Explore The Peter Iredale Shipwreck
The Peter Iredale Shipwreck is a very popular tourist attraction. There is still wreckage visible and at sunset it looks kind of spooky.
The ship was named after Peter Iredale, who not only owned the vessel as part of his shipping fleet, but was also a well known figure in Liverpool, England, where his business was headquartered.
The ship was built in Maryport in June 1890. It weighed 2,075 tons and measured 285 feet in length and was fashioned from steel plates on an iron frame.
It had royal sails above double top and topgallant sails, and was the largest vessel built by Ritson.
The ship was originally commanded by Captain G.A. Brown and later by Captain H. Lawrence.
The ship was beautiful and very sleek looking and stood up to many rough seas but the Columbia River was just too much for it.
The Peter Iredale, shortly after grounding in 1906
She was a four-masted steel barque sailing vessel that ran ashore October 25, 1906, on the Oregon coast en route to the Columbia River.
It was abandoned on Clatsop Spit near Fort Stevens in Warrenton about four miles south of the Columbia River channel.
The ship was named after Peter Iredale, who not only owned the vessel as part of his shipping fleet, but was also a well known figure in Liverpool, England, where his business was headquartered.
Sailing from Salina Cruz, Mexico, on or about September 26, 1906, the ship was bound for Portland, Oregon with 1,000 tons of ballast and a crew of 27, including two stowaways.
Peter Iredale Shipwreck Near Tillamook Rock Lighthouse
The voyage up the coast was unremarkable until the night of October 25, when Captain H. Lawrence sighted the Tillamook Rock Lighthouse at 3:20 a.m. local time. The crew altered course first east-northeast and then northeast to enter the mouth of the Columbia River in thick mist and a rising tide.
Under strong winds out of the west, an attempt was made to stear the ship away from shore, but a heavy northwest squall grounded it on Clatsop Sands (now called Clatsop Spit). High seas and wind drove the ship ashore.
A lifeboat was dispatched from Hammond, Oregon and assisted in evacuating the sailors, who were tended to at Fort Stevens. No casualties occurred in the accident.
|
Trying To Tow The Ship Back To Sea
There was little damage to the hull and plans were made to tow the ship back to sea, but after several weeks waiting for favorable weather and ocean conditions, the ship had listed to the right and become embedded in the sands.
Captain Lawrence's final toast to his ship was: "May God bless you, and may your bones bleach in the sands"
The Iredale Remains
The Iredale was only in service for a little over a decade and has remained on the sands of Clatsop Beach, half buried, for more than a half century. This old wreck has become a tourist attraction and most Oregonians have doubtless seen the remains. Each year it presents a different sight. One year it will be nearly covered with sand and then the next year it will be unearthed again.
The Peter Iredale shipwreck is on the Fort Stevens Beach just south of Astoria.You can reach it from the Fort Stevens State Park and there is also a turn off for you just to see the wreck.
|
