HMAS Coogee

History
Name	Lancashire Witch (1887–88) Coogee (1888–1928)
Owner	New IoM Steam Nav Co (1887–88) Huddart Parker (1888–1927) G Allen (1927–28)
Operator	As owners except: Royal Australian Navy (1918–19)
Port of registry	Liverpool (1887–88) Melbourne (1888–1928)
Builder	J.L. Thompson and Sons, Sunderland
Yard number	224
Launched	23 March 1887
Completed	9 May 1887
Identification	UK official number 93722
Fate	Scrapped and hulk scuttled in 1928
General characteristics
Type	ferry
Tonnage	762 GRT, 286 NRT
Length	225.0 ft (68.6 m)
Beam	30.2 ft (9.2 m)
Depth	13.5 ft (4.1 m)
Installed power	281 NHP
Propulsion	1 × triple-expansion steam engine 1 × screw

HMAS Coogee was a passenger ferry that briefly served as a Royal Australian Navy armed patrol vessel and minesweeper in the latter part of the First World War. She was launched in 1887 and scuttled in 1928.

History

J.L. Thompson and Sons built her at North Sands, Sunderland as Lancashire Witch, launching her on 23 March 1887 and completing her on 9 May. John Dickinson and Son of Monkwearmouth built her triple-expansion steam engines.

The New Isle of Man Steam Navigation Company had ordered her to be a ferry between Liverpool and the Isle of Man. However, in 1888 Huddart Parker bought her, renamed her Coogee and registered her in Melbourne.

On 20 May 1918 the Royal Australian Navy requisitioned Coogee and commissioned her as a minesweeper for the Bass Strait and as an armed patrol vessel. In 1919 the RAN returned her to her owners. In 1921 the Postmaster-General's Department chartered her to repair the Bass Strait cable.

Fate

In 1927 Huddart Parker sold Coogee for scrap. Her engines were removed and she was scuttled outside Port Phillip Bay in 1928 at . The wreck is now a popular dive site.