AH-WR-0046

Gulftrade

Tanker · United States · Lost 1942 · The New Jersey Coast

A Gulf Oil tanker broken in half by a U-boat torpedo just off Barnegat Light in 1942, now a popular two-part New Jersey dive site.

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Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents.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

Gulftrade was a Gulf Oil tanker built in 1920 to move petroleum along the Atlantic coast. On 10 March 1942, unescorted and unarmed, she was torpedoed by U-588 just a few miles off Barnegat Light, New Jersey. The ship broke apart behind the bridge, a common fate for tankers hit amidships, and eighteen of her crew were lost. Her bow and stern sections settled close together on the seabed and remain a well-known dive site today.

Vessel

Built: 1920
Builder: Sun Shipbuilding Company
Yard: Chester, Pennsylvania
Material: Steel
Length: 430 ft
Beam: 59 ft
Tonnage: 6776
Propulsion: Steam, single screw
Owners: Gulf Oil Corporation

Loss

Date: March 10, 1942
Cause: Enemy action
Location: About 3 miles off Barnegat Light, New Jersey
Water: Atlantic Ocean
Voyage: Not established
Cargo: Petroleum products
Aboard: 34
Lives lost: 18
Master: Torger Olsen

The Wreck Today

Depth: 90
Condition: Broken in two behind the bridge
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: Not established
Protection: Not established

Position

Coordinates: 39.76° N 74.11° W
Accuracy: General area only
Nearest: Barnegat Light, New Jersey
Region: The New Jersey Coast

General area only: coordinate of the Barnegat Lighthouse from the USCG/USLHS light list, marking the named place of loss recorded for this vessel ("about 3 miles off Barnegat Light, New Jersey"), not a surveyed wreck position.