Australia
The first seagoing ship built in Van Diemens Land (in 1812) was named the Henrietta Packet by virtue of the fact that she offered a regular passenger service between Hobart, Tasmania and Sydney, New South Wales. From the 1830s the term "steam packet" was commonly applied to early steam ship services that, at least in theory, offered a regular and reliable service, and is perpetuated today by many waterfront establishments around Australia bearing such names as the "Steam Packet Inn" or "Steam Packet Hotel".
Both fast sailing ships and early steam ships holding mail contracts between Great Britain and Australia were also often referred to as packets. These included several ships of James Baines' Black Ball Line and the Orient Line.
Read more about this topic: Packet Ship
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