Welcome to the Admella and the events that will commemorate the 150th Anniversary of her destruction on Carpenter Rocks, 20 miles west of Cape Northumberland, South Australia.

The SS Admella was a steam ship of 209 tons (212 tonnes) also fitted with three masts and sails. Her length was 55.6 metres. She left Port Adelaide at 5.30am on Friday 5 August 1859 bound for Melbourne. Early the following morning she ran onto Carpenter Rocks that lie a few kilometres offshore of South Australia, almost due South of the current town of Millicent.

Over the next 8 days, 89 people lost their lives but miraculously, about 24 survived, most of them hanging onto the wreck in raging winter seas for that 8-day period. There was little food and virtually no water and many acts of heroism. Click here for the story of the wreck of the Admella.

Many ships were wrecked along this part of the Australian coast, both before and after the wreck of the Admella, but this wreck is arguably the most famous. It is this fame that has brought together the local governments (councils) of the areas most impacted by the wreck, to create a series of events to mark the 150th anniversary in 2009.

Those Councils are the District Council of Grant, which includes Carpenter Rocks and Port MacDonnell, the Glenelg Shire Council, which includes the City of Portland in Victoria, the City of Mount Gambier, the Wattle Range Council, and the Kingston District Council. The purpose of this commemoration is to raise awareness of the importance of this historical event, to educate the next generation of Australians and to provide a mechanism to identify descendants of all those involved in the wreck and the subsequent rescue attempts, with the hope of bringing as many as possible of them together in August 2009.

Are you a descendant of someone connected to the wreck of the Admella? If so, click here to go to the Registration Form.