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Events on February 12 in history

SS Penguin
1909Feb, 12

New Zealand's worst maritime disaster of the 20th century happens when the SS Penguin, an inter-island ferry, sinks and explodes at the entrance to Wellington Harbour.

SS Penguin was a New Zealand inter-island ferry steamer that sank off Cape Terawhiti after striking a rock near the entrance to Wellington Harbour in poor weather on 12 February 1909. Penguin's sinking caused the deaths of 75 people, leaving only 30 survivors. This was New Zealand's worst maritime disaster of the 20th century.

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Events on 1909

  • 9Jan

    Nimrod Expedition

    Ernest Shackleton, leading the Nimrod Expedition to the South Pole, plants the British flag 97 nautical miles (180 km; 112 mi) from the South Pole, the farthest anyone had ever reached at that time.
  • 28Jan

    Guantanamo Bay Naval Base

    United States troops leave Cuba with the exception of Guantanamo Bay Naval Base after being there since the Spanish-American War.
  • 22Feb

    Great White Fleet

    The sixteen battleships of the Great White Fleet, led by USS Connecticut, return to the United States after a voyage around the world.
  • 31Mar

    Bosnia and Herzegovina

    Serbia accepts Austrian control over Bosnia and Herzegovina.
  • 27Apr

    Abdul Hamid II

    Sultan of Ottoman Empire Abdul Hamid II is overthrown, and is succeeded by his brother, Mehmed V.