SS Bee (1884)

The SS Bee, was an Australian wooden steamship built in 1884 and wrecked in 1901. The ship was built in 1884 in Newcastle, New South Wales for the Watson Ferry Service, who operated it on their Manly to Sydney ferry service from 1884.

Robert Hayles Snr., the owner of a resort in Picnic Bay, Magnetic Island purchased the vessel in 1899 to transport holiday makers to and from Picnic Bay from Townsville. The vessel sunk in October 1900 but was refloated and continued service for Hayles. On 17 March 1901 the ship cast off from Picnic Bay Jetty during heavy seas. Attempting to depart, the vessel's chain steerage gear became jammed. The vessel, unable to maneuver correctly, was taken broadsides by the heavy seas and washed up on the nearby beach at Picnic Bay. Efforts to save the vessel failed and within two days the vessel was deemed un-salvageable.

The vessel's wreck lies on the beach at the mouth of the unnamed creek at the western end of Picnic Bay. While generally not visible, the wreck is sometimes visible following extreme weather events, which erode sand from the beach revealing the wreck. The SS Bee earned historical notability as the first of Robert Hayles' ferry fleet. Hayles' Magnetic Island ferry service, eventually operated under the business name ''Hayles Magnetic Island Pty. Ltd.'', serviced Magnetic Island for over 80 years and eventually came to operate a number of passenger and cargo services through ports around northern Australia.