I wish to speak about the Speke, a 1906 shipwreck at Phillip Island, Victoria. I had heard about the wreck through books such as “Shipwrecks Along the Southern Coast” by GA Nayler and “Sail in the South” by Ronald Parsons.
A painting of the Speke, as shown on Channel 10’s What's Up Down Under(S14 Ep. 27
My interest in the wreck was re-ignited when it featured on Channel 10’s What's Up Down Under(S14 Ep. 27). Prior to this, nobody had spoken much about the Speke. Prior to this, I didn’t even know how ‘Speke’ was pronounced. I have now heard one person pronounce it as ‘Speccy’.
The full painting of the Speke, as shown on Channel 10’s What's Up Down Under(S14 Ep. 27
According to The wreck of the Speke , the ship was the biggest, 3-masted, fully rigged ship in the world at the time. It crashed on to the rocks at Kitty Miller’s Bay on the south coast of Phillip Island (midway between The Nobbies & Pyramid Rock).
Some sources call it the SS Speke for some reason, even though it’s not a steamship. It is a ‘sailing ship’ made of steel (a steel ship).
According to SHIPWRECKS , “The Speke was the second largest ship-rigged vessel ever built.” According to The Wreck of the Speke, “The Speke was an all steel ship of 310 feet, beam of 35 feet and weight of 2,712 tons and triple masted. She was built in 1891 at Carnarvon in Wales for a cost of 22,000 pounds.”
It was built by Thomas R Oswald in Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire, Wales for R W Leyland and Company. The Ditton was a twin sister ship to the Speke.
The Speke had come from Peru to Sydney, and it was on its way to Geelong to load wheat when it ran aground on the 22nd February 1906. It drifted close to shore in Kitty Miller Bay and by 3pm its hull was holed on the rocks there. The life boats were lowered immediately, allowing the ship’s crew to make it safely ashore, with the exception of Seaman Frank Henderson.
The head of the figurehead from the Speke, as shown on Channel 10’s What's Up Down Under(S14 Ep. 27
This head from the figurehead and other items are on display at the Heritage Centre, Thompson Avenue, Cowes: -
The head of the figurehead from the Speke, as shown on Channel 10’s What's Up Down Under(S14 Ep. 27
The figure head of the Speke was originally nine feet four inches long and in the shape of a woman. She was wearing a flowing white dress with blue cuffs and collar, and she was carrying a large bunch of daffodils.
The head of the figurehead from the Speke, as shown on Channel 10’s What's Up Down Under(S14 Ep. 27
The figurehead went missing after the wrecking event, but the head of it was later found in a Mr Thompson’s garage. This and other items from the ship, such as its compass box, went on display at the Heritage Centre after being restored.
The wreck of the Speke itself was sold for a just £12 after it went aground in 1906. It was sold for salvage to Mr W.J. Kennon, a local farmer.
Not everything salvaged from the ship ended up in the Heritage Centre though. Some of its timber, for example, was used for local houses and sheds, brass lamps were used inside these houses and the St John’s Uniting Church (formerly the Presbyterian Church) at Cowes has the ship’s brass bell.
The rusty bowsprit and anchor chamber section of the Speke remains, as shown on Channel 10’s What's Up Down Under(S14 Ep. 27
The Speke’s ballast was made of round Peruvian bluey-green river stones, and these are strewn along the beach where the wreck site is. The rusty bowsprit and anchor chamber section of the Speke remains, lying exposed on its side about 100 metres further on shore from where the ship ran aground. It is said to be surrounded by several twisted, rusting, pitted sheets of steel plate and some of the river worn ballast stones from Peru.
The rusty bowsprit and anchor chamber section of the Speke remains, as shown on Channel 10’s What's Up Down Under(S14 Ep. 27
What little is left of the main part of the wreck is on the sandy sea bed in roughly 10m of water. Diving at the site can be quite dangerous. Experienced scuba divers have reported strong currents and presence of swirling kelp. Visibility is usually poor due to the sandy sea bed getting stirred up. The wreck is sometimes buried in the constantly moving layers of sand. Occasionally though, the wreck is exposed.
A photo from “Shipwrecks Along the Southern Coast” by GA Nayler (with 'X' marking the rock on which the Speke was grounded)
The original mounting timbers for the figurehead were later found still fastened to the bow fragment of the wreck on the beach. The repaired figurehead was unveiled by G.S. Browne, Professor of Education, Melbourne University, on the 20th November 1941.
The rusty bowsprit and anchor chamber section of the Speke remains, as shown on Channel 10’s What's Up Down Under(S14 Ep. 27
The Speke had two huge anchors and one of them lay for seventy years in Kitty Miller’s Bay where it was exposed at each low tide. Its 3-ton weight had proved too heavy to recover until Keith Grayden’s old army ‘blitz wagon’ was used to haul it off the beach in the 1970s. It then lay in the works depot formerly operated by the Shire of Phillip Island.
Aerial shot of the wreck site showing the rocky coastline, as shown on Channel 10’s What's Up Down Under(S14 Ep. 27. The onshore wreckage can be seen at far right.
A closer aerial shot of the wreck site showing the rocky coastline, as shown on Channel 10’s What's Up Down Under(S14 Ep. 27. The onshore wreckage can be seen at top right.
Some video footage can be found at SS Speke ship wreck, Phillip Island). According to Grant Lindsay, his grandfather Alexander James Cook was First Mate on the Speke and apparently played a major part in saving most of the crew. According to Robert Howell, his wife Jenny’s grandfather, 18-year old Jocelyn Rawlins was also aboard (referred to in the official write up as Apprentice Rawlins). He later went on to get his Master’s Ticket.
This photo of the Speke on rocks in Kitty Miller Bay features in both “Shipwrecks Along the Southern Coast” by GA Nayler and “Sail in the South” by Ronald Parsons: -
The Speke on rocks in Kitty Miller Bay
(According to “Sail in the South” by Ronald Parsons, the above image comes from the (A.D.)Edwardes Collection, which is what the book is based on. Another source, however, states "Photo Alan Green from the John Jansson collection".)
“Shipwrecks Along the Southern Coast” by GA Nayler also features another photo of the Speke taken at the same location at about the same time (plus a map of the wreck site).