Cape Recife Lighthouse - Est. 1849
The maritime history of Cape Recife does get a bit complicated and on the beach, past the Pati Car Park lies the keel of a boat. It belongs to the James Searle 1, a tug, which was wrecked in 1901. To complicate matters, another tug, the second James Searle was scuttled off Cape Recife.
To complicate matters even further a third James Searle was abandoned on Thunderbolt Reef off Cape Recife in 1950! Who was James Searle? He was apparently the first harbour master at Port Elizabeth. His family and ancestors still reside in Port Elizabeth and Schoenmakerskop. Actually the identity of the keel on the beach is still a bit of a mystery, one of the James Searles was wrecked, one scuttled and one abandoned, we wonder which one drifted the furthest? Research on these three vessels is on-going and the details will change when more information comes to light.
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