SS Taroona

SS Taroona was an Australian transport ship, built in Linthouse, a district of Glasgow, in 1934 by Alexander Stephen & Sons for the Tasmanian Steamers Pty Ltd. She was a steam turbine ship with a service speed of 18 knots but ran at 16 knots. When completed she weighed 4,286 tons; she commenced her run on Bass Strait in 1935 for the Tasmanian Steamers Pty Ltd. She served the Melbourne – Beauty Point – Melbourne – Devonport – Burnie then back to Melbourne route.

She was requisitioned for service as a troop ship in World War II by New Zealand. She carried troops from Auckland, New Zealand to Suva in January 1942, and in March 1942. On her return to the Bass Strait run she was almost immediately again requisitioned this time by Australia and taken over as a fast troop carrier. During her first trip to Port Moresby she carried 480 troops and supplies; on leaving Moresby she ran aground on a reef at the entrance where she remained for three days, helpless hard and fast aground. All attempts to refloat her using both engines and the assistance of navy vessels proved useless. The situation became serious when on several occasions Japanese bombers swept in to attack the Seven Mile aerodrome outside Port Moresby. Why they failed to attack Taroona remains a mystery. Finally aided by three naval vessels, she shook herself free.

In her war time career she travelled 204,535 miles and carried 93,432 troops and although frequently under fire during her ninety-four trips she remained unscathed.

Taroona arrived in Sydney 4 February 1946, ending her career as an Australian troop carrier. She was handed back to Tasmanian Steamers and joined the SS Nairana who had maintained a very busy schedule during Taroona’s absence including transporting troops from Tasmania to Melbourne.

In 1959, Taroona finished her dedication to Australia, being replaced by a ship more suitable for the times as motor cars where becoming very popular and Taroona could only take 30 which had to be winched aboard. Her replacement was the Princess of Tasmania, owned by Australian National Line and Tasmanian Steamers ceased to be.

Taroona was sold to Typaldos Lines, renamed Hellas and immediately taken over by her new crew and departed Australia for Greece. She was converted to a cruise ship and operated cruises around the Mediterranean until 1966 when she was laid up in Perama bay for the winter but never worked again after the SS Heraklion sank in big seas and the Typaldos line was found guilty. Subsequently all their ships were sold except SS Hellas and SS Athinai. Hellas remained laid-up at Elefsina bay until May 1989 when she was towed out of the bay to Aliağa in Turkey and scrapped.

(Taroona is a place in south east Tasmania, but the root of the name comes from an Aboriginal word meaning seashell.)