Wreck of the Newcastle City identified

The Massachusetts USA based company located the remains of the shipwreck south of Nantucket Island.The

Newcastle City

was lost on a voyage from South Shields in England to New York with a general cargo that included several tons of antimony ingots. During the early morning hours of December 23rd 1887, the ship struck an uncharted shoal south of Nantucket Island, severely damaging the hull. The ship slowly filled with water and sank several hours later. After an arduous row of over six hours, the entire crew of 26 and one lone passenger reached safety aboard the Nantucket Lightship, where they remained for two weeks until being brought ashore by the lighthouse tender Verbena.

The Newcastle City was a transitional type passenger/cargo steamship built in Newcastle in 1882. Although powered by a compound steam engine, the iron hulled ship was also rigged as a brigantine. This was a common practice during the time when steam was replacing sail as the primary means of motive power for ships in the late 1800s.

The wreck was located after several years of historical research followed by field investigations during the 2006 and 2007 seasons. Several interesting sonar targets were identified late in 2007, one of which appeared to be a likely target for the Newcastle City. Dives conducted on the suspected sonar target on August 24th of last year confirmed the target to be that of the wreck of an iron hulled steamship slightly less than 300′ in length.

The wreck lies on a white sand bottom with the hull largely collapsed, although portions of the bow and stern are somewhat intact. Two large boilers and a two cylinder compound steam engine are prominent features rising 15′ off the sea floor amidships. The wreck is a complete time capsule from the 19th century, when iron hull construction and steam propulsion were surpassing wood and sail as the means to move the world’s commerce.

The wreck site is littered with period artefacts from both the ship itself and the cargo. Deadeyes from the ship’s rigging are intermingled with steam fittings. A rare Trotman anchor stands 8′ off the seabed at the bow, with an equally rare Porter anchor lying nearby. At the stern a huge pile of antimony ingots polished by the sand and swift currents glitter like silver bars.

Follow up dives were conducted at the site late last year for the purpose of gaining photographs and additional information about the wreck site. Measurements taken on the ship’s steam engine match exactly the specifications for the Newcastle City’s machinery listed in Lloyds Register of Shipping. The ship’s helm was also located with the words ‘NEWCASTLE CITY LIVERPOOLE’ engraved in the face of the wheel.

The exploration team working from the research vessel Quest included captain Eric Takakjian, Steve Gatto, Tom Packer, Patrick Rooney, David Morton, Tom Mulloy, Michael Dudas and Joseph Mazraani

For further information contact: Eric J. Takakjian at rvquest@comcast.net