Historical information
The MV Duntroon is of historical and social interest to Queenscliffe primarily due to its involvement in the collision and loss of all hands of HMAS Goorangai near the Rip. It also continued to work as an interstate sea liner up to the 1960s.
Physical description
Cups, plates and saucers with the crest of the Melbourne Steamship Co and an art deco edge pattern
Inscriptions & markings
Crest: Melbourne Steamship Co.
Base: C Mc D Mann and Co. Ltd. Hanley Staffs and 101 Leadenhall St. London.
Made in England
Subjects
References
- The MV Duntroon was a 10,346 ton passenger liner built for the Melbourne Steam Ship Co. by Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson's yard, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, in 1935. One of the last purpose-built passenger & general cargo ships for the Australian coastal trade, the Duntroon was also known for its role as a troopship (1942-1949) and for the tragic incident on 20 November 1940 when she hit and sank the small auxiliary minesweeper HMAS Goorangai off Queenscliff with the loss of all 24 of Goorangai's crew. This was the first RAN ship to be lost during the Second World War. In November 1943, Duntroon collided with the US Navy destroyer USS Perkins (DD-377) off the north coast of New Guinea which resulted in the sinking of the Perkins with the loss of four lives. In 1945, the Duntroon carried former prisoners of war back to Australia. After being used for Pacific cruise services from Australia in the 1950s, Duntroon was sold and used on Pakistan-East African routes (as MV Lydia) until 1967 and was scrapped at Taiwan in 1973. The ship's bell is preserved at the Royal Military College, Duntroon in Canberra as part of a memorial to RMC graduates killed on active service.
- IN 1940 there was naval action between Australia and Germany in Australian waters. This resulted in the loss of merchant seamen and ships, and indirectly the loss of an Australian naval vessel, HMAS Goorangai and its whole complement of 24 officers and sailors. German Armed Merchant Raider Pinguin and its auxiliary Passat laid six minefields in Australia between 28 October and 7 November 1940. Passat minefields were laid in east and west Bass Strait. These minefields quickly claimed merchant ships Cambridge (British) at the eastern end of Bass Strait and the City of Rayville (American) at the western end of Bass Strait on 7 and 9 November respectively.3 They both lost one sailor each whilst abandoning ship. The American sailor in City of Rayville was the first American sailor lost in WWII through hostilities.
