Thread: Washed up

It's imposable to say for sure, but some assumptions can be made. Since it's a "grown" knee, it's probably a transom or deck support of some kind. The fastening locations also suggest this type of use.

I would have to agree with PAR, It looks like a grown Knee and I imagine that the boat was fairly substantial by the size of the timber, pity you cannot salvage it for conversation piece at home.

Jeff
vk4

Might be worth enquiring at the museum.
Have there been any substantial historic wrecks off that bit of coast?
Maybe 'the mahogany ship' isn't along the Warnambool coast any more... ?

I'm hoping it'll dry out enough where it is so I can attempt to get some wheels under it, that's unless the spring tides and storms don't beat me to it, let alone someone else, but they'd have to be keen to lug it's weight.

Best I've come up with so far is from a Heritage Victoria listing:

UNIDENTIFIED: SOMERS BEACH

The discovery in 1991 of unidentified wreckage at Somers has provided another mystery. It is from a wooden vessel of about 350 tons, but it has not been positively associated with any known wrecks in the area.

And coincidentally:

Flinders University, Section navigation, 2012 Field Schools and Short Courses

This year the topic will be run in cooperation with Heritage Victoria. Phillip Island is located about 140km kilometres south/southeast of Melbourne and forms a natural barrier for the waters of Western Port. The 2012 Flinders University maritime archaeology field school will include a shipwreck survey of McHaffie Reef plus a study of a land-based shipwreck Speke (1891–1906).

The two earliest ships wrecked on McHaffie Reef may be the cutter Jane and Emma, lost in 1840 while en route from Melbourne to Westernport, or the schooner John Essie, which wrecked in 1849. It was during the 1913 salvage efforts of the dredge Dandenong, which had foundered on the reef, that an older shipwreck was discovered, potentially one of the aforementioned. Maritime archaeologists from Heritage Victoria inspected the McHaffie Reef shipwreck sites in the 1980s and confirmed that one of them dates possibly to the mid 19th century. The vessel’s remains are partially intact, are of wooden construction, and have an estimated length of 20 yards. The goals of the 2012 field school are to date, identify, and record the shipwrecks on McHaffie Reef, and facilitate further maritime archaeological studies of Western Port Bay.