Aarhus
Courtesy Danish National Archive
Courtesy Danish National Archive
Details
Year Built: 1875
Built: Hamburg
Description of Vessel : The Aarhus was a 640 ton iron barque.
Length: 170 feet (52 meters)
Breadth: 23 feet 6 inches (7.2 meters)
Depth: 17 feet six inches (5.33 meters)
Location of Shipwreck: Near Smith Rock, at the northern entrance to Moreton Bay. South-east Queensland.
History
The vessel was originally called theThalassa, but was renamed Aarhus in 1890. The Aarhus' last owner was J.H. Christensen. The vessel was wrecked near Cape Moreton on 24th February 1894. Her final voyage began in New York on 26th October 1893 under command of Captain Christian Gram. The Aarhus was carrying a general cargo for Brisbane including kerosene, rosin, plaster, canned goods, agricultural tools, sewing machines, ploughs, pumps and carriage wheels. Arriving off Moreton Island on 24th February 1894, Captain Gram sighted the Cape Moreton light and estimated the distance as 16 nautical miles. The weather was fine with a moderate wind from the south-east. At 7:15 p.m. Captain Gram signalled the lighthouse, which in turn signalled the pilot boat Governor Cairns. After this there are conflicting reports.
At 8 p.m., the Aarhus signalled again and the signal was returned from the pilot schooner. Believing that the pilot boat would be too slow in the failing light, Captain Gram decided it would be safer to stand off until morning. He believed he was six to ten miles from the lighthouse when in fact the distance was less than 2 miles. Attempting to reach open water to the north-east, the Aarhus struck Smith's Rock between 8:20 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. She began to take on water rapidly. Flares were fired and the pumps started. However, Captain Gram soon realised that he must abandon ship as the vessel was listing heavily. Two of the lifeboats were swamped and sank while being launched. The ship's dinghy was successfully launched and the captain, his wife, and all 13 crew escaped just before the Aarhus disappeared. It took only took ten minutes for her sink, but the survivors spent three hours in the boat before they managed to reach Yellow Patch beach on Moreton Island.
Dive the Aarhus
The following information is based on personal experience. Always check with authorities about local conditions before diving.
Diving Accessibility Rating: Moderate, challenging
Diving Highlight: Fish life is always prolific at the wreck. The site is exposed to south easterlies. The periodically shifting seabed makes for various levels of protection; more seabed cover generally means a better conservation environment
Best Diving Season: Winter months
Max depth: 21 meters depth on a sandy bottom and can be subject to strong currents
Getting There: 1.97 nautical miles off North Point (Moreton Island) and 2 nautical miles off Cape Moreton.
WGS84 Location: 26 ° 59.681' S; 153° 28.521' E
Permit: Required
Download a sketch of the dive site. - PDF 368 KB
Diving Video
Aarhus - Queensland Museum 2002
Flash Video - 6.5 Mb
Aarhus - Ian Banks 2008
Flash Video - 6.48 Mb
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Permits
A protected zone with a radius of 500 meters around the wreck's position has been proclaimed under the Section 7 of Commonwealth's Historic Shipwrecks Act 1976 [external link, opens in new window]. A permit is required to enter the zone and dive on the wreck. Several Bribie Island and Brisbane-based dive charter operators have permits to take divers to the protected zone.
If you go in a private vessel you will need to apply for your own permit.
Download a diving permit application form [new window 113 KB 
]