SS Iron Crown

SS Iron Crown was an Australian cargo steamship that was built in 1922 for the Commonwealth Line as Euroa, named after the town of Euroa in the state of Victoria. Broken Hill Propriatary (BHP) acquired her in 1923, renamed her Iron Crown, and used her as an iron ore carrier. A Japanese submarine sank her in World War II.

History
Australia
Name	1922: Euroa 1923: Iron Crown
Namesake	1922: Euroa
Owner	1922: Commonwealth Line 1923: Interstate Steamships Pty Ltd
Operator	1923: Broken Hill Pty
Port of registry	1922: Melbourne 1923: Sydney
Builder	Williamstown Dockyard
Launched	27 January 1922
Completed	1922
Identification	UK official number 151806 until 1933: code letters THSB by 1930: call sign VJDK
Fate	sunk, 4 June 1942
General characteristics
Type	cargo ship
Tonnage	3,353 GRT, 1,922 NRT
Length	331.0 ft (100.9 m)
Beam	47.9 ft (14.6 m)
Draught	23 ft 10 in (7.26 m)
Depth	23.6 ft (7.2 m)
Decks	1
Installed power	387 NHP
Propulsion	1 × triple-expansion engine 1 × screw
Crew	43

History

Williamstown Dockyard built the ship for the Australian Commonwealth Shipping Board's Commonwealth Line. She was launched on 27 January 1922 as Euroa,^[1] and registered in Melbourne.^[2] In December 1923 BHP acquired her, renamed her Iron Crown,^[3] and registered her in Sydney.^[4]

On 4 June 1942 Iron Crown, was en route from Whyalla in South Australia to Newcastle, New South Wales when Japanese submarine I-27 sank her by torpedo 71 km (44 mi) south-southwest of Gabo Island. 38 of her 43 crew members were killed. Mulbera rescued survivors.^[5]

George Fisher, the last survivor, was aged 18 when the ship sank, and died in 2012.^[6]

Wreckage discovery

In April 2019 it was announced that the wreck of Iron Crown had been located by marine archaeologists aboard CSIRO research vessel RV Investigator at a depth of 700 metres (2,300 ft), about 100 kilometres (54 nmi) off the coast of Victoria.^[7]

Official number and code letters

Official numbers were a forerunner to IMO Numbers. Iron Crown's UK official number was 151806. Her code letters were THSB until 1933. By 1930 her wireless telegraph call sign was VJDK.^[8]

References

1. "New Commonwealth Steamer". The Age. Melbourne. 28 January 1922. p. 16. Retrieved 24 April 2019 – via Trove.
2. Lloyd's Register 1923, EUG–EUR.
3. "Euroa Renamed". Daily Commercial News and Shipping List. Sydney. 18 December 1923. p. 4. Retrieved 24 April 2019 – via Trove.
4. Lloyd's Register 1924, IRO–IRT.
5. "Broken Hill Proprietary". Mercantile Marine. Archived from the original on 9 March 2014. Retrieved 18 June 2012.
6. "Long-lost shipwreck found off Victorian coast, 77 years after being torpedoed by Japanese submarine in WWII". www.msn.com. Archived from the original on 24 April 2019. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
7. Howarth, Carla (23 April 2019). "Long-lost shipwreck found off Victorian coast, 77 years after being torpedoed by Japanese submarine in WWII". ABC News. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
8. Mercantile Navy List 1930, p. 266.

Bibliography

• Lloyd's Register of Shipping. Vol. II.–Steamers and Motor Vessels. London: Lloyd's Register of Shipping. 1922 – via Internet Archive.
• Lloyd's Register of Shipping. Vol. II.–Steamers and Motor Vessels. London: Lloyd's Register of Shipping. 1923 – via Internet Archive.
• Lloyd's Register of Shipping. Vol. II.–Steamers and Motorships. London: Lloyd's Register of Shipping. 1924 – via Internet Archive.
• Lloyd's Register of Shipping. Vol. II.–Steamers and Motorships of 300 tons gross and over. London: Lloyd's Register of Shipping. 1934 – via Southampton City Council.
• Mercantile Navy List. London. 1930 – via Crew List Index Project.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

External links

• Australian National Shipwreck Database: SS Iron Crown^{[permanent dead link]}