page_title: SS Gothenburg
section_title: Survivors
hierarchical_section_title: SS Gothenburg / Shipwreck / Survivors
caption_attribution_description: English: Creator unknown. Black &amp; white photo held by the South Australia Museum records. The turtle shell was engraved by the 18 survivors of the SS Gothenburg who managed to reach Holbourne Island on two lifeboats in February 1875. It is believed, although not certain, that the photograph was taken by the Adelaide School of Photography in July 1875. Free of copyright restriction. The actual turtle shell was presented to the South Australia Museum in 1932 by Mr W.D. Cleland, brother of John Cleland, one of the survivors.
context_page_description: The SS Gothenburg was a steamship that operated along the British and then later the Australian and New Zealand coastlines. In February 1875, Gothenburg left Darwin, Australia and while en route to Adelaide it encountered a cyclone-strength storm off the north Queensland coast. The ship was wrecked on the Great Barrier Reef north-west of Holbourne Island on 24 February 1875. Survivors in one of the lifeboats were rescued two days later by Leichhardt, while the occupants of two other lifeboats that managed to reach Holbourne Island were rescued several days later. Twenty-two men survived, while between 98 and 112 others died, including a number of high-profile civil servants and dignitaries.
context_section_description: By morning of the 25 February, only the masts were visible protruding from the water, with 14 people clinging to the rigging, where they remained for the next twenty four hours in cyclonic weather. At low tide, Gothenburg sank stern first and the wreck fell apart. However, the remaining starboard lifeboat, which had capsized, was still held by her painter and the rope attached by Cleland. At first light on 26 February the weather eased and the survivors managed to right the boat and bail it out; they prepared a makeshift sail and paddled for the mainland. About seven hours later they realised they could not make mainland, so they altered course for an island that could be seen in the distance. When they arrived, they were met by four of the crew from one of the port lifeboats. Their lifeboat had been severely damaged on the rocks on the opposite side of the island in an attempt to land there the day before. 
  The other port lifeboat, with four crew on board, was picked up by the steamer Leichhardt at an island at the entrance to Whitsunday Passage. The steamer immediately reversed course back towards the wreck, which she reached at approximately 3.30 pm on Friday, 26 February. Gothenburg was a complete wreck; the funnel was gone and she had sunk to the eyes of the lower rigging. Leichhardt's Chief Officer and four hands went alongside, but nothing other than her masts could be seen above the water except for the body of a naked man floating nearby. They assumed the other victims had been taken by sharks. Leichhardt searched for survivors until last light and then made way for Bowen where the alarm was raised.
  At Holbourne Island, the other 18 survivors were living off raw bird's eggs and rain water that had pooled in the island rocks. Because rescue was uncertain, they engraved ship details and their names on the concave side of a large turtle shell, in the hope that it would be found in the future. On Sunday, 28 February 15 of them set off in the starboard lifeboat for an island about 20 miles away to the south, which appeared to be closer to the main shipping lane. A rescue ship, sent looking for survivors, picked up the group and took them safely to Bowen. Another rescue ship, Bunyip from Townsville, subsequently returned to Holbourne Island and rescued the three remaining survivors.
caption: Gothenburgs's Turtle Shell Roll
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