The Loss of the SS Waratah

Monuments and Memory in Australia.

Australians are obsessed with monuments. In almost every town, city and park, didactic monuments and
memorials can be found scattered across the landscapei. When travelling across the country, historic
monuments, cairns and plaques assume prominent positions,
individualising collective memoriesii. We embrace
monuments as a way of paying homage to our understanding
of our picturesque historyiii. War memorials can be found in
almost every community nationwide, while certain events
have been immortalised in Australian memories. Cultural
narratives of nation building have eternalised heroic tales of
exploration, rebellion and democracy, inscribing these events
into bronze or stoneiv. These narratives inscribe the values of
national identity onto those seeking reassuring nationalismv.
For others in Australia, cultural narratives such as Gallipoli
have become religious objects and their monuments places to
remember those who were lostvi. Consequently, in
Australia’s short white history, certain historical events have
been forgotten or overshadowed by other greater or more well-known events. The beginning of 20th century
Australia is marked by Federation, women’s suffrage, the exploration of Sir Douglas Mawson and the
catastrophic loss of life during the Great War. We remember these events and people because they have been
documented extensively within Australia’s public monuments. Yet, the incredible narrative of the steam ship
Waratah has been lost amongst these historical events, jostling for public recognitionvii.

In 2014, the world and Australian nation were shocked to learn of the disappearance of the Malaysian
Airlines Flight MH370, somewhere in the Indian
Oceanviii. The disappearance and subsequent lack of
evidence sent the world into a frenzy of intrigue. How
could an airliner just disappear? For us, what makes
history interesting and remembered, is when history is
used to provide answers or suggestions for current day
problemsix. The mystery of the disappearance of flight
MH370 somewhere in the Indian Ocean, reopened the
105-year-old mystery of the Australian passenger liner,
the SS Waratah, also lost in the Indian Ocean.
A New Ship for a New
Nation
At the start of the 20th century, Australia was swept by a
wave of nationalistic pride, as the young nation came of
age. Australians saw themselves closely aligned with
Britain; however, the young nation was quickly finding its
feet as a prosperous, democratic societyx. To celebrate this,
Lund’s Blue Anchor Line Company gave the nation their
prize vessel, the elaborate steam ship ‘Waratah’, named
after the floral emblem of NSW. Australians, like their
Western counterparts, could now boast about owning a ‘big
ship’ to mark the new age. To own a big ship placed
Australia within competition of the European markets racing to accommodate European emigration to the
United States and the Pacificxi. Competition was fierce in Europe to create the fastest and most elaborate
passenger liner to win the Blue Riband transatlantic prizexii. In an age before air travel, luxurious passenger
liners offered emigrates a way to travel throughout the world in comfort. This would be the purpose of the
500ft long, 9339 tonne Waratah, that boasted eight state rooms, one hundred first-class cabins, a saloon and
luxurious music hallxiii. The Waratah was to carry a
new wave of immigration between Britain and
Australia, to accommodate the newly formed White
Australia Policy. Like the Waratah, many of these
great ships of the new age would prove no match
for the wild oceans of the world, not even the
unsinkable Titanic.

The SS Waratah was constructed in Glasgow. The

construction of the coal powered, twin-screwed
flagship Waratah was completed in 1908 and was
considered by many at the time to be unsinkablexiv.
Her maiden voyage to Australia was in the same
year. She left London bound for Adelaide on the 6th
of November under the careful guidance of
experienced and well respected Captain Ilberyxv. The SS Waratah reached Adelaide on the 15th of December
1908 and later Sydney on Christmas Eve.
All the estimated 689 passengers on board
reached Sydney reporting that the ship had
been a wonder to sail onxvi.

The Waratah returned to Australia in 1909,

on her second voyage. On her return voyage
back to London, she left Adelaide on the 7th
of Julyxvii. On board were 212 passengers
and crew mostly from Sydney and
Adelaidexviii. The Waratah was also carrying

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a heavy load of farming produce and 1000 tonnes of lead concentratesxix. On board the ship were Tasmanians
Alf Clarke and Jack Calder. Calder and Clarke were well known throughout Tasmania as champion wood
choppersxx. They had chosen to travel on the Waratah on their voyage to London to compete in a wood
chopping competition at the Royal Exhibition building. Another prominent member was a Mrs Hays who
was well-known in South Australiaxxi. Perhaps the most well-remembered passenger on the Waratah was
Claude Sawyer. Sawyer had boarded the ship at Sydney bound for London. Sawyer was an experienced sea
traveller and had travelled between Australia and London
beforexxii. Although this voyage would prove to be much
different.

Between Adelaide and Durban, Claude Sawyer had many

restless nights. Sawyer experienced a reoccurring dream
whereby a demonic figure would rise from the sea wielding a
blood dripping sword cursing the Waratahxxiii. Accounts of
Sawyer's dreams vary but all allude to the fact that Sawyer
believed the reoccurrence of the dream was a premonition and
one to not take lightly. The Waratah reached Durban on the
25th of July and had experienced a relatively uneventful trip. The dreams experienced by Sawyer were
enough for him to leave the Waratah in Durban. Sawyer telegraphed his wife explaining that he had left the
Waratah, as he “thought Waratah top-heavy”xxiv. Sawyer later
revealed that this was only an excuse to get off the ship.

Swallowed by the Sea

On the 27th of July, the Waratah left Durban minus Claude
Sawyer. The Waratah's destination was Cape Town in a journey
predicted to take four daysxxv. At 9.20 am the Waratah contacted
via flag signals the steamer Clan McIntyre and was never seen
againxxvi. The Clan McIntyre made it to Cape Town having
battled rough seas, but nothing out of the ordinary. Strangely, the
captain of the Clan McIntyre later proclaimed that on the night of
the Waratahs disappearance, he spotted in the distance the outline of a ship he believed to be the 'Flying
Dutchman' heading in
the same direction as
the Waratahxxvii. In
sea lore, sighting the
Flying Dutchman
spells disaster. There
were no immediate
fears for the
whereabouts of the
Waratah as it wasn't
unusual for ships to
be delayed in days
prior to telegraphic
communications.

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Four days passed and the Waratah had not been sighted sparking alarm for the Blue Anchor Line Company.
Thus, began a major search for the company's prize ship. The British Admiralty sent war ships within the
area to search for the Waratah, all trading vessels were asked to take alternative courses to search for the ship
and the Blue Anchor Line
Company chartered three
ships including the Sabine
to find the Waratahxxviii.

Naval experts and

experienced navigators
spent 88 days aboard the
Sabine as she searched
14,000 miles of oceanxxix.
The south islands in the
Indian Ocean were scoured
and no debris found. A
steamer, the SS Tottenham
reportedly observed the
body of what the crew
believed to be a young girl,
but this observation was
never provenxxx. In
December 1909, the search
efforts for the Waratah
ceased and the ship was
officially declared missing.
In the following year, due
to public donations, the
family members of the lost
passengers commissioned
the SS Wakefield to search for their loved ones. After months at sea, their search proved fruitless and the ship
was forced to return for homexxxi. What remained a mystery for even the most experienced of sea travellers
was the fact that no debris
had been found from such a
large vessel in one of the
world's most populated
shipping routes.

4
The news of the loss of the Waratah shocked the young Australian nation. Parliament sittings paused to
acknowledge the loss of life, Tasmanians Jack Calder and Alf Clarke were grieved for by the state of
Tasmaniaxxxii and the nations newspapers were flooded with revelations about the ships tragic fate. In 1910,
an official inquiry was launched whereby, former crew and passengers were questioned about the Waratah
and their experiences on board. This inquiry would continue the trend of bizarre stories that encompassed the
great ship. A Mr. Johnson was interviewed who had been a passenger on the Waratah's maiden voyage and
who was a close friend of the chief engineer Mr Hodder. Johnson and Hodder had met the night before the

Waratah had left Sydney in 1909xxxiii. The men conversed about their last voyage through the Backstairs
passage near Adelaide. The Waratah had been signalled to by the coastal lighthouse warning them that the
ship was about to run agroundxxxiv. Mr Hodder had exclaimed to Captain Ilbery "aren't you going to turn her
out?" Captain Ilbery replied "wait until I go down and get my glasses"xxxv. This incident had been enough for
Mr Hodder to question the Captain's ability to control the ship. A Mr Skailies had remarked to Mr Johnson
that "it’s a nice thing to feel all the time we're aboard that we may never reach another port"xxxvi. With over
forty years’ experience, Captain Ilbery was considered by many as a fine seaman. Passengers Mr Charles
Richard Campbell and Mr Robert G. Millar told the inquiry that they had never been on a more sea worthy
ship. Although, both men did remark on the fact that the Waratah had an unusual list where the ship would

5
lean to one side even in calm seas, sometimes taking hours to correct herselfxxxvii. Mr Millar also stated that
on one occasion the waves had been so high that they washed over the ship, knocking two passengers over
and entered the port holesxxxviii. Another witness claimed that while he was having a bath, the ship
experienced one of its extreme rolls and the water in his bath tub spilled onto the floor. When the ship
corrected itself, he noticed that the water in the tub remained unlevelled, meaning that the ship was possibly
alarmingly unbalancedxxxix.

An Australian gazette the ‘Newsletter’, while the inquiry was taking place had encouraged former crew
members to talk about their experiences on the Waratah. Six men came forward damningly stating that they
would rather die than spend another minute on the Waratahxl. They testified that the ship was a ‘floating
coffin’xli. On the ships, maiden voyage only six members of the entire crew were in fact crew members the
others being one voyage workers such as coal stockersxlii. These workers were dressed in Blue Anchor Line
uniforms and passed as crew members. They reported that the ship had rotting lifeboats and the unusual roll
was going to be the end of the shipxliii. Perhaps most damning was the report given by a junior engineer who
when embarking on the ship at Sydney, had run into Mr Hodder the chief engineer trying to flee the ship with
all his possessionsxliv. Yet, all this information resulted in a lack of evidence and the inquiry reached no
conclusive result.

The Newsletter also ran a story about a South African child seer who had experienced a similar dream to
Claude Sawyer the night the Waratah disappeared. The child claimed to have seen a great ship swallowed
by a gigantic wave.

Over the years, many theories as to what happened to the Waratah have been suggested from explosions,
rogue waves and supernatural theories. The most plausible of these explanations is the theory of the rogue
wave due to the strong Agulhas currents in the Indian Oceanxlv. Scientific knowledge is relatively limited on
rogue waves and rogue waves have only been taken seriously since the 1960'sxlvi. Although, no ship has been
known to have been swallowed by a rogue wavexlvii. If the Waratah had been swallowed by a rogue wave
aided by the ships uneven roll, then an explanation of why no debris was found could be provided. If a rogue
wave had swallowed the Waratah, it could have possibly sucked everything to the bottom of the ocean
wherever the ship lies.

South African marine archaeologist Emlyn Brown and Clive Cussler have spent 30 years searching for the SS
Waratah. Using the latest modern day technology and examining all possible accounts of the last sighting of
the ship. Emlyn Brown concluded painfully, in 2004 that he had “exhausted all options and had no idea
where to look”xlviii.

6
Remembering the SS Waratah
Fascinating tale I know. In terms of mysteries of the sea, the tale of the SS Waratah is equal to that of the
Mary Celestexlix. But is that all the Waratah will ever be, a fascinating tale? The loss of the Waratah has been
overshadowed by other major events of the time, especially the loss the RMS Titanic in 1912 and the
enormous death tolls of the First World War. Only has public awareness once again resurfaced for the
Waratah as a link to the lost MH370 flight, with information scattered across online blogs. Yet, tragically, the
facts about the disappearance of the SS Waratah are often masked by the mysterious and intriguing events
that encompass the ships two voyages. In a maritime mystery that stems beyond Australia, it is tragic that a
greater monument beyond the small plaque in Queenscliffe, Victoria has not been dedicated to the lives lost
on the SS Waratah, the Titanic of the South.

7
i
Paul Ashton & Paula Hamilton, ‘Connecting with history: Australians and their past’ in Paul Ashton & Hilda Kean (eds.), People
and their Pasts (London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009), 23.
ii
Jane Lydon, ‘Driving by’: Visiting Australian colonial monuments, Journal of Social Archaeology, 5/1, (2005), 109.
iii
Ashton and Hamilton 2009, 23.
iv
Ann Curthoys and Ann McGrath, ‘How to write history that people want to read’ (University of NSW Press, 2009), 15.
v
T Sheckles, ‘Australian Film’, in N Birns and R Mineer (ed.), A companion to Australian literature since 1900 (Boydell and
Brewer, 2009).
vi
B Kapferer, Legends of People Myths of State: Violence, Intolerance, and Political Culture in Sri Lanka (New York: Berghahn
Books, 2011).
vii
Janis Wilton, Museums and Memories: Remembering the Past in Local and Community Museums, Public History Review,
vol.12, (2006), 8.
viii
Samuel Davey, Neil Gordon, Ian Holland, Mark Rutten & Jason Williams, Bayesian Methods in the Search for MH370
(Singapore: Springer, 2016), 1.
ix
Edward Hallett Carr, What is history? (Camberwell, Victoria: Penguin, 2008), 8.
x
Vanessa Collingridge, The Story of Australia (Victoria: The Five Mile Press, 2008), 59.
xi
Tom McCluskie, Michael Sharpe & Leo Marriott, Titanic & Her Sisters Olympic and Britannic (London: Parkgate Books, 1998,
63.
xii
Ibid.
xiii
J Haynes, The Best Australian Yarns: And Other True Stories, (Sydney: Allen & Unwin, 2013).
Flinders Ranges Research, ‘The Lost Ship’, (website), https://www.southaustralianhistory.com.au/waratah.htm, viewed 10th
xiv

September 2018.
xv
Ibid.
xvi
Ibid.
xvii
Ibid.
xviii
Pauline Conolly, The mystery of the Waratah, Quadrant, 56/5, (2012), 85.
xix
SS Waratah inquiry-evidence seaworthiness, D, 596, National Archives, Canberra.
xx
Pauline Conolly 2012, 85.
xxi
Ibid.
xxii
P Taylor, Great Australian Tales, (Victoria: The Five Mile Press Pty Ltd, 2005), 216.
xxiii
Ibid.
xxiv
‘The Mystery of the “Waratah”, The Braidwood Dispatch and Mining Journal, 12 th March 1910, New South Wales.
xxv
J Haynes, 2013, 129.
xxvi
Peter Ilbery, ‘The loss of the Waratah 1909, Journal of the Royal Australian Historical Society, 82/1 (1996).
xxvii
J Haynes, 2013,129.
xxviii
Peter Ilbery, 1996.
xxix
Ibid.
xxx
Pauline Conolly, 2012, 86.
xxxi
Ibid.
xxxii
Ibid.
xxxiii
SS Waratah Inquiry, Canberra, 1910, A5522, National Archives of Australia.
8
xxxiv
Ibid.
xxxv
Ibid.
xxxvi
Ibid.
xxxvii
Ibid.
xxxviii
Ibid.
xxxix
Ibid.
xl
‘The Waratah Scandal, The Newsletter: An Australian Paper for Australian People, 19 th March 1910, Sydney, (online database).
‘Waratah inquiry Humbug’ The Newsletter: An Australian Paper for Australian People, 2 nd April 1910, Sydney, (online
xli

database).
xlii
‘The Waratah Scandal, The Newsletter: An Australian Paper for Australian People, 19 th March 1910, Sydney, (online database).
xliii
Ibid.
xliv
Ibid.
xlv
Anonymous, Science and Technology: Monsters of the deep; Rogue waves, (The Economist, 2009), 94.
xlvi
Ibid.
xlvii
Ibid.
xlviii
Pauline Conolly, 2012, 87.
xlix
Lionel & Patricia Fanthorpe, Unsolved Mysteries of the Sea (Dundurn, 2004), 77.

Bibliography

Primary:

SS Waratah inquiry-evidence seaworthiness, D, 596, National Archives of Australia, Canberra.

SS Waratah Inquiry, Canberra, 1910, A5522, National Archives of Australia, Canberra.

The Sydney Morning Herald, ‘The Waratah Search Ship’, Wednesday 16th February 1910, 8.

‘The Waratah Scandal, The Newsletter: An Australian Paper for Australian People, 19th March 1910,
Sydney, (online database).

‘Waratah inquiry Humbug’ The Newsletter: An Australian Paper for Australian People, 2nd April 1910,
Sydney, (online database).

Secondary:

Anonymous, Science and Technology: Monsters of the deep; Rogue waves, (The Economist, 2009), 94.

Ashton, P & Hamilton, P ‘Connecting with history: Australians and their past’ in Paul Ashton & Hilda Kean
(eds.), People and their Pasts (London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009), 23.

Carr, H.E, what is history? (Camberwell, Victoria: Penguin, 2008), 8.

Collingridge, V, The Story of Australia (Victoria: The Five Mile Press, 2008), 59.

9
Conolly, Pauline, The mystery of the Waratah, (Quadrant, 56/5, 2012), 85-87.

Curthoys, A and McGrath, A, ‘How to write history that people want to read’ (University of NSW Press,
2009), 15.
Davey, S, Gordon, N, Holland, I, Rutten, M & Williams, J, Bayesian Methods in the Search for MH370
(Singapore: Springer, 2016), 1.

Fanthorpe, L & Fanthorpe, P, Unsolved Mysteries of the Sea (Dundurn, 2004).

Flinders Ranges Research, ‘The Lost Ship’, (website),

https://www.southaustralianhistory.com.au/waratah.htm, viewed 10th September 2018.

Haynes J, The Best Australian Yarns: And Other True Stories, (Sydney: Allen & Unwin, 2013).

Ilbery, Peter, The Loss of the Waratah 1909, (Journal of the Royal Australian Historical Society, 82/1, 1996).

Kapferer, B, Legends of People Myths of State: Violence, Intolerance, and Political Culture in Sri Lanka
(New York: Berghahn Books, 2011).

Lydon, J, ‘Driving by’: Visiting Australian colonial monuments, Journal of Social Archaeology, 5/1, (2005),
109.

McCluskie, T, Sharpe, M & Marriott, L, Titanic & Her Sisters Olympic and Britannic (London: Parkgate
Books, 1998, 63.

Sheckles, T, ‘Australian Film’, in N Birns and R Mineer (ed.), A companion to Australian literature since
1900 (Boydell and Brewer, 2009).

Taylor P, Great Australian Tales, (Victoria: The Five Mile Press Pty Ltd, 2005), 216-217.

The Mystery of the “Waratah”, The Braidwood Dispatch and Mining Journal, 12th March 1910, New South
Wales.

Wilton, J, Museums and Memories: Remembering the Past in Local and Community Museums, Public
History Review, vol.12, (2006), 8.

Images
(Figure 1) Monument of Burke and Wills 1865, Charles Nettleton Charles 1880, State Library of Victoria,
(online database), accessed 7th October 2018.

(Figure 2) Lund’s Blue Anchor Line TSS “Waratah, 1909, [image],

https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/730498002032181310/, accessed 7th October 2018.

(Figure 3) First-class music saloon of the Waratah, [Image], (2018), http://historydaily.org/the-nautical-

mystery-of-the-ss-waratah, accessed 7th October 2018.
10
(Figure 4) Launch of Lund’s Blue Anchor Liner Waratah, 1908, [image], (2015),
https://molegenealogy.blogspot.com/2015/07/countdown-to-waratah-anniversary.html, accessed 7th October
2018.

(Figure 5) SS Waratah at Port Adelaide 1909, State Library of South Australia (online database), accessed 7th
October 2018.

(Figure 6) Green, A Waratah 1909, State Library of Victoria, (online database), accessed 7th October 2018.

(Figure 7) Duffy, A ‘Waratah’, State Library of Western Australia, (online database), accessed 7th October
2018.

(Figure 8) ‘The Search For The Missing Waratah’, The Daily Telegraph 1909, SS Waratah Inquiry,
Canberra, 1910, A5522, National Archives of Australia, (online database), accessed 7th October 2018.

(Figure 9) ‘Where is the Waratah?’ The Daily Telegraph 1909, SS Waratah Inquiry, Canberra, 1910, A5522,
National Archives of Australia, (online database), accessed 7th October 2018.

(Figure 10) ‘Recent Search For The Waratah’, The Daily Telegraph 1909, SS Waratah Inquiry, Canberra,
1910, A5522, National Archives of Australia, (online database), accessed 7th October 2018.

(Figure 11) Captain J.E Ilbery, 1904, [image], (2018), http://historydaily.org/the-nautical-mystery-of-the-ss-

waratah, accessed 7th October 2018.

(Figure 12) Lund’s Blue Anchor Line, T.S.S Waratah 1908, SS Waratah Inquiry, Canberra, 1910, A5522,
National Archives of Australia, (online database), accessed 7th October 2018.
(Figure 13) Waratah in heavy seas, [image], (2013), https://molegenealogy.blogspot.com/2013/07/, accessed
7th October 2018.
(Figure 14) SS Waratah plaque 2009, Queenscliffe Maritime Museum, (online database), accessed 7th
October 2018.

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