RMS Rhone
Royal Mail Steam Packet · United Kingdom · Lost 1867 · The Lesser Antilles
A Royal Mail steamship wrecked by a hurricane off Salt Island in 1867, now the BVI's most famous dive site.
Charles Clay Manis
See Shipwreck on Map
The Vessel and Her Loss
RMS Rhone was a Royal Mail Steam Packet Company liner serving Caribbean and South American routes. In October 1867 she was anchored off Peter Island when a hurricane struck without warning. Attempting to reach open water, she was driven onto rocks off Salt Island and broke apart, killing most aboard. The wreck now lies in a protected marine park.
Vessel
- 1865
- Millwall Iron Works
- Isle of Dogs, London
- Iron
- 310 ft
- 40 ft
- 2738
- Compound steam engine, single screw, auxiliary sail
- Royal Mail Steam Packet Company
Loss
- October 29, 1867
- Storm
- Off Salt Island, British Virgin Islands
- Caribbean Sea
- Great Harbour, Peter Island, BVI → Southampton, England
- Not established
- 145
- 123
- Robert F. Wooley
The Wreck Today
- Not established
- Broken into bow and stern sections, coral-encrusted
- Not established
- Not established
- Within the BVI's Wreck of the Rhone Marine Park
Position
- 18.35° N 64.58° W
- Approximate position
- Salt Island, British Virgin Islands
Rounded position off Salt Island's western point.
Evidence
Overall confidence: Documented (85/100)
National Park Trust of the Virgin Islands
Wreck location and protected status.
National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA)
Loss narrative and casualty figures.
