The SS Friendship was an Australian cargo vessel constructed in 1897 at the Rock Davis shipyard located in Blackwall on Brisbane Water. She measured 30.8 meters (101 feet 1 inch) in length, with a beam of 8.2 meters (26 feet 11 inches) and a depth of 2.5 meters (8 feet 2 inches). The vessel was assessed at 214 gross register tons (GRT) and was powered by a compound engine that drove a single screw propeller, typical of cargo ships of her era, designed for reliable inland and coastal trade routes. Throughout her 15-year operational life, Friendship was operated by Corrigan, B.M. & Co., undertaking regular voyages along the New South Wales coast. Her service was relatively stable until her final days, with her most notable incident occurring on 2 June 1912 when she ran aground off Tweed Heads, New South Wales, at the end of South Wall. This was her first recorded accident, after which she was refloated a few days later and repaired, resuming her service without apparent long-term damage. However, her career ended on 28 November 1912 during a voyage from the Tweed River to Sydney with a cargo of tallow. On this occasion, she ran aground again at the same location—Tweed Heads—at the end of South Wall. The second grounding proved fatal for the vessel, as she sank, taking her cargo of tallow with her. Fortunately, there were no injuries or fatalities associated with this sinking. The wreck now lies at the entrance to the Tweed River on the New South Wales coast, serving as a maritime historical site. The SS Friendship's history reflects the typical risks faced by coastal cargo vessels of her time, with her grounding and sinking marking her place in regional maritime history as a vessel that served for over a decade before succumbing to the treacherous coastal conditions at Tweed Heads.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.