Meet the site
The Empress of the Sea was one of the great American clippers. Built at Boston in 1853 by Donald McKay – builder of the Flying Cloud and the Lightning – she was a three-masted wooden ship of 2,200 tons and 73 m (240 ft), with a female figurehead and a mahogany saloon, and after a career on the American routes she joined James Baines' Black Ball Line carrying emigrants and cargo between Liverpool and Melbourne. On 19 December 1861 she left Hobsons Bay with 12 passengers, 45 crew, cargo and £80,000 in gold. Off the Heads fire broke out in the forward hold; the captain ran her into Nepean Bay and beached her, where she rolled onto her starboard side and burned – 'the port side was burnt to the copper'. Everyone was saved and the gold recovered. A court of inquiry found the fire had been deliberately lit.
The Scuba Doctor listing describes a site 150 m long and 50 m wide in 3–7 m with the bow to the south-west. Two mounds of bluestone ballast flank it. Between them lie the keel, hull frames, planking and copper sheathing, three large iron tanks amidships, and toward the bow a chain mound, another tank, an anchor marking the stem and several iron buckets. An information plinth installed by the Maritime Archaeology Unit stands on the starboard side near the tanks. The timbers carry kelp and sponges, the ballast mounds shelter crayfish, wrasse and leatherjackets, and rays and cuttlefish use the sand between.
As a dive it is shallow, sheltered and easy – an Open Water site in the calm of Nepean Bay – and as an archaeological site it is one of the most important in Victoria, the largest of the McKay clippers surviving anywhere and a protected historic shipwreck. Nothing may be disturbed, and the ballast and frames should not be touched. It is dived at slack or on the flood, when any drift sets along the shore toward Portsea.
Research this site before booking Stored site notes may be historical. These questions highlight gaps without turning old instructions into a current dive plan.
Empress of the Sea is recorded as Wreck in Port Phillip Heads. The listed access is boat. Confirm the actual meeting point, route and permission to visit; a map pin does not establish any of these.
Topics flagged by the stored research
These are questions prompted by the existing notes, not a verified or complete hazard assessment.
- Current and timing
- Ask how the operator assesses the current window for the actual route. Historical tide notes are not a departure instruction.
- Other water users
- Ask about vessel activity, exclusion areas and the agreed surface arrangements.
Historical access notes exist for this record, but have not been independently verified for current use. Request current directions from the operator or site manager rather than following an old entry description.
Questions, answered
Is Empress of the Sea suitable for my certification?
The record lists Open Water. That does not establish suitability for every route or day. Share your training, recent experience and equipment needs with the operator and ask about the specific proposed dive.
Can I book Empress of the Sea through YouDive?
YouDive is an independent research directory. Contact an operator directly to confirm whether it currently runs the trip, the inclusions and the booking terms.
What you might see
Kelp and sponges on the timbers, southern rock lobster, bluethroat wrasse, leatherjackets, old wife, stingrays, giant cuttlefish, nudibranchs, sea stars
Location
On the bay side of Point Nepean at the eastern end of Nepean Bay, 395 m north-north-east of the Radar reef, where the clipper was beached in 1861; the site is 150 m long by 50 m wide with the bow to the south-west.
Before you make plans
Conditions, access and operator schedules can change. This is a location guide, not a dive plan. Ask a local operator about current conditions and suitability for your training and experience.
Sources & further reading
scubadoctor.com.auscubadoctor.com.auvhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.auRecord updated 26 Sept 2026. Source claims are being reviewed.
