AH-WR-1253

RMS Nascopie

Supply Steamer · United Kingdom · Lost 1947 · Hudson Bay & Hudson Strait

The Hudson's Bay Company's celebrated Eastern Arctic Patrol icebreaker struck an uncharted reef entering Cape Dorset and broke apart over two autumn storms in 1947.

Become Captain of Record

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents.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

RMS Nascopie was built in 1911 for the Hudson's Bay Company and spent 35 years supplying posts across the Eastern Arctic, Labrador, and Hudson Bay, becoming the best-known ship of the Eastern Arctic Patrol. On July 21, 1947, she struck an uncharted reef near Beacon Island entering Cape Dorset harbour. Her crew and passengers were safely evacuated. The hull broke in two in a September storm and the stern sank after another storm in October. Inuit photographer Peter Pitseolak, hired as watchman over the wreck, documented her sinking in a well-known series of photographs.

Vessel

Built: 1911
Registry: Official Number 129922; Code Letters GPLS
Builder: Swan Hunter and Wigham Richardson
Yard: Wallsend-on-Tyne, England
Material: Steel
Length: 285 ft
Beam: 43 ft
Tonnage: 2521
Propulsion: Steam, triple expansion, single screw
Owners: Hudson's Bay Company

Loss

Date: July 21, 1947
Cause: Grounding
Location: Uncharted reef near Beacon Island, entrance to Cape Dorset harbour
Water: Hudson Strait
Voyage: Montreal → Eastern Arctic posts
Cargo: General supply cargo for Hudson's Bay Company posts
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: 0
Master: Not established

The Wreck Today

Depth: Not established
Condition: Broke in two; bow sank September 25, 1947, stern sank October 15, 1947
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: Not established
Protection: Not established

Position

Coordinates: Not established
Accuracy: Position not established
Nearest: Cape Dorset, Nunavut
Region: Hudson Bay & Hudson Strait

General location near Beacon Island at the entrance to Cape Dorset harbour is documented; a precise surveyed position was not found in sources reviewed.

Evidence

Overall confidence: Documented (85/100)

The vessel's present condition and precise wreck position off Beacon Island are not established in the sources reviewed.

Hudson's Bay Company Archives, Archives of Manitoba
Build details, service history, loss date and cause.
Manitoba Museum
Details of the wreck breaking apart and the recovered nameplate.
Canadian Museum of History
Peter Pitseolak's eyewitness photographic account of the sinking.