South Africa: Le Victor, Martha, Suffolk & Flatdog shipwrecks

SAHRA Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage

Unknown wreck in Walvis Bay, Namibia

September 24:

“This day in our shipwreck and aeronautical wreck history”

1782: Le Victor, this wooden sailing corvette wrecked in a north-westerly gale at the Salt River mouth in Table Bay in the Western Cape. Records indicate that ‘nearly’ all aboard were saved, but the exact number of casualties is unknown. The wreck now lies beneath reclaimed land.

1826: Martha, this wooden sailing brig wrecked on the eponymous Martha Reef at Martha Point northeast of Arniston/Waenhuiskrans in the Western Cape.

1900: Suffolk, this four-masted steel steam-powered ship wrecked west of Cape St Francis near Tsitsikamma Point in the Eastern Cape after striking a reef and its holds flooding. A smaller steamer, the Lake Erie, was passing nearby and rescued all that were on board. However, the 900 horses that were being transported were left on board the ship, which disappeared below the waves later in the day. Wreckage washed up as far west as the Great Brak River and later investigations by the authorities found that many of the farm houses had used timber from the wreck that had washed up as there was a Troop letter stamped into the timber used for the horse stalls which made identification quite easy.

1996: Flatdog, this South African yacht collided with a fishing vessel in Algoa Bay in the Eastern Cape and whilst being towed back for repairs, it foundered.

2009: A SA Airlink British Aerospace Jetstream 41 (registration no. ZS-NRM) suffered an engine failure shortly after taking from Durban International Airport in KwaZulu-Natal and crash landed about 1.6 km from its takeoff runway in the Merebank residential area, skidding through an electrical pole, over a road, and eventually coming to rest against a concrete palisade. The two pilots and one flight attendant on board were seriously injured, with the one pilot succumbing to his injuries on the 7th of October. The wing of the airplane also clipped a member of the public who was seriously injured.

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South Africa: Mulgrave Castle, Alert, Prince Rupert, Sparfel, Niagara & Abeona shipwrecks

SAHRA Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage

Abandoned Ulan near Walvis Bay, Namibia

September 4:

“This day in our shipwreck and aeronautical wreck history”

1825: Mulgrave Castle, this wooden sailing vessel wrecked near the Green Point Lighthouse in Table Bay in the Western Cape. It entered the bay in hazy, but otherwise fine weather and attempts to refloat it were unsuccessful.

1840: Alert, this wooden sailing schooner wrecked after its cables parted in a south easterly gale in Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape.

1841: Prince Rupert, this wooden sailing barque wrecked after a sudden change in the current resulted in it swinging onto the rocks at Mouille Point in Table Bay in the Western Cape. Of the approximately 160 that were on board, only one life was lost, but four rescuers also lost their lives. The Bucephalus was anchored nearby and was one of the first to render assistance. On the fourth voyage between the vessels, to look for any more people that were on board, the boat that the rescuers were using was swamped by a wave. Five of the rescuers perished, one of whom was a passenger returning to the Prince Rupert.

1869: Sparfel, this wooden sailing schooner wrecked on Struispunt, just south of Arniston/Waenhuiskrans in the Western Cape. Immediately after striking the rocks, it broke apart. Although the exact number of those that were on board is not known, all hands were lost. For the next few weeks its cargo of hides washed ashore. 

1872: Niagara, this sailing vessel wrecked at the Slang River mouth, at Oyster Bay, in the Eastern Cape. 

1900: Abeona, this iron sailing vessel wrecked on Thunderbolt Reef, off Cape Recife in the Eastern Cape. After getting stuck on the reef in a sinking condition, its master and crew of 19 abandoned ship and landed at the North Jetty within three hours. The tug James Searle II found it the following day on its side and breaking up.

James Searle II tug, date unknown

Some salvage was carried out, but by the next day it had completely broken up. The wreck site was known for many years as the ‘Lead Wreck’ by local divers. This changed in 1978, when Mike Klee, David Allen and Gerry van Niekerk positively identified it. Amongst the wreckage they found a brass winch (or a capstan cover) which was inscribed with “Abeona Glasgow 1867”.

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South Africa: Ganges, Arniston, Stella, Clan McGregor & Ryvingen shipwrecks

SAHRA Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage

May 30:

“This day in our shipwreck and aeronautical wreck history”

1807: Ganges, this British East Indiaman foundered south of Cape Agulhas in the Western Cape. It was off the Cape of Good Hope on the 29th when it sprang a leak. Luckily, the Earl St Vincent was in convoy and managed to get all that were on board off. By noon the next day, on the 30th, it sank south of Cape Agulhas in the Western Cape.

1815: Arniston, this British East Indiaman wrecked on the rocks near the eponymous town of Arniston in the Western Cape. It was on its way to Ceylon to repatriate wounded British soldiers when it became separated on the 26th from its convoy whilst rounding the Cape in bad weather.

The replica monument at the top of the dunes near the wreck of the Arniston (1815)

The weather damaged its sails and, as it was never fitted with a chronometer, they relied on the convoy for navigation. On the 30th, due to a navigational error, believing that they had just crossed the Cape and been blown offshore, they headed North for what they thought would be St Helena Bay. However, it was further west than the Cape and was driven onto a reef near the town of Waenhuiskrans by onshore winds.

The wooden ribs that washed up near the town of Arniston/Waenhuiskrans that are believed to have belonged to the wreck of the Arniston (1815)

Of the 378 people that were on board, including 14 women and 25 children, only six men survived. Waenhuiskrans has since been renamed to Arniston, as the town had become synonymous with the wrecking. The wreck site was discovered and formerly excavated in 1982 by the University of Cape Town’s Archaeology Department guided by Jim Jobling, with many of the finds being housed at the Bredasdorp Shipwreck Museum.

Artefacts of the Arniston (1815) on display at the Bredasdorp Shipwreck Museum

It is currently understood that this survey and excavation was the first formal attempt at introducing the field of Maritime Archaeology into South Africa. In the late 1990’s, large wooden wreckage had washed up on the shore near Arniston and many believe that these belong to the Arniston. There is a replica monument at the top of the dunes that speaks to the loss of four of the children that were on board.

1872: Stella, this sailing schooner ran aground (and is presumed to have become a wreck) at Port Beaufort in the Breede River in the Western Cape.

1902: Clan McGregor, this British iron steam-powered ship, whilst on its maiden voyage, was lost after running aground near Ryspunt in the Western Cape as a result of bad navigation.

The Clan McGregor (1902) after running aground and people posing for a photo. The provided image shows it wrecked in the back

1902: Ryvingen, this Norwegian iron barque drove its bows into the side of the submerged wreck of the America (1900) during a north-westerly gale in Table Bay in the Western Cape and became a total loss. Its remains reportedly still lie in the Container Basin of the Cape Town Harbour.

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South Africa: Heworth, Queen of the Thames, Kate & Sleuthound shipwrecks

SAHRA Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage

March 18:

“This day in our shipwreck and aeronautical wreck history”

1823: Heworth, this wooden sailing vessel (possibly a snow or a brig) wrecked in Port Elizabeth in Algoa Bay in the Eastern Cape. 

1871: Queen of the Thames, this steam-powered mail ship (that was also sail rigged) wrecked off Ryspunt near Arniston/Waenhuiskrans in the Western Cape less than 7 months after it was built. En-route from Australia, it encountered heavy fog on the South African south coast and a light on the shore was mistaken for the Agulhas light. It came too close to the shore and ran aground on a sandbank.

A painting of the Queen of the Thames (1871) by an unknown artist

Although all the passengers were safely removed, four of the crew drowned during the wrecking event. Afterwards, there was a big sale on the beach, with local lore today claiming that much of the domestic furniture in the area stems from this sale. The rest of the wreck was sold off and completely salvaged over the course of a year as it remained intact. If you want to see some artefacts from this wreck, why not visit the Bredasdorp shipwreck museum? 

1931: Kate, this steel steam-powered coaster (a former dredger) was scuttled off the Durban coast in KwaZulu-Natal. It is speculated that the Kate was the first dredger rigged specifically for South African ports. It was later refitted for coasting duties. In its service, it had tended to the rescue of the Istar in Madagascar and supported the salvage of the Cariboo (1928). To lay it to rest, the bottom was blown out 5 km from the Durban Harbour. When it was scuttled, the depth was recorded as being 110 m next the Emma, the Istar, the Garthforce, and the Namaqua. Today it is believed that the wreck was found to be at a depth of 63 m and lying next to the Kaidie. 

1949: Sleuthound, this South African tug was scuttled off Robben Island in the Western Cape.

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South Africa: Lady MacDonald, Zuidam & Prins Willem shipwrecks

SAHRA Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage

February 9:

“This day in our shipwreck and aeronautical wreck history”

1876: Lady MacDonald, this British wooden barque wrecked on the northern coastline of Port Elizabeth in Algoa Bay in the Eastern Cape.

1990: Zuidam, this South African fishing vessel wrecked in a storm just west of Struispunt, near Arniston/Waenhuiskrans in the Western Cape.

Within a few months of wrecking, very little remained of the Zuidam (1990) because it burnt out

Shortly after wrecking, it burnt out. The remains quickly deteriorated but were still visible from the beach, in the surf zone, until about 1998. 

1992: Prins Willem, this South African motor-powered fishing vessel wrecked at Skulphoek in Hermanus in the Western Cape.

The Prins Willem (1992), whilst in a leaky condition, was driven onto the rocks where it became stuck

It struck an unknown object and started leaking in a heavy swell, and was driven ashore to stop it from foundering, resulting in the loss of one life and the vessel becoming a wreck.

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South Africa: Adelaide, Miles Barton & Veronica shipwrecks

SAHRA Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage

Unknown shipwreck, Walvis Bay, Namibia

February 8:

“This day in our shipwreck and aeronautical wreck history”

1832: Adelaide, this barque wrecked in an easterly gale in Durban in KwaZulu-Natal. An unknown number of people drowned but one record mentions that ‘several men drowned’.

1861: Miles Barton, this British troopship was carrying the 3rd Regiment under the command of Major King when it was wrecked on the eponymous Miles Barton reef between Skipskop and Arniston/Waenhuiskrans in the Western Cape. The troops were returning to the UK after the sacking of the Chinese Emperor's Summer Palace.

1886: Veronica, this British wooden sailing barque collided with the barque ‘Marquis of Worcester’ in a south-easterly gale and subsequently wrecked off Port Nolloth in the Northern Cape.

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South Africa: Dageraad, Otto & Florence Brierley shipwrecks

SAHRA Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage

January 20:

Suiderkus wreck in Namibia

“This day in our shipwreck and aeronautical wreck history”

1694: Dageraad, this VOC Cape packet ran aground in thick mist and wrecked on the west side of Robben Island in Table Bay in the Western Cape. It was returning from the west coast, where it had picked up survivors from the wreck of the Gouden Buys were it also assisted in its salvage. When the Dageraad wrecked, 16 men drowned. Daniël Silliman survived the wrecking of both ships and went on to write a book about these experiences when he returned to the Netherlands.  

1860: Otto, this Russian sailing barque wrecked in Otter Bay at Struispunt, just south of Arniston/Waenhuiskrans in the Western Cape. An anchor which was found on the beach nearby is presumed to have come from the wreck and was moved to the Bredasdorp Museum in 1995. 

1958: Florence Brierley, this South African steam-powered fishing trawler was scuttled by the SA Navy about 14 km west of Slangkop Lighthouse in the Western Cape.

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South Africa: Diana, Francis Spaight & Wigtonshire shipwrecks

SAHRA Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage

January 7:

“This day in our shipwreck and aeronautical wreck history”

1846: A strong north-westerly gale claimed two ships and 21 lives in Table Bay, in the Western Cape:

• Diana, this Portuguese wooden sailing barque had operated as a slaver when it was captured and taken as a prize by the HMS Mutine. It was lying in Table Bay when the gale drove it ashore, wrecking at Imhoff Battery on Woodstock beach; 

• Francis Spaight, this British wooden sailing barque parted from its anchor during the gale and struck the Papendorp Rocks below Craig’s Tower on Woodstock beach, becoming a wreck. A surf boat and a whale boat were launched from the shore to attempt a rescue.

A painting by Alexander Turnbull depicting the Francis Spaight (1846) at Hokianga Harbour, New Zealand.

The whale boat managed to reach the ship, and whilst attempting to run a line after reaching its side, 15 of the 16-man crew of the Francis Spaight jumped on board and swamped the whale boat. The result being the drowning of the four rescuers and all 15 members of the crew that jumped onto the whale boat. Two further surf boats were launched to rescue those in the water, but they also capsized resulting in the drowning of a further two rescuers. The carpenter, who had refused to get on the whale boat and remained on board until the storm had calmed enough, was the only person to have survived the ordeal from the crew of the Francis Spaight.

The wrecking of the Francis Spaight (1846) as depicted in the London News at the time

About ten years before the wrecking, the Francis Spaight, on return from Canada to Ireland with a cargo of timber encountered heavy gales and it became stuck on its beam ends. The crew resorted to cannabilism to survive after two weeks at sea and were finally rescued after three weeks. Although the Francis Spaight was badly damaged, it was repaired in England and returned to service, to wreck 10 years later in Cape Town. 

1885: Wigtonshire, this iron sailing barque wrecked on Atlas Reef of Klippestrand at Arniston/Waenhuiskrans in the Western Cape.

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