HMS Culloden
Ship Of The Line · Great Britain · Lost 1781 · Long Island & the New York Approaches
A British 74-gun ship of the line burned to the waterline at Montauk after running aground fleeing a winter gale in the final years of the Revolutionary War.
The Vessel and Her Loss
HMS Culloden was a 74-gun Royal Navy ship of the line that had seen action at the Battle of Cape St Vincent before being posted to blockade French forces off Rhode Island. On January 23-24, 1781, while attempting to escape a winter gale with two other warships, Culloden failed to clear Montauk Point and ran aground at what is now Culloden Point. After efforts to refloat her failed, Captain George Balfour ordered cannon and supplies salvaged and the ship burned to keep her from Patriot forces. The site is now a National Register-listed shipwreck.
Vessel
- 1776
- Not established
- Deptford Dockyard, England
- Wood
- 170 ft
- 47 ft
- 1659
- Sail
- Royal Navy
Loss
- January 23, 1781
- Grounding
- Culloden Point, near Montauk, Long Island
- Block Island Sound / Atlantic Ocean approach
- Block Island Sound → Open Atlantic (attempting to escape a gale)
- Not established
- Not established
- No deaths are recorded in connection with the grounding itself.
- Captain George Balfour
The Wreck Today
- 20-25
- Scattered remains, some cannon still on the bottom near shore
- Not established
- 1970s (debris washed ashore)
- Listed on the National Register of Historic Places (added March 5, 1979)
Position
- 41.072° N 71.961° W
- Surveyed position
- Culloden Point, Montauk, New York
Position matches the NRHP-listed shipwreck site coordinates.
Evidence
Overall confidence: Well documented (90/100)
National Register of Historic Places nomination, NPS
Listing, date, location, protected status.
Wikipedia: HMS Culloden (1776)
Build details, dimensions, service history, fate.
East Hampton Town, NY: Culloden Point
Narrative of grounding and captain's decision to burn the ship.
