Ocean (1794 ship)
"Ocean" was a three-masted, copper-sheathed brig. She was built in 1794 at South Shields. Originally, "Ocean" was to be a whaler owned by the newly-operating South Sea fishers, Thomas and Edward Hurrys, who were bankrupt by 1806. However, apparently "Ocean" spent 1794–95 in the Baltic timber trade. "Ocean" made two trips to Bengal as an "extra" ship for the EIC. That is, the EIC chartered her on a per-voyage basis, rather than having her on long-term contract; extra ships were usually smaller than the regular East Indiaman. The French Revolutionary Wars having started, she sailed under letters of marque for both voyages. The first letter was issued on 22 January 1796 and gave her captain's name as John Bowen. Under Bowen (or Bower), she left Gravesend on 17 February 1796 and was at Portsmouth on 12 March. She was at Cowes on 30 March, where she took on board men from the 28th Light Dragoons. She then joined a convoy for the Cape of Good Hope on 11 April. The convoy included another , this one an East Indiaman, and much larger. On 10 September the brig "Ocean" was at Simon's Bay. On 28 November she was at Diamond Harbour and by 30 December she was at Calcutta. She left Diamond Harbour on 10 January 1797. "Ocean" was at Kedgeree on 19 March. She left Bengal on 27 March 1797 with a cargo of sugar and in a convoy escorted by the frigate . She reached Trincomalee on 24 April, Simon's Bay on 7 July, and the Cape on 11 July, a storm having dispersed the convoy and despite having sprung leaks that had kept the crew at the pumps from 26 May on. She sailed from the Cape on 26 August as part of a convoy of 16 East Indiamen and six British warships, reaching Saint Helena on 11 September. "Ocean" reached the Downs on 14 December, Gravesend, Kent on 18 December, and finished unloading at Deptford on 19 January 1798. In 1798 she was repaired by Fletcher. She received her second letter of marque on 30 July 1798. That letter gave her captain's name as Robert Abbon Mash. On 4 October 1798 she sailed for Bengal. She reached the Cape of Good Hope on 14 January 1799, Madras on 9 May, Coringa on 16 June and Calcutta on 17 July. On the return leg she was at Diamond Harbour on 25 September, and Kedgeree by 23 October. By 26 January 1800 "Ocean" was at Saint Helena, and reached the Downs on 30 May. She returned to her moorings in Britain on 1 June. The British Government chartered "Ocean" from Messrs Hurry & Co as a supply ship for the journey from Portsmouth to Port Phillip. On the voyage to Port Phillip, she carried 100 people along with supplies needed for the settlement at Port Phillip. The people on "Ocean" included Captain John Mertho, nine officers, 26 seamen, eight civil officers including George Harris (a surveyor), and Adolarius Humphrey, a mineralogist, and a group of free settlers. Many of the free settlers had skills that would be of value to the new settlement – five were carpenters, two seamen, two millers, a whitesmith (works with white or light coloured metals such as tin or pewter), a stonemason, gardener, painter, schoolteacher, pocketbook maker (maker of wallets and covered notebooks) and two servants. "Ocean" and "Calcutta" left Portsmouth on 27 April 1803 and reached Santa Cruz on the Island of Tenerife, part of the Canary Islands on 17 May 1803. Both ships sailed from Tenerife on 21 May and arrived at Rio de Janeiro in Brazil on 29 June. While in Rio, Captain Woodriff of "Calcutta" sent five marines under Lieutenant Sladden to help maintain order on "Ocean" for the rest of the voyage. According to Reverend Robert Knopwood's journals, ‘Mr. Hartley, a settler had behaved badly’ – and it seemed there was little love lost between some of the free settlers and Captain Mertho. They apparently regarded him as a tyrant, while he thought they were intractable. At Rio de Janeiro, seven sailors deserted "Calcutta". Portuguese soldiers captured three of them and returned them to her, receiving a reward of £6 per sailor. While the ships were at berth, maintenance work was carried out on both ships and fresh provisions were taken on board for the next leg of the journey. Cloths were washed; repairs and adjustments made to the rigging of both ships and supplies of water were replenished. The fresh provisions included 36 turkeys, 13 dozen capons (roosters) and fowls, 68 very large ducks 4 geese, 13 pigs, and a large quantity of fruit and vegetables. Both "Ocean" and "Calcutta" left Rio on 19 July 1803. "Ocean", the slower of the two ships, was directed to sail direct to Port Phillip if she lost contact with "Calcutta". The ships did lose contact so "Ocean" did not put in at Cape Town, arriving at Port Phillip on 7 October. At Cape Town two more sailors deserted "Calcutta". One was captured and returned. After leaving Rio, "Ocean" sailed through the Southern Atlantic and into the Indian Ocean. She experienced frightening weather conditions for 77 days. Twenty days out of Rio, George Harris recorded that ‘for many days we could not sit at table but were obliges to hold fast by boxes and on the floor and all our crockery were almost broken to pieces, besides many seas into the cabin and living in the state of darkness from the cabin windows being stopped up by the deadlights … I was never so melancholy in my life before’. In such conditions work on deck was extremely dangerous. On 9 August John Bowers fell overboard and was lost. "Ocean" finally sighted land on before sighting land on course and off Port Phillip on 5 October; she was on course and off Port Phillip.
"Ocean" and "Calcutta" established the first settlement at Port Phillip in 1803 under the leadership of Lt Col David Collins. While at Port Phillip, a number of convicts escaped. According to Rev. Robert Knopwood's journal six convicts escaped from Sorrento on the evening of 27 December 1803. The settlement was in the process of closing down at the time, "HMS Calcutta" had already sailed for Port Jackson in New South Wales and "Ocean" was preparing to sail for Van Diemen's Land. The escaping convicts cut loose a boat from "Ocean" and succeed in getting to shore where two were recaptured, one of whom, Charles Shaw, was shot and seriously wounded. The escapees intended to head north to Sydney so they followed the bay to the mouth of the Yarra River, but there their scarce provisions ran out. They then tried heading inland for a way but before long the party separated. One, Daniel M'Allender, headed back to Sorrento and arrived in time to be taken on board "Ocean". William Buckley decided to return to the beach alone and continued to follow the bay round to the opposite head in the hope of seeing and signalling to "Ocean", but by this time it had left. Buckley lived with the aborigines in the area for 32 years and was next seen in 1835. Buckley's improbable survival is believed by many Australians to be the source of the vernacular phrase "Buckley's chance" (or simply Buckley's), which means "no chance", or "it's as good as impossible". When this settlement was abandoned, "Ocean", in two journeys, relocated the settlers, convicts, and marines to the River Derwent (Hobart Town) in 1804. She was there on 26 August when "Alexander" was also there gathering whale oil from the "black whale".
Accounts record that "Ocean" fired a salute of 11 guns on the establishment of the settlement at Hobart. "Ocean" was released from service with His Majesty's government after moving Collins's settlers to Hobart. She sailed to Port Jackson and was there by 26 August 1804. At Port Jackson she took on fresh provisions. On 24 October 1804 she sailed to New Zealand to engage in whaling. She then sailed to Canton to China to pick up cargo. On her journey to China, "Ocean" sailed to the phosphate-rich Micronesian island of Banaba. Captain John Mertho and "Ocean" are sometimes credited with the official European discovery of Banaba. Most sources credit the discovery to Captain Jared Gardner of the American vessel "Diana" on 3 January 1801. From Banaba "Ocean" sailed on to the Marshall Islands in November. By 20 December "Ocean" was at Whampoa. A month later, on 24 January 1805, she was at Macao. Another month saw her at Malacca on 25 February. She reached Saint Helena on 1 July and The Downs on 16 September. In 1806 Hurry & Co. sold "Ocean" to a "Bousfield". She continued to trade as a London transport. She was last listed in 1823. She appears rarely in the "Register of Shipping", the last time in 1821. The voyage to Australia is well documented in a number of sources. Notes
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Transport to Australia
The vessels supported the establishment of a settlement under the leadership of Lt Col David Collins. When the settlers abandoned Port Phillip, "Ocean", in two journeys, relocated the settlers, convicts and marines to the River Derwent (Hobart Town) in 1804.