AH-WR-0411

General Warren

Steamship · United States · Lost 1852 · The Columbia River Bar & Oregon Coast

A steamship wrecked on Clatsop Spit at the mouth of the Columbia River in an 1852 storm, with significant loss of life among those who tried to reach shore.

Become Captain of Record See Shipwreck on Map

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents.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

Interpretive Reconstruction, drawn to convey the vessel's era, type and general form. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

The General Warren was a wooden steamship operating along the Pacific Coast during the early 1850s when maritime traffic to the California goldfields was booming. In January 1852 she grounded on Clatsop Spit near the mouth of the Columbia River during a severe storm. As the ship broke apart, passengers and crew attempted to reach shore, and a number of lives were lost in the effort. The disaster remains one of the notable early wrecks of the Columbia River Bar.

Vessel

Built: Not established
Builder: Not established
Yard: Not established
Material: Wood
Length: Not established
Beam: Not established
Tonnage: Not established
Propulsion: Steam
Owners: Not established

Loss

Date: January 28, 1852
Cause: Grounding
Location: Columbia River Bar, Oregon
Water: Pacific Ocean
Voyage: San Francisco, California
Cargo: Not established
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: Multiple lives were lost, including passengers and crew who attempted to reach shore in small boats; exact number varies among historical accounts.
Master: Not established

The Wreck Today

Depth: Not established
Condition: Not established
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: Not established
Protection: Not established

Position

Coordinates: 46.23° N 124.03° W
Accuracy: Approximate position
Nearest: Mouth of the Columbia River, Oregon
Region: The Columbia River Bar & Oregon Coast

The General Warren beached and broke up on Clatsop Spit at the mouth of the Columbia River on the night of Jan 29-30, 1852, per the Oregon Encyclopedia and Wikipedia; no precise wreck coordinates are published, so this is the general charted position of Clatsop Spit where she came ashore.

Evidence

Overall confidence: Sparsely documented (50/100)

Exact number of lives lost and precise builder details are not consistently established across the sources reviewed.

Oregon State Historic Preservation Office
Loss date, location, and general circumstances.
Columbia River Maritime Museum
Historical account and casualty context.
Oregon Encyclopedia, Wreck of the General Warren (ship)
loss location
Wikipedia, SS General Warren
loss location