PS Young Australian
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
PS Young Australian was a paddle steamer that was lost on the Roper River in what is now the Northern Territory of Australia.[1]
_Cropped_from_original.png)
Wreck of the PS Young Australian in the Roper River, April 1889. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 South Australia | |
| Name | Young Australian |
| Operator | Charles Todd |
| Builder | Money Wigram & Sons |
| Commissioned | 12 October 1853 |
| Stricken | February 1873 |
| Fate | Sunk, 30 December 1872 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Paddle steamer |
| Tonnage | 92.59 GRT |
| Length | 28.23 m (92.6 ft) |
| Beam | 4.87 m (16 ft) |
| Draught | 2.5 m (8 ft) |
| Sail plan | Schooner |
| Complement | 7 crew |
In 1854, Young Australian was driven ashore at Cape Northumberland in South Australia.[2] It serviced the Roper River in the Northern Territory for twenty years before sinking in 1872 while bringing supplies for the overland telegraph work crews at Roper Bar.[3] Young Australian sunk upstream from the settlement at Ngukurr,[4][5] and can still be seen in the river on the edge of the Limmen National Park.[citation needed]
In 1980, the wreck site was listed on the now-defunct Register of the National Estate.[6]
Young Australian received an Engineering Heritage Marker from Engineers Australia as part of its Engineering Heritage Recognition Program.[1]
