AH-WR-1208

SS Atlantic

Ocean Liner · United Kingdom · Lost 1873 · Nova Scotia & Sable Island

The White Star liner Atlantic ran onto rocks near Halifax in 1873 in one of the deadliest peacetime disasters in the North Atlantic.

Captain of Record

Marlon L. Brumage II

AHR-1871

See Shipwreck on Map

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents.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

SS Atlantic was a new White Star Line steamer on the Liverpool–New York run when a shortage of coal forced her captain to divert toward Halifax. On the night of 31 March–1 April 1873, she struck a rocky shoal near Lower Prospect and broke apart quickly. Fishermen from the surrounding communities rowed out in the dark and saved hundreds of survivors, but several hundred passengers and crew, including nearly all the women and children aboard, drowned.

Vessel

Built: 1871
Builder: Harland and Wolff
Yard: Belfast, Ireland
Material: Iron
Length: 421 ft
Beam: 41 ft
Tonnage: 3707
Propulsion: Steam, single screw, auxiliary sail (four-masted barque rig)
Owners: White Star Line (Oceanic Steam Navigation Company)

Loss

Date: April 1, 1873
Cause: Grounding
Location: Marr's Rock, near Lower Prospect, Nova Scotia
Water: Atlantic Ocean, approach to Halifax Harbour
Voyage: Liverpool, England → New York, United States (diverted toward Halifax)
Cargo: General cargo and mail
Aboard: 975
Lives lost: 535
Master: James Agnew Williams

The Wreck Today

Depth: Not established
Condition: Broken up by wave action; scattered wreckage and artifacts remain on the seabed near Marr's Rock
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: Not established
Protection: Not established

Position

Coordinates: 44.46° N 63.79° W
Accuracy: Approximate position
Nearest: Lower Prospect, Nova Scotia
Region: Nova Scotia & Sable Island

Position approximates Marr's Rock near Lower Prospect where the wreck occurred; not a surveyed GPS fix.

Evidence

Overall confidence: Documented (88/100)

The precise number of dead has never been established with certainty in the sources reviewed.

SS Atlantic Heritage Interpretation Park Society
Voyage narrative, cause of wreck, casualty and rescue details.
Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21
Confirmation of date, passenger composition and significance.
Wikipedia (cross-checked against primary accounts)
Ship dimensions, tonnage, builder and career details.