TSS Kanowna TSS " Kanowna " , was an Australian steamer built during 1902 . The 6 , 993 - ton , long " Kanowna " was constructed by William Denny and Brothers of Dumbarton , Scotland , and had a twin screw design . Operational history . " Kanowna " was operated by the Australian United Steam Navigation Company ( AUSNC ) , and it served the Sydney to Fremantle route . During August and September 1914 , " Kanowna " was requisitioned by the Australian military to transport 1 , 000 soldiers to German New Guinea as part of the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force . Sailing late from Townsville on 8 August , the ship was forced to anchor off Thursday Island until 16 August , and did not arrive off Port Moresby until 6 September . The expeditionary force sailed the next day for Rabaul , but " Kanowna " fell behind the rest of the convoy , with the ship ' s master signalling to that his crew had mutinied : the boiler stokers and firemen had stopped work . In Arthur Jose ' s Royal Australian Navy - focused volume of the " Official History of Australia in the War of 1914 – 1918 " , he claims that the mutiny was because these men refused to leave Australian waters , but Tom Frame and Kevin Baker state in " Mutiny ! " that this is incorrect ; the troopship was on short rations of food and water because of the delays sailing north and only minimal resupply in Port Moresby , but the stokers and firemen were requesting more water to remain hydrated in the hot boilerrooms and to wash off coal grime , and refused to work until this demand was met . The workers were taken into the custody of a party of soldiers , and the force ' s commander ordered " Kanowna " to return to Townsville , with soldiers volunteering to keep the ship running . The Australian Commonwealth Naval Board conducted an inquiry into the mutiny , even though as a civilian vessel , " Kanowna " technically wasn ' t under their jurisdiction . The state of the supplies was seen as a major contributing factor to the sailors ' actions . " Kanowna " was returned to her owners on 21 September . On 1 June 1915 , the vessel was requisitioned again for military service . " Kanwona " transported soldiers and supplies to Egypt , then made for England , where she was modified for use as a hospital ship . After completion , " Kanowna " could carry 452 wounded in cots , along with a medical staff of 88 in addition to her regular crew . Sailing in September , " Kanowna " was used to transport Royal Army Medical Corps personnel to locations throughout the Mediterranean , then collected wounded Australian personnel and transported them home . This was the ship ' s role for the next four years , although some runs were made to England with British wounded . In May 1917 , the unrestricted submarine warfare campaign forced the ship to sail around Africa instead of through the Mediterranean : the nurses and medical staff were transported overland from Durban to London , and used to supplement hospital personnel until " Kanowna " arrived in July . In October 1918 , after the war ' s end , the hospital ship was sent to collect 900 British and Commonwealth prisoners - of - war that had been interred in Turkey . " Kanowna " was returned to the AUSNC on 29 July 1920 , and she resumed passenger and cargo service . Fate . On 18 February 1929 , " Kanowna " ran into rocks near Cleft Island while on a voyage between Sydney and Melbourne . Passengers were transferred to . Although it was initially thought that " Kanowna " could be saved by beaching , the ship ' s boilers had gone out . The crew were taken aboard , and " Kanowna " sank the following morning . A court of inquiry found the ship ' s master at fault for the loss , as he did not slow his ship or exercise due caution in the foggy conditions . The wreck of " Kanwona " is one of Victoria ' s largest shipwrecks . The exact location of the shipwreck was unknown until 2005 . On 23 April , four divers found a shipwreck into Bass Strait and submerged in approximately of water , which was believed to be the former merchant ship . A more detailed inspection of the wreck site on 8 May allowed the divers to match the wreck with drawings of " Kanowna " .