Did you know that Collaroy got its name from a paddle-steamer that ran aground in the area over a century ago?
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Over 140 years ago, the iron-hulled paddle-steamer SS Collaroy often sailed between Newcastle and Sydney. It was launched in 1853 in Birkenhead, England and named after a sheep station near Cassilis in the Hunter Valley.
Though the SS Collaroy enjoyed many years of service along the NSW coast, it met an ignoble end when it ran aground on the southern end of Narrabeen Beach in 1889. This stranded steamer became so well-known that the area eventually took on the name Collaroy Beach.
The paddle-steamer was built by John Laird and Son & Co in Birkenhead. Though originally launched with three masts in 1853, modifications in 1859 reduced the number of masts to two and increased the ship’s gross tonnage from 356 to 419 tons.
For most of its career, the Collaroy sailed without major incident. However, in 1875 it collided with the schooner Ida near Long Reef, causing serious damage.
Throughout its service along the NSW coast, the steamer proved a popular and reliable vessel, despite being slow. It was this lack of speed that led the ship’s master to sail too close to the coast in an attempt to make up for lost time.
On 20 January 1889, the ship left Newcastle bound for Sydney with cargo and passengers. Off Collaroy, it ran aground on the southern end of Narrabeen Beach, where it lay stranded for nearly four years in full view of passing ships.
The wreck of the ship became a landmark, drawing significant attention and even a visit from royalty. Although it took several decades for the name to become official, the southern end of Narrabeen Beach eventually became known as Collaroy Beach due to the grounded paddle steamer.
Other than Resolute Beach, Collaroy is the only suburb on Sydney’s Northern Beaches peninsula named after a shipwreck along its shores.
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The SS Collaroy itself faded into history. But its legacy remains in the name of the Sydney northern beaches suburb. So next time you’re in the beach, think of the old paddle-steamer that gave the suburb its name over a century ago.
Published 24-September-2023