Almost 200 ships are known to have came to grief in the wild seas around the Falklands coast. Charts were scanty and sailing vessels and masters had their limitations. The bulk of the wrecks were 'barques', sailing vessels with 3 or more masts, helpless when being blown on to reefs and rocks. Some were leaking or on fire. Others fell victim to the thriving 'wrecking trade'. A visitor to the islands during the 1890's wrote: 'the coast was dotted with the ribs of lost vessels'. In later years the 1982 war saw more ships go down in Falklands waters.

City of Philadelphia 1896

On the 13th of May 1896 a three- masted, full-rigged ship making for the entrance of Port William and flying a signal requesting a pilot. The current pilot ship Victoria, old and slow could not reach her, the sea was rough and she had to return to Stanley. Very early morning brought the Cape Pembroke Lighthouse assistant riding to Stanley to raise the alarm that a ship was on the Billy Rock. Two vessels immediately went to try to help, the Sissie a steam and sail launch and the Result a sailing vessel. They came close to the stricken ship on the rocks but it was dark and stormy, and they could only make out her shape when the light from the lighthouse briefly caught her. The Sissie had to stand helplessly by while the doomed crew cried ‘Come and save us’. A week later divers went down to try to identify the ship. A woman’s body was found in the rigging. Some items were recovered and the evidence concluded that the ship was the City of Philadelphia, an American wooden vessel of 1384 tons travelling between New York and San Francisco. On board were thirty-one souls including the Captain’s wife, the only woman.
The plight of the stricken City of Philadelphia, with rescuers powerless to help brought to notice mariners’ concerns about the lack of facilities at Stanley. A powerful steam tug, the 95 ton ‘Samson’ was purchased by the Falkland Islands Company in 1900.

Concordia-1891

Concordia wrecked 1891 at Limpet Creek, E Falklands, German barque, her lifeboats were damaged there was little likelihood of her crew surviving but Charles Poole, was on board her and he swam with a line to shore and all escaped apart from the captain and two mates who drowned as they refused to leave the ship.

Isabella 1813

The Isabella was a travelling from Australia to England and grounded on Eagle (Speedwell) Island on 8th February 1813. See story link.

Leopold 1858

The Leopold of Antwerp, Belgium, a fine ship of 1200 tons under Captain Cousezeman, left Ostend early in 1858 for Swansea where she took on a cargo of coal. She sailed with a crew of 20 men including the captain, one having deserted in Swansea. On the 12 April 1858, at five o'clock on a dark rainy morning, travelling at a good speed, she struck Grand Jason to the North West of the Falklands. The men waited for daylight but the sea broke over the ship and carried away her three boats. A young man Leopold de Jouy bravely tried to swim to shore with a rope in his teeth but drowned, a second man tried and also drowned. By seven o'clock the ship was breaking up. Only one man called Peter de Clerck survived, thrown on the shore by the sea, he managed to scramble up the rocks. The Leopold and the rest of the crew had gone, none of the bodies washed up probably due to the thick tree kelp. Peter de Clerck survived for 23 days on the island living on birds and seal. By making a fire with wood and rope he attracted Captain Smyley in the Nancy who put his crew and boat in considerable danger to get the stranded man off the island. De Clerck had had nothing to eat for two days and was somewhat deranged when Smyley rescued him but recovered to tell the sorry tale of the Leopold.

Lord George Bentinck- Dec 1856

Kirkhill,1905

Wrecked Sept. 1905 on Wolf Rock, British Liverpool iron barque,1432 tons, en route Shields to San Francisco with coke; crew rescued by Fortuna

Neptune, 1873

April on Kelp Islands, all hands lost, barque of Shields 387 tons

R. M. Oravia 1912

The Oravia was built in 1895 by the British firm Harland and Wolff Ltd.  An ocean liner of some 5358 tons she belonged to the Pacific Steam Navigation Company  which held the Government Mail Contract to the west coast of South America. She had been built for use on the Australian run as part of the ‘Orient Line’ and along with her sister ships Orcoma, Orissa and Oropesa was a regular caller at the Falklands on the route between Liverpool and Valparaiso. In November 1912 Oravia struck the Billy Rock close to the entrance to Port William and was left stranded and grinding on the rocks, in great danger of the same fate as the City of Philadelphia which in 1896 had shipwrecked there with the loss of all hands. Help was immediately despatched from Stanley, the tugs Samson, Plym and the Government launch Penguin and some whalers that happened to be in Stanley harbour went to her aid. Captain Thomas of the Samson took her alongside the stricken Oravia to take off 150 passengers. In all over four hundred people were rescued The Plym rescued the letter and registered mail. In November 1912 the P.S.N.C. sent the SS Huanchaco to collect the stranded passengers.

Disappearance of The Thetis, 1901

On Saturday 27 July 1901 the Thetis sailed from Stanley to loaded with cargo including a large iron sheep dip for San Salvador lashed to her mast. A violent storm hit the islands on August 3rd and the Thetis never arrived at Salvador. See link to the story.

Yarra Yarra- 1855

Yarra Yarra was a British barque wrecked at Staats Bluff in 1885. All hands were lost. See link.

Sources include: Colonial Reports. Condemned at Stanley- John Smith 1969 Wikipedia website,www.boatregister, The Falkland Islands Journal, The Falkland Islands- Ian J Strange, Jane Cameron nationalarchives/shipping casualties wrecks

Photographic credits: Robert Maddocks, Jean Sinclair

Photographs and Images Copyright: The images on this site have been bought under licence or have been used with the permission of their owners. They may not be copied or downloaded in any form without their owner's consent.