SS Penguin

SS Penguin was a New Zealand inter-island ferry steamer that sank off Cape Terawhiti near the entrance to Wellington Harbour in poor weather on 12 February 1909. Of the 105 passengers and crew on board, only 30 survived the sinking. This was New Zealand's worst maritime disaster of the 20th century.

Ship history
Penguin was built by Tod & McGregor of Glasgow, Scotland, for G. & J. Burns of Glasgow, and launched on 21 January 1864. Registered in Glasgow on 4 April 1864, she was finally sold to the Union Steamship Company in 1879, and was extensively refitted in 1882.

Sinking
Penguin departed Picton on 12 February 1909 bound for Wellington in good conditions. However by 8 p.m. the weather had deteriorated, with strong winds and poor visibility. At 10 p.m Captain Francis Naylor headed further out to sea until the weather cleared. However as the ship turned, it struck Thoms Rock, and water poured in. Although women and children were loaded into the lifeboats first, these foundered in the rough seas. Only one woman survived, and no children. Other survivors drifted for hours on rafts before reaching safety. As the Penguin sank, seawater flooded the engine room. As the cold water reached the red-hot boilers a huge explosion tore the ship apart.

Following the disaster, a half-day holiday was declared in Wellington to allow the many funerals to be held. About forty of the victims were buried in Karori Cemetery, where a self-guided walk now wanders past their grave sites.

A court of inquiry found the ship struck Thoms Rock, near the mouth to Karori Stream in Cook Strait. The captain maintained that it had struck the submerged hull of the Rio Loge, lost the month before.

On the 100th anniversary of the sinking, Wellington's mayor unveiled a plaque remembering the disaster at Tongue Point, near the site of the wreck.