney. He said:

It was undesirable that educated gentlemen who had been in gaol, or coloured men who had been shipwrecked, should land in Australia in defiance of the law. They [the government] intended to keep their race pure, and make Australia a place worth living in.

The issue did not really change the election results. The government was still worried about bad news overseas. In early 1904, it sent a message around the world through Reuters. It said that "the coloured men had been well cared for." It also quoted Deakin saying "any complaints are baseless and are merely being employed for electioneering purposes." A similar event happened in March 1904. The Japanese crew of the wrecked cargo ship Elba arrived in Sydney. But this time, local customs officials allowed the men ashore. This avoided another controversy.