Shipwrecks are synonymous with tumultuous tempests, fierce battles, mutinies and piracy, but the sinking of the Paddle-Steamer (PS) Rodney would go down in history as the first to be sunk in a fiery conflict by striking shearers.
It was the early hours of August 27, 1894. Under the cover of darkness, the PS Rodney was boarded by a group of 150 masked striking shearers hell-bent on the vessel's demise.
Saturday marked the 128th anniversary of the PS Rodney's sinking in a quiet lagoon on the Darling River near Pooncarie in NSW.
