1776: Nieuwe Rhoon, this Dutch East India man wooden sailing vessel of 1150 tons struck whale rock in Table Bay in a south-easterly gale and was badly damaged. It was towed and subsequently beached at the Castle Jetty in Table Bay in the Western Cape, where its cargo was unloaded, and it was left to become a wreck. Nieuwe Rhoon was built in 1764 at the Zeeland Yard for the Amsterdam Chamber of the Dutch East India Company and commanded by Captain Jakob Koelders. She was on a homeward bound voyage from Ceylon, which she had left on 22 November 1775.
In 1970 during the construction of the Civic Centre building at the foreshore in Cape Town the remains of a wooden ship were uncovered. The subsequent excavation by the city’s building inspector, Bob Lightly, in 1971 revealed a section of the hull had survived partly covered by ballast consisting of iron shot. The excavation included the exposure of, and good written and drawn records of the timbers. Good quality photos taken during the excavation have also been of particular benefit. The artefacts recovered were relatively scarce and consisted of clay pipes, Chinese porcelain, glazed pottery, and peppercorns. These artefacts tentatively dated the ship to wrecking during the mid-18th century. The position of the wreck, lying at right angles to the old shoreline, and its location near to where an old wooden jetty is recorded indicates that it was deliberately beached. The lack of artefacts also indicates that there was plenty of time to empty its hull, thereby indicating that it did not wreck suddenly. Records show that a Dutch ship, the Nieuwe Rhoon was deliberately beached in Cape Town in 1776. Therefore, Lightly concluded that the wreck uncovered at the Civic Centre was that of the Nieuwe Rhoon. The excavation was the first of its kind in South Africa and was important in showing that early wrecks can survive in a good state of preservation beneath reclaimed land.
1843: Sir John St Aubyn, this paddle-wheel driven steam-powered tug wrecked whilst towing the Sophia over the Kowie River bar in Port Alfred in the Eastern Cape. Although the Sophia also went down during this event, it was refloated and remained in service for another 10 years.
1851: James Shepherd, this British wooden sailing barque of 365 tons, built in 1850 in London was wrecked near Still Bay in the Western Cape. Commanded by Captain J. Hoare she was on a voyage from Mauritius to London via Table Bay. No lives were lost.
1873: Bismarck, this iron steam-powered coaster wrecked in fog on Madagascar Reef about 14km southwest of the Keiskamma River in the Eastern Cape. It is often stated that the Bismarck was the first steamer to have crossed the bar of the Buffalo River. Its bell is housed at the East London Museum. SS Bismarck was a German iron screw steam-coaster of 497 tons, built in 1868 by Henderson, Renfrew and owned by Lippert & Co., Hamburg. She was commanded by Captain Staats. No lives were lost. She plied her trade between Cape Town and Durban. In 1872 she rescued the passengers and crew of the Jane Davie near East London.
1897: Reistad, this Norwegian wooden sailing barque of 1422 tons was wrecked in a south-easterly gale in Gqeberha/Port Elizabeth in Algoa Bay in the Eastern Cape. After its cables parted it was driven ashore, where it wrecked, and it even fouled the Norwegian barque Arnguda’s anchor in the process. Reistad was built in 1860 by Maxon & Fish, Mystic, Connecticut. At the time of the wrecking she was on a voyage from Sundsvall with a cargo of timber.
1898: Dorothea, this American registered 851 ton wooden sailing schooner wrecked near Cape Vidal in KwaZulu-Natal. It sprang a leak and was abandoned to be driven ashore, after which it broke in two. Dorothea was built in 1884 by J. Jurgens, Elsfleth and commanded by Captain Harold Mathisson. She is reputed to have been carrying Transvaal gold (amalgam) which had been loaded at Lorenco Marques (Maputo) and cemented under her fore-hold.
1901: Harry Mundahl, this wooden sailing vessel wrecked at Anchor Bay – about 5 km north of Port Shepstone in KwaZulu-Natal. This Cape wooden dandy of 122 tons was built in 1882 by C.C.A. Dreyer, Hamburg and owned by the Port Shepstone Shipping Co. She was under the command of Captain Jacobson. She was at the start of her voyage carrying lime and sugar, all of which was lost. No lives were lost as all the crew were saved by the rocket brigade. She had been employed in trade between Port Shepstone and Durban.
1916: Magnet, this sailing (in some reports a steam-powered) sealer/Robben Island packet wrecked at Hout Bay Harbour in Hout Bay in the Western Cape. Whilst passing through the entrance in a gale and a heavy swell in an attempt to find shelter, the ebb tide set it on the shore where it remained fast and wrecked.
1965: Bluff, this steam-powered trawler wrecked in thick fog – 0.5 miles south of Beta Rd., Bakoven, Oudekraal – whilst returning to Cape Town from the fishing ground, just south of Bakoven, off Victoria Road in the Western Cape. The cook drowned whilst the rest of the crew survived. During WWII, the Bluff served as a minesweeper for the South African Navy. Bluff was built in 1934 by Hall, Russell & Co. Ltd. At the time this 262 ton trawler was owned by Irvin Johnson Ltd., Cape Town.
