History | |
---|---|
Owner |
|
Builder | William Denny & Brothers |
Launched | 1848 |
Fate | Sank 1872 |
General characteristics | |
Type | steam ship |
Installed power | Horizontal trunk engine (1871–) |
Propulsion |
|
Sail plan | Schooner |
SS Xantho was a steam ship used in the colony of Western Australia as a pearling transport and mothership, as a tramp steamer, carrying passengers, including Aboriginal convicts and trade goods before she sank at Port Gregory, Western Australia in 1872. She was powered by a horizontal trunk engine, and was the first steamship to operate in north-western Australia.
The wreck was forgotten until 1979 when it was found. Subsequent investigations by the Department of Maritime Archaeology at the Western Australian Museum,[1] in concert with the Museum's Department of Conservation and Restoration saw the trunk engine recovered in 1985. In the ensuing years it was gradually restored for display at the museum.