AH-WR-1317

Cali

Four-Masted Barquentine Schooner · Colombia · Lost 1948 · Cuba & the Greater Antilles

A half-century-old four-masted sailing barquentine, run ashore and burned at George Town in 1948 while carrying rice.

Become Captain of Record See Shipwreck on Map

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents. See the documented evidence.

Historically Reconstructed. Drawn from partial documentation of this vessel together with her known class and configuration. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

Built in Scotland in 1900 as Hawaii, this four-masted barquentine sailed under several names and owners before becoming Cali under Colombian ownership. In January 1948, while carrying a cargo of rice, she developed a leak and was deliberately run ashore at George Town, Grand Cayman, in an attempt to save her, but caught fire and burned to the waterline. Declared a hazard to navigation, she was later demolished, and her scattered remains are now a popular shallow dive site.

Vessel

Built: 1900
Builder: A. McMillan & Sons Ltd.
Yard: Dumbarton, Scotland
Material: Steel
Length: 220 ft
Beam: Not established
Tonnage: Not established
Propulsion: Sail, four-masted barquentine rig
Owners: Colombian owners (at time of loss)

Loss

Date: January 9, 1948
Cause: Fire
Location: George Town Harbor, Grand Cayman
Water: Caribbean Sea
Voyage: Not established
Cargo: Approximately 30,000 bags of rice
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: Not established
Master: Not established

The Wreck Today

Depth: 30 ft
Condition: Ribs and structural remains exposed and scattered on the seabed after later demolition as a navigation hazard
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: Not established
Protection: Not established