WreckMap Portland 2004
The NAS Training WreckMap Portland 2004 project took place in
and around Portland Harbour, Dorset between 17th and 21st May
2004.
The first WreckMap Portland Project took place in 2003 and
evolved through consultation and collaboration between NAS
Training, the Dorset Coast Forum and the Weymouth Museum, with
the aim of involving recreational scuba divers in the recording
of wreck sites of historic interest in Weymouth and Portland. The
2004 project aimed to continue the work from WreckMap Portland
2003.
As in the 2003 project, Weymouth and Portland were chosen for
the NAS WreckMap project for several reasons. The primary reason
being the existence of a maritime SMR held and maintained by
Dorset County Council and the proactive marine life recording
undertaken by the Dorset Wildlife Trust. This maritime SMR
database currently consists of 1473 records of wrecks, 91 records
of structures, 47 records of single finds and 137 records of
strandings.
The project aimed to contribute to this database by providing
current information on the condition of existing entries and by
highlighting new sites not present on the database.
The Wreckmap Portland 2004 project aimed to:
- Utilise skills & involve amateurs
Provide an opportunity for those involved in the NAS Training
Programme to put their newly acquired skills into practice.
- Record sites & add information to SMR/NMR
Provide information for the Dorset Maritime Sites and Monuments
Record and the National Monuments Record (Maritime).
- Disseminate information
Publish the project results among the participants, supporting
bodies and more generally in the wider public domain.
The Wreckmap Portland 2004 project was divided into three
broad phases:
- Diver assessment and recording using tape measures, DWAP
recording slates, cameras and video
- Dissemination of the information obtained in 2003 through a
public lecture, held in Dorchester on the 18th May 2004. The NAS
Training display stand, which focuses on the results of WreckMap
Portland 2003, was kept at Weymouth Museum for the duration of
the project until the 28th June 2004.
- Dissemination of the information acquired during the project
through the Sites and Monuments Record as well as dissemination
in a variety of publications.
The sites pre-selected for investigation during the 2004
Wreckmap project included:
- Countess of Erne (1868-1935)
- Royal Adelaide (sank 1872)
- Enecuri / (known colloquially as the Spaniard) (sank
1900)
- Seabed anomaly / unknown barge located during WreckMap
Portland 2003
- Unknown barge/coaster (from Dive Dorset, John & Vicki
Hinchcliff 1999)
- Earl of Abergavenny (sank 1805)
The diver survey system used during the WreckMap project
consisted of primarily standard underwater boards, but also
utilised the Diving with a Purpose diver recording slate.
This slate has been designed to allow divers to take a
holistic approach to recording dive sites. Participants were
encouraged to take the DWAP slate with them on every dive and use
it to record anything of interest including marine wildlife
abundance.
Participants also used the slates to undertake site sketches
and provisional site plans.
At the end of each day the project participants were asked to
provide fair copies of all their recording forms including
photograph log-sheets and archaeological dive log-sheets.
To complement the written recording undertaken, the project
recording system also used still photography (including digital)
and digital video on all the sites visited.
Participants used Sea & Sea cameras (donated by Dive Master
Insurance) and their own photographic kit to record the
sites.
NAS staff used the NAS digital video to record all the sites
visited during the project. The video with its low light
capability provided usable footage when the poor visibility might
hinder the use of the still photography equipment.
One project member also provided his own video equipment to
provide additional footage of the sites investigated as well as
of general project activity. This digital video record allows
image capturing for the site archive as well as providing a
documentary archive of the project.
The information gained during the course of this project has
been/will be disseminated in the following ways:
- Report distributed to participants, sponsors and
supporters
- Report on the NAS website
- Report in the NAS quarterly Newsletter
- Reports / articles in the UK diving magazines
- Presentation of results at the NAS Annual Conference,
November 2004
- New data added to the Dorset Maritime SMR including
photographic and video archive and copies of all recording
proformas
- New data added to the National Maritime SMR including
photographic and video archive and copies of all recording
proformas
The results of WreckMap Portland 2004 have been divided into
individual sites visited during the project. For sites that were
visited during WreckMap Portland 2003 additional information has
been provided to place the 2004 work into context.
Positional information in GPS co-ordinates have been provided
for all the sites dived.
Countess of Erne
50 35.18 N; 02 25.18 W
Statistics:
- Dates visited: Monday 17th and Friday 21st May 2004
- Total number of dives: 23
- Total minutes underwater: 1082
- Total number of photographs: 39
History: Extracted from Dive Dorset, John & Vicki Hinchcliff,
1999
"An old paddle steamer, this 830 gross ton 241ft long iron
vessel, was used as a coal hulk in Portland Harbour from around
1890 until, in a gale in September, 1935, she broke her moorings.
After drifting across the harbour, she hit the inner wall of the
north-eastern breakwater, was badly holed and sank. She still
lies exactly as she sank, upright with her hull mainly intact,
but, like most of the wrecks here, rather silty."
The wreck of the Countess of Erne has been adopted under the
NAS "Adopt a Wreck" scheme by the ScubaPlus Dive School,
Bracknell. As one of the most popular dive sites on the
south-coast of England this wreck offers an excellent opportunity
to monitor the effect of divers on wreck sites as well as
presenting a model for the survey and recording of an upstanding
metal ship. These factors influenced the decision to include the
Countess of Erne as one of the key sites to be recorded during
the 2003 WreckMap project and again in 2004.
One member of the project team, Joe Bailey, came from the
ScubaPlus Dive School. The aims of the dives undertaken on the
Countess of Erne were tailored to match the project objectives of
the adopting team.
The Countess of Erne was the subject of a side scan sonar
survey during the WreckMap Portland 2003 project.
Investigation of the Countess of Erne in 2003 revealed some
recent collapse of port side hull at the stern. Much of the video
survey undertaken in 2004 focused on this area, which has since
collapsed further. Several dives were also spent sketching this
area.
It would appear that the corrosion of the iron hull and the
weight of the bollards has led to the buckling of the hull,
rather than due to damage by diving or boating activity.
Some of the recording done during WreckMap Portland 2004
focused on the bow area of the wreck. In 2003 the Diving with a
Purpose recording slate was also used to record the capstan of
the Countess of Erne. An iron pulley block was found lying next
to the capstan on top of the sediment. During WreckMap Portland
2004 the team recorded the capstan in further detail and located
12 pulley blocks in the bows, just forward of the capstan.
Comparison with the original line drawings demonstrates that
the capstan of the Countess of Erne has collapsed into the hold
of the vessel from its original position. The close examination
of the capstan during WreckMap 2004 identified that it still
stands on the remains of the wooden deck
Royal Adelaide
50 34.65 N; 02 28.50 W
Statistics:
- Dates visited: Thursday 20th May 2004
- Total number of dives: 14
- Total minutes underwater: 522
- Total number of photographs: 13
- Total minutes video: 8
History: (provided by Gordon Le Pard, Dorset Coast
Forum)
On the night of the 25th November 1872 the Royal Adelaide,
outward bound to Australia, was wreck off Chesil Beach. During
the subsequent Board of Trade Inquiry the Master, William
Hunter's evidence was that,
"When the second mate reported bottom at ten fathoms, he gave
orders to cast anchors. He had a patent apparatus on board for
this purpose, and believed from forty to fifty fathoms of cable
were let out on each anchor. He called to the boatswain to check
the vessel, and could feel the anchors dragged, but the ship
never came head to wind... ...The cables never parted,
and must still (be) fast to the ship. The vessel dragged ashore,
her quarter striking first, and she then went broadside on."
(Weymouth & Portland Guardian 7th December 1872)
As a result it has been suggested that this "patent apparatus"
for releasing the anchor, as well as the anchors themselves,
might have played a part in the wrecking of the Royal Adelaide.
From a recent diver report it was believed that a single anchor
survived on the main wrecksite and Gordon Le Pard, from the
Dorset Coast Forum, tasked the NAS with undertaking a survey of a
surviving anchor known to be on the main wrecksite. It is
accepted that the surviving anchor is not one of those that were
let out on the night of the wrecking, but it is reasonable to
suspect that this "spare" anchor would have been of the same type
as the main anchors.
The development of the Porter anchor took place at a time of
rapid innovation and was soon superseded by the more common
Trotman anchor.
The identification of the anchor as a Porter type suggests
that it was probably not the anchors themselves that were
responsible for the wrecking of the Royal Adelaide. This does
leave open the question of whether the "patent apparatus" on
board for casting the anchors could have been at fault. Further
research will be needed to answer this question.
Enecuri / Spaniard
50 34.86 N; 02 24.85 W
Statistics:
- Dates visited: Wednesday 18th, Thursday 20th, Friday 21st May
2004
- Total number of dives: 22
- Total minutes underwater: 648
- Total number of photographs: 59
History: Extracted from Dive Dorset, John & Vicki Hinchcliff,
1999
"She was a Spanish steamship, which drifted on to the
breakwater on 29th December, 1900. At the time of her sinking her
crew of 26 were all saved, but her captain was later drowned
after returning to the ship." "The wreck was almost certainly
violently disturbed by the Russian oil rig that broke loose from
its moorings in a Force 10 gale on 28 October, 1996, and crashed
its way northwards along the rocks of the breakwater at this
point."
Very little information appeared to be known about history of
the Enecuri (also known colloquially as the Spaniard).
Investigations on the Enecuri during Wreckmap Portland 2004
therefore aimed to produce some basic drawings and dimensions of
the wreck. Most of the dives focused on the upstanding remains of
the bow section, although dives were carried out on the stern to
quantify just how little remained visible on the seabed.
The intact bow section included numerous bollards, cleats and
hatches. The section continues stern until reaching a railing
that runs right across the ship from port to starboard. After
this the structure drops down into the hold of the vessel.
The section of the wreck, aft of the railing, contained
vertical stanchions to hold the deck above. This deck is no
longer present. Lying on the seabed there are large amounts of
collapsed hull plates and tangled masses of hawser cable and
possibly an iron ships knee.
As the wreck continues aft it practically disappears, probably
due to the collision in 1996. Any small sections of wreck
remaining would be covered with silt.
Further work on the Enecuri should focus on obtaining more
dimensions of the wreck. This would allow a more detailed plan to
be drawn up.
Seabed anomaly / unknown barge
50 34.70 N; 02 26.50 W
Statistics:
- Dates visited: Monday 17th May 2004
- Total number of dives: 13
- Total minutes underwater: 535
- Total number of photographs: 9
History:
During WreckMap Portland 2003 a small boat shaped anomaly
located off the stern of the Countess of Erne was found using the
side scan sonar. This site is not listed in Dive Dorset
(1999).
Since the 2003 project a diving group from Southampton have
started to dive the site and created an initial drawing of the
remains. The remains are the hull of a small barge. The exact
vessel type and identification are yet to be achieved. The
intention of the visit during WreckMap 2004 was to collect
photographs and video footage of the site and to focus some work
on the stern area where there are doors that are hinged
vertically left and right. Dives on the site showed one of these
doors was found to be open.
The diving team also spent some time surveying the bows of the
wreck identifying what is probably the pump of the vessel.
Unknown Barge / Coaster
50 34.874 N; 02 24.93 W
Statistics:
- Dates visited: Tuesday 18th, Thursday 20th and Friday 21st
May 2004
- Total number of dives: 27
- Total minutes underwater: 1193
- Total number of photographs: 40
History: Extracted from Dive Dorset, John & Vicki Hinchcliff,
1999
"This unidentified wreck lies about 70m north of the wreck of
the Enecuri. The vessel is sitting on the sloping breakwater wall
almost at its base. She is a whole vessel complete with
propeller. Depth to the deck is 11m. It is possible to enter her
holds".
This wreck is identified in Dive Dorset (1999) as an unknown
barge. However after diving the site it became clear that the
vessel was a substantial sea-going ship. After discussion with a
local dive shop operator the site became known as the unknown
coaster. The dive shop operator was also sure that the site was
damaged at the same time as the Enecuri, when the Russian oil-rig
broke its moorings in 1996. Before this the wreck was virtually
intact.
The wreck is in three parts - the bow lies up against the
breakwater, pointing to the surface, whilst the midships lies
along the length of the breakwater lying on its starboard side.
It is in poor condition with much of the structure missing,
except the very bottom of the ship. Some ribs do stand up mainly
on the port side. Finally the stern is in quite good condition by
comparison. The stern also lies over on its starboard side with
the rudder and single screw propeller still visible.
Dives made in 2004 confirmed the presence of the propeller.
The propeller is iron and consists of four blades (below left).
Each blade is just over a metre in length (measured at 1.06m) and
72cm across. Both the propeller and the rudder are partially
buried in the seabed.
Work on the stern also revealed a possible name on the transom
of the ship. Due to the extent of marine biological growth on the
hull the divers investigating the stern were barely able to
discern the lettering.
Despite this it is believed that the lettering reads
"NEWCASTLE" and would represent either the name of the vessel,
which at present is unknown, or alternatively represent the port
in which the vessel would have been registered. NAS Training will
be trying to search through the Dorset Maritime SMR to identify
this wreck, as well as returning to the transom on future dives
to search for any more letters that might throw new light on the
identification of the wreck.
Earl of Abergavenny
50 36.15 N; 02 24.95 W
Statistics:
- Dates visited: Wednesday 29th May 2004
- Total number of dives: 24
- Total minutes underwater: 963
- Total number of photographs: 3
History: Extracted from Dive Dorset, John & Vicki Hinchcliff,
1999
"Built in 1796, this fine ship of the English East India
Company was on its way from London to the Far East with 400
passengers and crew living in cramp conditions below decks. A
pilot taken on board at Weymouth sailed her straight into the
Shambles Bank and badly holed her bottom. She finally sank in 15m
of at 11pm on 5th February 1805, in Weymouth Bay. Despite the
many hours between stranding and sinking, and the presence of
rescue craft, as many as 350 people perished."
The side scan sonar in 2003 was also able to show up
relatively small structural elements such as an iron knee lying
on the seabed. This was confirmed by divers visiting the
location.
During WreckMap Portland 2003 the project participants were
able to assist David Carter in the surveying of an iron knee.
During the 2004 project David Carter tasked the group with
surveying in the relative positions of a number of iron knees.
This was done using a central datum point and recording a
distance out and a bearing. All the knees were tagged and
labelled with numbered labels. All the results were deposited
with David Carter and the Earl of Abergavenny team.
NAS Training will continue to maintain links with the Earl of
Abergavenny team and assist them in their work whenever
possible.
Project Outcomes
The project outcomes for WreckMap Portland 2004 include:
- New data to be added to the NMR and the Dorset Maritime
SMR.
- Public involvement & development of stewardship especially
through the Adopt a Wreck initiative.
- Successful use of the Diving with a Purpose diver recording
slate.
- Increased public awareness through an evening public lecture
(by NAS Training staff, Gordon Le Pard & Ed Cumming) and through
museum display.
- Educational value for project participants.
- Involvement in archaeological recording process.
- Understanding of the process of archaeological project
management.
The Future - Wreckmap 2005
NAS Training is committed to continuing with its involvement
in Dorset and would like to enter into discussion with all
interested parties concerning the issues raised above, with the
will to run a similar project in 2005. Future WreckMap Projects
will continue to nurture the interest generated during the 2003
and 2004 projects and continue the monitoring process on wrecks
like the Countess of Erne, and the identification of the unknown
barge and unknown coaster.
Monitoring - Adopt a Wreck
NAS Training will be encouraging the future monitoring of the
condition of the wrecks in and around Portland Harbour. One way
this can be achieved is by getting more of the wrecks "adopted"
through the DWAP Adopt a Wreck initiative.
This initiative is aimed at those groups, clubs or individuals
who regularly dive a site, and have developed more than a passing
interest and are keen to get involved in research or site survey.
This scheme will appeal to those wanting to take on a club
project, which will have a genuine scientific outcome.
Information resulting from these projects will be passed, with
the name of the contributor, to the appropriate agency and the
county SMR.
Currently the Countess of Erne and the Earl of Abergavenny are
adopted under the scheme. NAS Training will be actively trying to
source suitable groups or clubs that might undertake other
adoptions.
Acknowledgements
NAS Training would like to thank the following for making the
project possible:
Paul Pike and his boat Divetime who again coped admirably with
the group of NAS divers; Joe Bailey from ScubaPlus for all his
help; Gordon Le Pard from the Dorset Coast Forum; Rodney Alcock
at Weymouth Museum; Janine and Bos at Old Harbour Dive Centre for
their efforts and supplying of free air for the duration of the
project; David Carter and Ed Cumming from the Earl of Abergavenny
team.
Last, but no means least, thanks and a big well done to all
the project participants for their enthusiasm - Joe Bailey, Pete
Smith, Frank Manigrasso, Keith Peake, Julie Morrissey, Will
Tabner, Nick Hassapis, Jill Hooper, Steve Murray, Andrew Askwith
and Roger Forster.
Links
Projects home page
Top of page
|
Projects 