Dive standard : Intermediate
Launch site :Launch at Port Campbell jetty and proceed west towards Peterborough until the white water tower comes into view. Boats can be launched at the Bay of Islands but the boat ramp is very steep and a 4WD is necessary when launching boats from this ramp.
Chart no : AUS 349
Latitude : 38" 37’00" south
Longitude : 142"53’18" east
Compass Bearings:
Dive Conditions: Southerly and south-easterly winds expose the wreck to dangerous swells making diving unpleasant and anchorage unsafe.
Description : A three masted wooden clipper built in Aberdeen for James Baine’s Black Ball Line. The Schomberg was a luxurious immigrant ship and on its first voyage when it sank.
Designing and building ships has always been a competitive business, especially in the mid –19th centaury. At the time, the race was on to design ships able to sail from England to Australia in record breaking time. The Schomberg, the most famous of the Black Ball Line’s fleet of passenger ships was said to be the most perfect clipper ever built. It was designed and built in Aberdeen to beat the very fast clippers of North American designer Donald McKay.
When James Baine's, owner of the Black Ball Line launched the Schomberg he said, "by the grace of god, this ship under the capable command of Captain Forbes will break the record he already made". Captain Forbes, who was drunk at the time, replied, "with or without the help of god I’ll make the trip in 60 days". However, at the equator the Schomberg experienced a number of windless days, which slowed the journey down considerably.
Unfortunately Captain Forbes never had another chance to put the Schomberg through its paces. On the same voyage to Australia, only a day’s sailing from Port Phillip Bay, the Schomberg stranded and wrecked on a sandspit at Peterborough.
The remains of the
Schomberg now lie in nine meters of water southeast of Schomberg rock off
Peterborough. The wreck runs north south along a reef, with its bow to the
north.
The site is badly broken up and heavily concreted. Small artefacts such as buttons, and shoe and belt buckles are cemented into a matrix of limestone.
No hull structure is visible but divers can see a large number of railway tracks, which lie lengthways following the contours of the reef. Large railway girders are also visible.
Large iron tanks, iron pots, a mast and deck stanchions can be seen at the wreck and are marked on thew site plan.
Various seaweeds cover the site and plenty of reef fish now inhabit the wreck.
No expense was spared in building the Schomberg. The ship
was designed to be the most comfortable vessel to sail to Melbourne and
cost £43,103 to build.
He frame of the Schomberg was made of British Oak with layers of Scottish Larch fitted diagonally over the frame. An outer layer of red pine was reinforced with tar. This design was called the diagonal principle and was said to be similar to the design of Queen Victoria’s new yacht. This design feature was found on pieces of hull washed up on the coast of New Zealand and these are thought to be from the wreck of the Schomberg.
The three masted ship was heavily sparred and carried a massive 16,000 square yards of canvas sail.
Special features of the Schomberg included ventilation ducts to the lower decks and portholes. Unfortunately the portholes leaked badly at sea. First class passengers were treated to lavish accommodation including a dinning room, smoking room, a library and bathrooms.
The Schomberg was a large ship measuring 288ft (87.8m) in length, 45ft (13.7m) in breadth, 29.2ft (8.9m) in depth at the hold. It had a gross tonnage of 2284 tons.
The Schomberg left Liverpool on 6th October 1885 with 430 passengers on board and 3,000 tons of cargo comprising iron rails and equipment for the Geelong railway and the construction of a bridge over the Yarra to connect Melbourne with Hawthorn. Its cargo also included flour, though it is not known whether this was for the journey, or for the colony.
Sailing was slow but uneventful. On the 27th day out from port, Captain Forbes sighted a Liverpool bound clipper called the Vision. Forbes and a boatload of passengers rowed across to the Vision and enjoyed an evening of dancing on the poop deck. When the two boats parted, the Vision took mail from the Schomberg’s passenger’s back to England.
On Christmas Eve, some 78 day’s out from Liverpool, the vessel made landfall near Cape Bridgewater. Next day, Moonlight Head was sighted. The ship was sailing with a strong south-easterly wind and had to tack several times but made little progress. In the evening the wind dropped and the ship was again heading in the direction of Moonlight Head. The gentle breeze made it difficult for the vessel to turn about and the ship was carried in through the breakers and came to a grinding halt on a sandspit. Neither the sandspit nor the currants in the area were marked on Captain Forbes’ charts. The sails were left up in case the wind strengthened and the ship freed its self from the sand bar. However, the sails were eventually brought down and the anchor let go.
During the night, a lifeboat was launched to locate a safe spot to land the passengers. The boat returned and the crew advised Captain Forbes to wait until daybreak because heavy surf could easily overturn the small lifeboats.
At dawn, the ship’s Chief Officer saw the smoke of a distant steamer, the SS Queen. He sounded the signal guns to draw the steamship’s attention to the plight of the Schomberg.
The SS Queen, which was bound for Melbourne, approached the Schomberg and managed to take all passengers on board. Another steamer was sent by the Black Ball Line’s agent in Melbourne to collect passenger’s baggage.
Various steamers assisted with the unloading of cargo from the Schomberg, however when the weather changed for the worse, the task became impossible. Cargo was strewn over the beach and police had to patrol the area for looters.
The wreck and cargo were finally sold to a local firm of merchants however they did nothing to salvage what remained on board and the Schomberg was again sold to a Melbourne business man and two seafarers. Two of the partners drowned as they attempted to row to the Schomberg. After that, all salvage attempts were abandoned.
Back in Melbourne, following passenger’s complaints, an inquiry into the disaster and formal trial of Captain Forbes took place. Forbes, also known as Captain "bully" Forbes, was accused of neglect of duty. Some passengers told tales of dangerous sailing and of Forbes strutting around the Schomberg with a loaded revolver. All the officers on board the Schomberg were accused of being ungentle manly and immoral. Rumours spread of "half naked women" emerging from Captain Forbes’s cabin at all hours of the night.
Forbes was apparently playing cards with two female passengers when the Schomberg ran aground. By the time he came up on deck and gave orders it was too late.
Captain Forbes was finally acquitted on the grounds that there was not enough evidence to show he had not used every precaution necessary to save the ship. Following his acquittal there was a public outcry.