SAHRA Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage
January 24:
The Nightingale (1933) grounded on the rocks near Glenmore beach (1933)
“This day in our shipwreck and aeronautical wreck history”
1923: Rusholme, this coasting steamer foundered on Ostara Rock, south of Port Nolloth off the west coast in the Northern Cape. Although a small coasting steamer, the Rusholme had a rich history. Originally a dredger by the name of Baggar 1, it worked on the Namibian coast, and was scuttled at the start of World War I. It was subsequently re-floated and used as a lighter, known as the Flora. After that it was acquired by the Globe Engineering Company who fitted it with new boilers and engines. In this incarnation it was used as a salvage vessel and recovered much of the timber cargo of the wrecks of the Losna (1921) and of the Eugenie S Embiricos (1917) near the Great Fish River in the Eastern Cape. Thereafter it was involved in the coasting trade between Cape Town and Saldanha Bay. On its first trip to Port Nolloth in this capacity, on the homeward journey, it foundered on Ostara Rock, about 45 km south of Port Nolloth. The crew reached Port Nolloth in the ship’s boats and no lives were lost.
Wreckage of the Nightingale (1933) is spread about in the area, with the boiler still visible on the rocks. Image: 2003
1933: Nightingale, this steel steam-powered fishing trawler became stranded in fog and wrecked at Glenmore Beach near the Tongazi River mouth in KwaZulu-Natal.
The Nightingale's (1933) boiler from a different angle in 2019
Many of the vessel’s parts can still be seen on the beach, buried in sand and on the rocks, which makes it a popular tourist attraction. There is also a restaurant nearby named after the wreck.
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