SS Iron Crown

SS Iron Crown was a 3,353 GRT Australian iron ore carrier which was sunk during World War II by a Japanese submarine.

History
Australia
Name: Iron Crown
Owner:
  • Australian Commonwealth Shipping Board (1922–1923)
  • Interstate Steamships Pty Ltd (1923–1942)
Operator: BHP Shipping
Port of registry: Sydney, Australia
Builder: Commonwealth Government Dockyard, Williamstown
Launched: 27 January 1922
Identification:
  • UK Official Number 151806
  • Code Letters VJDK
Fate: Torpedoed by Japanese submarine I-27 on 4 June 1942
General characteristics
Tonnage: 3,353 GRT
Length: 331 ft (100.89 m)
Beam: 47 ft 9 in (14.55 m)
Depth: 23 ft 6 in (7.16 m)
Propulsion: 1 x triple expansion steam engine (Thompson & Co) 387 hp (289 kW)

History

Iron Crown was built at Williamstown Dockyard as part of the Commonwealth line of steamers for the Australian Commonwealth Shipping Board. She was launched on 27 January 1922 as Euroa,[1] before being renamed Iron Crown in December 1923[2] and homeported in Sydney under the British Flag.[3]

On 4 June 1942, Iron Crown, while en route from Whyalla in South Australia to Newcastle in New South Wales, was torpedoed and sunk 71 km (44 mi) SSW of Gabo Island by I-27. Out of her 43 crew members whom she was carrying, 38 were killed, with the survivors being picked up by SS Mulbera.[4]

George Fisher, the last survivor, who was aged 18 when the ship sank, died in 2012.[5]

Wreckage discovery

In April 2019, it was announced that the wreckage of Iron Crown had been located by marine archaeologists aboard CSIRO research vessel RV Investigator in 700 metres of water around 100 km off the coast of Victoria.[6]

Official number and code letters

Official numbers were a forerunner to IMO Numbers. Iron Crown had the UK Official Number 151806 and used the Code Letters VJDK. [3]

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References
  1. "New Commonwealth Steamer: Steamer Euroa successfully launched". The Age. 28 January 1922. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
  2. "Euroa Renamed". Daily Commercial News and Shipping List. 18 December 1923. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
  3. "Llyods Register 1938–39" (PDF). Plimsoll Ship Data. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
  4. "Broken Hill Proprietary". Mercantile Marine. Retrieved 18 June 2012.
  5. "Long-lost shipwreck found off Victorian coast, 77 years after being torpedoed by Japanese submarine in WWII". www.msn.com. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
  6. 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.
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