Pelican II







Benelon
Type :
 Wooden paddlewheel steamer
Launched  :
1885
Builder :
 David Drake
Balmain, NSW
Gross weight :
 204 tons
Dimensions :
 120.00 x 25.00 x 7.50 (feet)
Passenger capacity :
 84 passengers, 28 vehicles
Speed :
 unknown

Benelon was one of the fleet of four smaller vehicular ferries that generally operated between Dawes Point and Milsons Point. She was a close sister to Barangaroo.

Benelon is sometimes spelt (mistakenly) as Benelong.

She was substantially rebuilt and modernised in 1916. This allowed Sydney Ferries to keep her operating in an increasingly busy  market - the four small ferries worked non-stop carrying traffic across the harbour and there were simply not enough of them to do the job.

She was sunk in a collision in 1923 and was returned to service very quickly as demand was increasing rapidly prior to the construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Her final fate is unknown, but likely she was (similar to many other ferries) sold off after the bridge opened and the need for vehicular ferries disappeared literally overnight.
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