AH-WR-1273

Caraquet

Mail And Passenger Steamer · United Kingdom · Lost 1923 · Bermuda

A British mail steamer driven onto Bermuda's northern barrier reef by a strong current in 1923, now spread across nearly two acres of shallow seabed.

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Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents.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 Belfast in 1894 as the Guelph and later renamed Caraquet after acquisition by the Royal Steam Packet Company, this iron mail and passenger steamer was en route from the British Virgin Islands to Halifax when an unexpectedly strong current pushed her onto Bermuda's northern barrier reef on June 25, 1923. All aboard and the mail were safely landed. The wreck was heavily salvaged for its non-ferrous metals both at the time and after World War II, and today its engine, boilers and anchor remain a popular shallow dive.

Vessel

Built: 1894
Builder: Not established
Yard: Belfast, Northern Ireland
Material: Iron
Length: 200 ft
Beam: Not established
Tonnage: Not established
Propulsion: Steam, single screw
Owners: Royal Steam Packet Company (renamed after 1913 acquisition)

Loss

Date: June 25, 1923
Cause: Navigational error
Location: Northern barrier reef, approximately 16 km northwest of Fort St. Catherine
Water: Atlantic Ocean, Bermuda reef platform
Voyage: British Virgin Islands → Halifax, Nova Scotia
Cargo: General cargo and mail
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: 0
Master: Captain Fernandez

The Wreck Today

Depth: 35-40
Condition: Wreckage spread over nearly 2 acres; engine, four boilers, two deck winches and a large anchor visible atop the flattened hull.
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: Not established
Protection: Buoyed under the Bermuda Dive Sites programme, 300m no-fishing limit