ALTHOUGH the Surf Beach at Inverloch has taken a beating over the last few days, one opportune item to have been uncovered was the Amazon Shipwreck.
The Secretary of the Amazon Project 1863, Karyn Bugeja took photos of the relic between tidal surges over the weekend.
While this is a rare and exciting uncovering, the Amazon Project 1863 committee urge people who may come across any dislodged and floating or marooned objects that appear to be part of the ship to contact them.
In particular, a section of the decorative railing was revealed over the weekend but has since disappeared and Heritage Victoria are very keen to see the carving on it and document the important item as part of preserving the history of the ship.
Anyone who finds parts of what may belong to the wreckage contact secretary@amazon1863.org.au.
Short history of the Amazon by Heritage Victoria
The Amazon shipwreck is an archaeologically significant example of an international wooden trading ship from the mid-19th century. While Victoria has several iron and steel international cargo carrying shipwrecks, the Amazon is rare as a very early example of a wooden international cargo carrier.
Amazon was built in 1855 at Jersey, one of the British Channel islands. The three-masted barque soon entered the international cargo trade operating between the UK, Australia and South America.
On 12 December 1863, Amazon left Melbourne bound for Mauritius with a cargo of salted meats. During a storm, some vital sails were damaged and Amazon began to drift close to shore. By 10am on 14 December, the vessel ran aground onto the beach at Inverloch where it currently remains.
The crew were exhausted after remaining on deck for 48 hours straight, and did not make it to shore until 3pm in the afternoon. They set up tents on the beach the next day and searched the nearby area for signs of inhabitants.
Nobody was sighted until the 21 December when a Mr Heales was passing close by and saw a distress flag flying. He escorted Captain Ogier to Melbourne who raised the alarm. The crew remained near the Amazon and were soon rescued by H.M.C.S Victoria.
Wreck Creek at Inverloch, near where the Amazon came ashore in December 1863, is named after the incident.
