Southern Cross was built at Wivenhoe, Essex, England, by Forrest & Sons in 1891 as an barquentine-rigged yacht, with auxiliary steam power.

Built for service with the Melanesian Mission of the Anglican Church with funds estimated at £9,000 contributed by Bishop John Richardson Selwyn and others.

[citation needed] Originally built as a steam yacht, she underwent conversion to a barquentine rig several years later.

[5] On 11 September 1920, Southern Cross sailed from Melbourne for Hobart with a general cargo including 1,000 cases of benzine stored on its main deck.

As the wreckage bore traces of burning, it was speculated that the ship's deck cargo had caught fire, or that it had struck a mine laid by the German raider Wolff in 1917.