The Mermaid Beached in Careening Bay.

C.19th engraved view of Careening Bay, Western Australia with Her Majesty’s Cutter Mermaid careened on the beach. The Bay was named in commemoration of the event.

Under the command of Phillip Parker King on his third voyage, the Mermaid ran aground on the Queensland coast, but the crew did not realise how badly it had been damaged until they had rounded the tip of the Cape York Peninsula, sailed through the Torres Strait and across the northern coast as far as the Kimberley in Western Australia. When the ship was taking on water faster than it could be pumped out by the crew, King selected a spot 600 km north-east of present-day Broome, now known as Careening Bay, on Coronation Island, to careen the ship for repairs.

On completion of repairs, the Mermaid was still found to be leaking, so the decision was taken to return to Sydney along the west and south coasts.

References:
Ferguson, J. A. Bibliography of Australia Volumes 1-8, Canberra 1976 12842.

Collections:
National Library Australia: Bib ID 2266945
State Library New South Wales: Call Numbers:TQ076098
State Library Victoria: SLT 919.4 C27
State Library South Australia: 919.4 C344