North Co. Antrim Wreck List
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Vessel Type:

Steam Tanker

Location:Co. Antrim
Date of Loss:25th February 1918Place:Fair Head
Cause of Loss:TorpedoedBoat Dive from:Ballycastle
Charted Depth:60m - 72mIrish O.S. Map:Discovery Series No. 5
Height of Wreck:11m Admiralty Chart No:2798
Hull Material:SteelLatitude (approx.):55° 14' 00"North
Type of Seabed:Rocks & sandLongitude (approx.):06° 14' 09" West
Average Visibility:6 - 10mConvert Lat. & Long. to -Decimal - CLICK HERE
Image available?Yes - see belowDiving Experience:Very experienced
 
Diving Information:  
  • Lies half a mile off Fair Head on her starboard side.
  • Broken into two sections.
  • One section sits on a ledge at a depth of 60m.
  • The other is at the bottom of the cliff, at about 72m.
  • Area is subject to about 15 minutes slack water during neaps.
  • This is a very dangerous dive!  Several divers have been bent on this wreck.
 
Historical Information:
  • Owned by Sun Company of Philadelphia, she was built in 1902 as the "Minnetonka" by American Shipbuilding Co. of Cleveland, Ohio.
  • Powered by triple-expansion engines producing 477nhp., she measured 430 x 43.7 x 29.4ft., and grossed 5,318 tons.
  • Cargo was 2 million gallons of fuel oil.
  • She was torpedoed by a German submarine, UB-19, after becoming separated from a convoy on route to the Clyde.
  • Her Master was John V. Olson.
  • All of the crew were rescued.
  • UB-19 also sunk the "Tiberia" the next day.
  • The builders brass plate was recovered by Tommy Cecil in the 1980s.
 
S.S. Santa Maria

© by kind permission of wrecksite.eu web site

Source Publications:
"Dictionary of Disasters at Sea during the Age of Steam 1824 - 1962"
by
Charles Hocking
London Stamp Exchange 1989 - ISBN: 0948130474
"Shipwreck Index of Ireland"
by
Richard & Bridget Larn
Lloyd's Register - Fairplay Ltd 2002 - ISBN: 1900839970
"Shipwrecks of the Irish Coast 932 - 1997"
by
Dr. Edward J. Bourke
Edward J. Bourke 1998 - ISBN: 0952302713
"Shipwrecks of the Ulster Coast"
by
Ian Wilson
Impact Printing 1997 - ISBN: 0948154993
"The Harsh Winds of Rathlin"
by
Tommy Cecil
Impact Printing 1990 - ISBN: 0948154659
 
Other Sources:
Norman Woods
-
Portstewart SAC (2000)

North Co. Antrim Wreck List

Last update - 01-Apr-2003

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