‘Comboyne’, 1920

The ‘Comboyne’ was a 42-metre, 281-ton wooden screw steamer that had been built at Tuncurry in 1911. It was engaged in the timber trade for Allen Taylor & Co, timber merchants.

On 27th November 1920 the vessel reportedly struck a submerged or floating object whilst steaming off Bass Point. She was carrying a full cargo of timber and, at the time, was about a mile from shore. The collision caused the vessel to immediately leak very badly, and its pumps proved unable to cope with the water.

An attempt was made to beach the ‘Comboyne’, but she developed a dangerous list and began to settle. The crew took to the boats, and soon afterwards the vessel disappeared. A passing coaster picked them up and conveyed them to Kiama. They lost all their belongings.

The ‘Comboyne’ it seems was accident-prone: On 8th September 1912 she struck the end of the eastern breakwater of Port Kembla Harbour and sank before it was able to be beached. The vessel was refloated and was towed to Sydney for repairs; the day after it left Sydney on the first trip since it had been repaired (27th October 1912) it became stuck on a sand spit at the northern breakwater to Camden Haven Heads. A tug spent an hour towing the steamer off; On 5th October 1913 the steamer become stuck on the south spit of the bar at Camden Haven Heads, but was successfully refloated; on 20th May 1914, whilst again crossing the Camden Haven Bar, she ran aground but was refloated on that night's high tide; on 22nd March 1915, whist heading to Camden Haven, the port engine of the ‘Comboyne’ broke down, forcing her to slowly return to Sydney for repairs; and in 1918 she ran aground twice (in February and again in March) whilst crossing the bar at Narooma!!