Reported to have sunk at N54 56 18 W00 20 33 on 20th November 1924. 21-APR-1971 Sonar contact obtained 54 56 06N 001 19 15W or 2.5C SE
possibly off this wreck. To be investigated 1971.

25-SEP-1974 Area was close sounded by echosounder 772 and intensively
examined by MS47. Nothing found except good bottom contact.

A Norwegian cargo steamship, 1152 tons, 229 feet long. She struck a mine and sank on 23rd May 1917 in ballast. The wreck has been well dispersed, standing in 14 metres of water off the sea bed (Collings). Steel, 1,153-ton, 69.82m long, 10.69m beam, 4.8m draught Norwegian steamship registered at the port of Lyngor in Norway. She was built in 1907 by Bergen M.V. and owned at the time of loss by Adgesidins Redero Akties. Her single steel propeller was powered by a three-cylinder, triple-expansion steam engine using one boiler. On 23 May 1917, the Gran was in ballast, on passage from Rouen for Newcastle upon Tyne, under command of Captain A.T. Anderson, when she foundered one mile east of Ryhope, after detonating a mine laid by German submarine UC-40. The Gran was blown in two by the explosion and the halves sank about 200m apart, in a position just to the northern end of the Whitestones Reef. Records do not indicate in the crew was lost.

The stern section of the wreck, where you can find the boiler, a steel propeller, two large winches and the remains of her engine, lie to the southern end, in a general depth of 18m. They are scattered around and everything is well concreted into the seabed, with hard, white, marine-worm casings covered the few remaining pipes and plates. The rest of the wreck, which accounts for two thirds of the ship, lies approximately 200m north-west of the boiler and engine, in a general depth of 15-18m (Ian Spokes says 14m), the lowest astronomical depth of about 11-13m. However, there are some huge boulder reefs, just to the south-east, that gave misleading information on the echo-sounder. The wreck lies up against the base of a reef, orientated in a south-west to north-east direction, on hard, flat, rocky ground. The flat steel decking accounts for seventy percent of the wreck and lies more or less flush with the seabed. There are still a few large, brass valves bolted solidly onto the decking. At the head of the flat decking, is what appears to have been the wheelhouse, which is the highest structure left.

Grid reference conversion made 26.01.2011 with http://gps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/etrs89geo_natgrid.asp with Lat/Long referenced as N 54 53 52 W 01 19 31

A 280 feet steamer built in 1899. The Humber was an iron steamship. 280 tons, 39.5m long, 6.7m beam (wide) and 3m draught (needed 3m of water in which to float). She was built in 1899 by Ardrossan Dry Dock Co. Ltd and owned at the time of loss by J.B. Knapton. She had a single iron-screw propeller, powered by a three-cylinder, triple-expansion engine with one boiler. On 25th January 1918 the Humber was torpedoed and sunk by a German submarine 4 and 3/4 miles east of Souter Point. 7 of her crew were lost. The wreck lies in 45m of water. She is fairly intact and stands over 5m high. The stern end is fairly intact with the shaft and propeller still in place. N 54 58 069 W 001 14 643 or N 54 58 050 W 001 14 467.

POSSIBLE REMAINS OF ENGLISH CARGO VESSEL, 1917. While making for Sunderland Harbour, this steamship struck a mine laid by the German submarine UC-42 at 11.50 a.m, whilst employed on Government service as an ammunition Stores Carrier No 3. The ship sank at once, 11 of the crew being rescued by a motor launch and landed at Sunderland. The chief engineer and four others were lost.

A Dutch steamship of 1158 tons, 230 feet long, en route from Rotterdam to Leith Roads, torpedoed by German submarine UB34 January 22nd 1918 off Sunderland (Collings). A 1158T Dutch steamship measuring 70.15m x 10.36m x 4.01m sunk by a torpedo on January 22nd 1918. UB 34. 2 miles off Sunderland. Master: H A Prins. Owner: Holland-Gulf Stoom. Maats. Built: 1915. Builder: Wilton's Eng. & Slipway Co. Where Built: Rotterdam. Propulsion: Screw driven, 3 cylinder triple expansion engine. Boilers: 1. Machinery: Wiltons Eng. & Slipway Co. Rotterdam.

A British cargo steamship of 1520 tons. She sank off Sunderland on 24th October 1902 enroute from London to Blyth. In ballast (Collings). The Spokes and NMR database provide two explanations for the sinking – a collision and foundered. Two sizes are also provided (perhaps feet and metres?) 260 x 34 x 18 and 79.37m x 10.36m x 5.66m. The Eident sunk 24th October 1902. Spokes gives location as 54 51N; 01 09W (insufficient information to convert to grid ref).

A local name for a unnamed steamer of 5000 tons. Well broken up and lying in 12 metres of water (Collings). A steamship which is believed to lie south east of Hendon in 12m of water.

The Sara sank in 1915 after running aground. She lies in 12 metres of water, well broken up but boilers, engine and prop can still be found. Pouting, coalfish, cod and wrasse can be seen in summer months. Lobsters and other shellfish hide in the plating (Collings). Iron, 1133-ton, 68.58m long, 9.57m beam, 4.49m draught Steamship, originally called the Ant. She was built by W.Gray & Sons of Hartlepool in August of 1883 for H. Martini & Co. of Glasgow. Her iron propeller was powered by a two-cylinder, inverted-compound steam engine using one boiler. Her machinery was built by Blair of Stockton. In 1886 she was sold to G. Jamieson of Liverpool and resold in 1902 to a Norwegian Company, Aktieselsk Sara (H. Skougaard). She was then fitted with a larger engine and re-registered under the name of Sara at the port of Langesund in Norway. She had one deck, four watertight bulkheads and a superstructure consisting of an 8.2m poop deck, 15.8m quarter-deck, 17.6m bridge-deck and 9.4m forecastle.
On 22 November 1915, under the command of Captain J. Jensen, she was on passage from Gothenburg for Sunderland with a cargo of pit-props. The Sara was making her way to the old South Dock entrance of the port in heavy fog, when she stranded on the Hendon Rock at 7am (This is a huge rock which is permanently submerged, some two and a half metres beneath the surface, on a low spring tide.) Four tugs attempted to re-float her on the incoming tide without success, as she had a gaping hole in her side and a severe starboard list. Eventually she filled up with water and slipped down to the bottom. One of the tugs rescued her crew at 3pm, just before she sank and put them down safely ashore. The buoyant cargo combined with the water pressure quickly burst open the hatch covers and the cargo of pit props quickly covered the ships surface and littered the beach with drift wood for many months.

The wreck was discovered by the author and one of his colleagues, Rolf Mitchinson, while systematically search all of the high rocky protrusions from the seabed with an echo-sounder in 1975. At the time of discovery the wreck had been smashed up by storms and tides. The seabed to the south-west of her boiler was strewn with iron ribs, framework, decking and copper pipes, massive crushed lead pipes, varying shapes of bronze valves a brass donkey boiler lying close to the condenser and lots of intact brass portholes. The ship’s bell bearing the name ‘Ant 1883, Glasgow’ was recovered by the author in 1978. It was found lying buried in a concretion of coal-dust and small stones. All that remains of her today is the boiler standing upright close to the south-western side of Hendon rock at a depth of 8-10m (NMR 10m), twisted iron framework and at least three iron propellers lying in coal-dust concretion.

Grid reference conversion made 02.02.2011 with http://gps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/etrs89geo_natgrid.asp with Lat/Long referenced as N 54 54 10 W 01 19 54

December 1816 wreck of British craft which foundered after grounding on Souter Point. En route from King's Lynn and Kingston-upon-Hull to Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Crew saved. Master: Bushill or Buskell

A 1008 ton steamer, 220 feet long, which sank in February 1902, after colliding with the Skjord enroute to Davenport with a cargo of coal. From time to time a trace shows up in 28 metres of water, showing an intact wreck sitting upright on the seabed (Collings). Steel, 1,108-ton 67.05m long, 9.49m beam, 4.69m draught, British steamship, registered at Newcastle upon Tyne. She was owned by Sharp & Co at Newcastle and built in 1893 by J. Laing at Sunderland. Her single iron propeller was powered by a three-cylinder, triple-expansion steam engine which employed one boiler. Her machinery was built by North East Marine Engineering Co. Ltd in Sunderland. The vessel was classed as 100 A1 at Lloyds and she had one deck and a superstructure consisting of a 28m, poop-deck, 28m quarter-deck, 13.4m bridge-deck and a 6.7m forecastle.
In less than an hour of leaving the River Tyne on 23 February 1902, the Rotha foundered and was lost three miles east of Souter lighthouse, following a collision with the Danish-registered steamship Skjold. The Rotha was on passage for Devonport, under the command of Captain J. Hay, with fourteen crew and an unspecified cargo of coal. With a light south-westerly wind blowing, weather conditions were very good, however the records do not show whether it was day or night when the collision occurred.

Bob Scullion of Marsden Dive Centre informed the author that the wreck is very old and badly decayed and appears to pre-date the First World War. She is believed to be that of the steamship Rotha. However there has been no positive identification of the vessel and it is possible that she shares another location with the steamship Poltava (HER ????). The wreck lies of a sea bed of dirty sand, mud and broken shells in a general depth of 42m (the Spokes database also suggests a depth of 28m). She is still rather substantial, but not totally collapsed and rather broken up. Her bows are still rather intact and lying at an angle of 60 degrees.
The hold section is still intact and it is possible to swim into it, but the wreck is generally a jumbled pile of twisted girders, steel plates, big lengths of loose bent and flattened copper pies and broken machinery. Her boiler and engine are openly visible in the centre of the wreckage and close to them is a massive, complete, iron steering wheel lodged solid. Everything is covered in a heavy coating of sediment