This is a list of shipwrecks located off the coast of North Carolina.
Ship | Flag | Sunk date | Notes | Coordinates |
---|---|---|---|---|
USS Aeolus | United States Navy | August 1988 | Sunk as an artificial reef. | 34°16.685′N 76°38.659′W / 34.278083°N 76.644317°W |
Adventure | Pirate | 10 June 1718 | Sloop under the command of Blackbeard. Ran aground attempting to kedge Queen Anne's Revenge off the bar near Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina.[1] | |
Allan Jackson | United States | 18 January 1942 | American tanker; torpedoed off Hatteras by U-66.[2] | 35°37′N 74°20′W / 35.617°N 74.333°W |
USS Alligator | United States Navy | 2 April 1863 | Submarine; Sank off of Cape Hatteras. | |
Altoona | 22 October 1878 | Ran aground at Cape Hatteras. | ||
Amerikaland | Sweden | 3 February 1942 | Swedish freighter; torpedoed off Cape Hatteras by U-106.[3] | 36°36′N 74°10′W / 36.600°N 74.167°W |
CSS Appomattox | Confederate States Navy | 10 February 1862 | Steamboat that was scuttled to prevent capture near Elizabeth City. | |
Ario | 15 March 1942 | Torpedoed off Cape Lookout by U-158.[4] | 34°20′N 76°39′W / 34.33°N 76.65°W | |
Ashkhabad | Soviet Union | 29 April 1942 | Soviet tanker; torpedoed by U-402 off Cape Lookout.[5] | 34°21.908′N 76°21.081′W / 34.365133°N 76.351350°W |
Arabutan | Brazil | 7 March 1942 | Brazilian freighter; torpedoed off Hatteras by U-155.[4] | |
USS Aster | United States Navy | 7 October 1864 | Ran aground at Kure Beach.[6] | |
USS Atik | United States Navy | 26 March 1942 | Q-ship; torpedoed by U-123.[7] | 34°52′N 69°58′W / 34.867°N 69.967°W |
USS Atlanta | United States Navy | December 1869 | Ironclad warship that sank off Cape Hatteras. | 35°15′16″N 75°31′12″W / 35.25458°N 75.51995°W |
Atlas | United States | 9 April 1942 | American tanker; torpedoed off Cape Lookout by U-552.[8] | 34°27′N 76°16′W / 34.45°N 76.27°W |
Australia | United States | 16 March 1942 | American tanker; torpedoed off Cape Hatteras by U-332.[9] | 35°07′N 75°22′W / 35.12°N 75.37°W |
USS Bainbridge | United States Navy | 21 August 1863 | Capsized off Cape Hatteras. | |
USS Bazely | United States Navy | 9 December 1864 | Sank in Roanoke River near Jamseville after striking a mine while attempting to aid USS Otsego. | |
HMT Bedfordshire | Royal Navy | 11 May 1942 | Anti-submarine trawler torpedoed by German submarine U-588 off the coast of Ocracoke Island.[10] | 34°10′N 76°41′W / 34.167°N 76.683°W |
USCGC Bedloe | United States Coast Guard | September 1944 | Formerly USCGC Antietam; sank off Oregon Inlet in the 1944 Great Atlantic Hurricane.[11] | |
CSS Bendigo | Confederate States Navy | January 1864 | Iron-hulled sidewheel blockade runner; ran aground in Lockwood's Folly Inlet.[6] | |
CSS Black Warrior | Confederate States Navy | 20 February 1859 | Burned at Elizabeth City. | |
Bluefields | Nicaragua | 15 July 1942 | Nicaraguan freighter; torpedoed off Cape Hatteras by U-576.[12][13] | |
Bounty | United States | 29 October 2012 | Replica of the original HMS Bounty. Sank during Hurricane Sandy with 16 people aboard. | 33°54′N 73°50′W / 33.900°N 73.833°W |
British Splendour | United Kingdom | 7 April 1942 | British tanker; torpedoed by U-552 off the coast of Ocracoke Island.[14][15] | 35°04′N 75°11′W / 35.07°N 75.19°W |
Buarque | Brazil | 15 February 1942 | Brazilian passenger and cargo ship; torpedoed by U-432.[16] | 36°35′N 75°20′W / 36.58°N 75.33°W |
Byron D. Benson | 4 May 1942 | Tanker; torpedoed by U-552.[17] | ||
Carroll A. Deering | United States | January 1921 | Five-masted commercial schooner that ran aground in late January off the coast of Cape Hatteras. When the wreck was discovered and boarded, it was found to have been completely abandoned. Its crew were never heard from again. | 35°15′45″N 75°29′30″W / 35.262440°N 75.491695°W |
Caribsea | 11 March 1942 | Torpedoed by U-158 off Cape Lookout.[18] | 34°40′N 76°10′W / 34.67°N 76.16°W | |
Carl Gerhard | 23 September 1929 | Ran aground off Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. | ||
Cassimer | 26 February 1942 | Sank following collision with Lara off Cape Lookout. | ||
Catherine M. Monahan | 24 August 1910 | Four-masted schooner; foundered after running aground on Diamond Shoals. | ||
Central America | United States | 12 September 1857 | Sidewheel steamer carrying 10 tons of gold when it was caught up in a Category 2 hurricane. | 31°35′N 77°02′W / 31.583°N 77.033°W |
Chilore | 15 July 1942 | Freighter; torpedoed by U-576 and subsequently ran aground off Cape Hatteras.[19] | ||
USS Chopper | United States Navy | 21 July 1976 | Sunk off Cape Hatteras, while being rigged as a tethered underwater target. | |
Ciltvaira | Latvia | 19 January 1942 | Latvian freighter; torpedoed off Nags Head.[20] | 34°58′N 75°10′W / 34.967°N 75.167°W |
City of Atlanta | United States | 19 January 1942 | American freighter; torpedoed by U-123.[2] | 35°42′N 75°21′W / 35.7°N 75.35°W |
City of Houston | United States | 23 October 1878 | Foundered off Frying Pan Shoals in a storm. | |
USS Columbia | United States Navy | 14 January 1863 | Ran aground off Masonboro Inlet. | |
USS Comte de Grasse | United States Navy | 7 June 2006 | Sunk as a target, along with her sister ship, Stump. | |
CSS Curlew | Confederate States Navy | 7 February 1862 | Sunk in battle off Roanoke Island. | 35°53′08″N 75°45′41″W / 35.88565°N 75.76131°W |
USS Cythera | United States Navy | 2 May 1942 | Patrol boat that was torpedoed by U-402.[21] | 33°30′N 75°40′W / 33.500°N 75.667°W |
USS Dionysus | United States Navy | 1978 | Sunk off Pea Island as an artificial reef. | |
Dixie Arrow | United States | 26 March 1942 | American tanker; torpedoed off Cape Hatteras by U-71.[22] | 34°59′N 75°33′W / 34.98°N 75.55°W |
CSS Ellis | Confederate States Navy | 24 November 1862 | Gunboat that ran aground in New River and was destroyed to prevent capture. | 34°43′04″N 77°25′31″W / 34.7179°N 77.4254°W |
E.M. Clark | United States | 18 March 1942 | American tanker; torpedoed off Diamond Shoals by U-124.[23] | 34°50′N 75°35′W / 34.84°N 75.58°W |
Empire Gem | United Kingdom | 24 January 1942 | British tanker; torpedoed off Diamond Shoals by U-66.[24] | 35°06′N 74°58′W / 35.100°N 74.967°W |
Empire Thrush | 14 April 1942 | Torpedoed by U-203. | ||
Equipoise | Panama | 27 March 1942 | Panamanian freighter; torpedoed by U-160.[25] | 36°36′N 74°45′W / 36.6°N 74.75°W |
Esso Nashville | United States | 21 March 1942 | American tanker; torpedoed by U-124; stern section was salvaged.[26] | 33°35′N 77°22′W / 33.58°N 77.37°W |
Explorer | 12 December 1919 | A tugboat that sunk off Nags Head. | ||
CSS Fanny | Confederate States Navy | 10 February 1862 | Steamboat and balloon carrier that ran aground near Elizabeth City. | |
CSS Forrest | Confederate States Navy | 10 February 1862 | Gunboat that was burned to prevent capture at Elizabeth City. | |
F.W. Abrams | United States | 15 June 1942 | American tanker; struck a naval mine at Diamond Shoals.[27] | |
Fenwick Island | 7 December 1968 | Foundered in a storm. | ||
Francis E. Waters | 23 October 1889 | Blown ashore by a storm, and now on display at Nags Head town hall.[28] | 35°56.067′N 075°36.721′W / 35.934450°N 75.612017°W | |
G.A. Kohler | 23 August 1933 | Victim of the 1933 Chesapeake–Potomac hurricane. Wrecked two miles (3.2 km) south of Gull Shoal Coast Guard Station. Nine men and one woman from the ship were saved by breeches buoy.[29] | 35°28′08″N 75°28′52″W / 35.469°N 75.481°W | |
General E. L. F. Hardcastle | 17 August 1899 | Merchant sailing vessel; sank during the 1899 San Ciriaco hurricane in Pamlico Sound. | ||
George E. Klinck | United States | 7 March 1941 | American lumber schooner; foundered in a storm near Diamond Shoals Lightship. | |
George Weems | 20 May 1909 | Burned and sank off Frying Pan Shoals. | ||
Glanayron | United Kingdom | 22 May 1896 | British cargo ship; ran aground on outer Diamond Shoals. | |
Governor Ames | United States | 13 December 1909 | Schooner that was wrecked in a gale off Cape Hatteras. | 35°43′37″N 75°20′24″W / 35.727°N 75.340°W |
Gray Ghost | Sunk and later recovered near Belhaven. | |||
Helen H. Benedict | 1914 | Wooden schooner; ran aground two miles south of Nag's Head. | ||
Hereford | Norway | April 1907 | Norwegian barque; wrecked off Hatteras Island. | |
Hesperides | United Kingdom | 9 October 1897 | British cargo ship; stranded on Diamond Shoals. | |
Home | United States | 10 October 1837 | Steam packet ship wrecked off the beach of Ocracoke Island, North Carolina, in the 1837 Racer's Storm hurricane. | 35°14′42″N 75°30′53″W / 35.2451°N 75.5146°W |
USS Home | United States | 12 October 1870 | Steamship that sank off Cape Hatteras. | |
USS Huron | United States | 24 November 1877 | Ran aground off Nags Head. | |
Idaho | 18 February 1895 | The paddle steamer foundered in a storm while under tow | ||
USS Indra | United States Navy | 4 August 1992 | Sunk as artificial reef. | |
USS Iron Age | United States Navy | 11 January 1864 | Ran aground at Lockwood's Folly Inlet while attempting to refloat CSS Bendigo.[6] | |
Isle of Iona | United Kingdom | 14 December 1914 | British cargo ship; wrecked near Hatteras Inlet. | |
USCGC Jackson | United States Coast Guard | September 1944 | Sank off Oregon Inlet in the 1944 Great Atlantic Hurricane. | |
John D. Gill | 12 March 1942 | Torpedoed by U-158.[4] | ||
John Hunter | 10 October 1910 | Disappeared off Cape Hatteras. | ||
Kassandra Louloudis | Greece | 17 March 1942 | Greek cargo ship; torpedoed off Diamond Shoals by U-124.[30] | |
Kentucky | United States | 4 February 1910 | The 996-gross register ton and 203-foot (62 m) long steamer headed from New York to the Pacific Coast for Tacoma to Alaska service. Leaking, she stopped for repairs at Newport News, Virginia where she was deemed seaworthy. She developed catastrophic leaks and sank 110 nautical miles (200 km; 130 mi) off North Carolina. The use of radio to communicate "S.O.S." messages were among the first recorded, saving 46 lives.[31][32] | 32°28′N 76°25′W / 32.46°N 76.42°W |
USS Keshena | United States Navy | 19 July 1942 | Naval tug; struck a naval mine off Cape Hatteras while attempting to rescue Chilore.[19] | |
Koll | Norway | 6 April 1942 | Norwegian tanker; torpedoed by U-571.[33] | |
Kyzickes | Ran aground near Kill Devil Hills. | |||
Lancing | Norway | 7 April 1942 | Norwegian tanker; torpedoed by U-552 off Cape Hatteras.[34] | |
Laura A. Barnes | Ran ashore on Coquina Beach. | |||
Liberator | 19 March 1942 | Freighter; torpedoed off Diamond Shoals by U-552.[35] | 35°05′N 75°30′W / 35.08°N 75.50°W | |
Ljubica Matkovic | Yugoslavia | 24 June 1942 | Yugoslavian freighter; torpedoed by U-404.[36] | |
Lois Joyce | Sank in surf in Oregon Inlet. | |||
USS Louisiana | United States Navy | 24 December 1864 | Set afire and exploded at Fort Fisher.[6] | |
USS Mahackemo | United States Navy | 11 September 1948 | Sank off Cape Hatteras while under tow. | |
Malchace | United States | 9 April 1942 | American freighter; torpedoed by U-160.[37] | 34°28′N 75°56′W / 34.47°N 75.93°W |
Manuela | United States | 25 June 1942 | American freighter; torpedoed off Cape Lookout by U-404.[38] | |
USS Margaret | United States Navy | 14 April 1942 | Cargo ship that was sunk by U-571 off Cape Hatteras. | 35°12′N 75°14′W / 35.2°N 75.23°W |
Marlin | Liberia | 18 October 1965 | Liberian cargo ship; foundered after her cargo shifted. | |
Marore | 27 February 1942 | Torpedoed off Kinnakeet station by U-432. | 35°33′N 74°58′W / 35.55°N 74.97°W | |
Merak | United States | 6 August 1918 | American tanker; ran aground on Diamond Shoals while avoiding torpedoes from U-140. | |
Metropolis | 1878 | Sunk off Corolla. | ||
Mirlo | 16 August 1918 | Torpedoed by U-117 off Wimble Shoal Buoy. | ||
Modern Greece | 1862 | Sunk at Kure Beach. | ||
USS Monitor | United States Navy | 31 December 1862 | Lost off Cape Hatteras while under tow by USS Rhode Island.[6] | 35°0′6″N 75°24′23″W / 35.00167°N 75.40639°W |
Naeco | 23 March 1942 | Tanker; torpedoed off Cape Lookout by U-124.[39] | ||
CSS Neuse | Confederate States Navy | March 1865 | Burned to avoid capture in Neuse River; currently installed beside the river at the Governor Caswell Memorial. | 35°16′1.33″N 77°37′17.8″W / 35.2670361°N 77.621611°W |
USS New Jersey | United States Navy | 5 September 1923 | Bombed as a target off Cape Hatteras. | |
Nordal | Panama | 25 June 1942 | Panamanian cargo ship; torpedoed by U-404.[36] | |
Normannia | 17 January 1924 | Foundered in a storm at Frying Pan Shoals. | ||
Northeastern | United States | 30 December 1904 | American tanker; ran aground on Diamond Shoals. | |
Norvana | United States | 19 January 1942 | American freighter; torpedoed off Cape Hatteras by U-123.[40] | |
CSS North Carolina | Confederate States Navy | 27 September 1864 | Gunboat that sank off Southport. | 33°54′49″N 78°1′8″W / 33.91361°N 78.01889°W |
Olympic | Panama | 22 January 1942 | Panamanian tanker; torpedoed off Hatteras by U-130.[41] | 36°01′N 75°30′W / 36.017°N 75.500°W |
Oriental | 16 May 1862 | Sank near Oregon Inlet. | ||
USS Otsego | United States Navy | 9 December 1864 | Sank in the Roanoke River after striking two mines near Jamesville. | |
Papoose | United States | 19 March 1942 | Tanker; torpedoed and sank off Oregon Inlet.[42][43][44] | 34°17′N 76°39′W / 34.283°N 76.650°W |
USS Peterhoff | United States Navy | 6 March 1864 | Mistaken for a blockade runner and rammed by USS Monticello off Kure Beach.[6] | |
Pevensey | Confederate States | Blockade runner, sank off Atlantic Beach. | ||
Phantom | Confederate States | 1863 | Steel-hulled blockade runner; sunk at Topsail Inlet. | |
USS Pilgrim | United States | 1935 | Patrol vessel that was scuttled off Harkers Island as a breakwater. | 34°42′44″N 76°35′20″W / 34.71226°N 76.58878°W |
Porta Allegra | Dredge; sank for unknown reasons.[45] | |||
Portland | Ran aground at Cape Lookout. | |||
Proteus | 19 August 1918 | Sank following a collision with the tanker Cushing in heavy fog, southwest of Diamond Shoals. | 34°45.918′N 75°47.010′W / 34.765300°N 75.783500°W | |
Pulaski | United States | 14 June 1838 | The American steam packet Pulaski was lost thirty miles off the coast of North Carolina when its starboard boiler exploded. | |
Queen Anne's Revenge | Pirate | 10 June 1718 | French frigate that was captured by pirates and became Blackbeard's flagship, eventually running aground at Beaufort Inlet. She was discovered in 1996, near Atlantic Beach by Intersal, Inc.[46] | |
CSS Raleigh | Confederate States Navy | 7 May 1864 | Ran aground at Cape Fear.[6] | |
El Salvador | Spain | 29 August 1750 | Spanish merchantman ran aground during a hurricane near Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina [47] | 34°41.44′N 76°41.20′W / 34.69067°N 76.68667°W |
San Delfino | United Kingdom | 9 April 1942 | British tanker; torpedoed by U-203.[48] | |
Santiago | United States | 12 March 1924 | American cargo and passenger ship; foundered off Cape Hatteras in a storm. | |
USS Schurz | United States Navy | 21 June 1918 | Sank in a collision with Florida. | |
CSS Sea Bird | Confederate States Navy | 10 February 1862 | Rammed and sunk by USS Commodore Perry off Elizabeth City. | 36°17′07″N 76°10′30″W / 36.285242°N 76.175079°W |
HMT Senateur Duhamel | Royal Navy | 5 June 1942 | Rammed by USS Semmes which mistook it for a U-boat.[49] | |
USS South Wind | United States Navy | 11 October 1861 | Schooner that was scuttled in the Ocracoke Inlet. | |
Southern Isles | United States | 5 October 1951 | American bulk carrier; broke apart and sank. | |
USS Southfield | United States Navy | 19 April 1864 | Sank following collision with CSS Albemarle on the Roanoke River, near its mouth at Albemarle Sound. | |
USCGC Spar | United States Coast Guard | October 2004 | Scuttled in 108 feet (33 m) of water, 30 miles (48 km) off Morehead City, as an artificial reef. | |
HMCS St. Laurent | Canadian Maritime Forces | 12 January 1980 | Canadian destroyer; sank off Cape Hatteras while under tow to breakers. | |
Strathairly | 24 March 1891 | Ran aground near Chicomacomico. | ||
Stormy Petrel | 1864 | Iron-hulled sidewheel blockade runner; sunk at Kure Beach.[6] | ||
Suloide | Brazil | 26 March 1943 | Brazilian cargo ship; sank after striking the submerged wreck of W. E. Hutton. | |
Tamaulipas | United States | 10 April 1942 | American tanker; torpedoed off Cape Lookout by U-552.[48] | 34°25′N 76°00′W / 34.42°N 76.0°W |
USS Tarpon | United States Navy | 8 June 1957 | Foundered off Cape Hatteras. | 34°45.195′N 75°46.025′W / 34.753250°N 75.767083°W |
Theodore Parker | 4 June 1974 | Sunk as an artificial reef. | ||
Tiger | United States | 1 April 1942 | American tanker; torpedoed by U-754[33] | |
USS Tiru | United States Navy | 19 July 1979 | Balao-class submarine sunk as a target off Cape Hatteras. | 36°N 73°W / 36°N 73°W |
U-352 | Kriegsmarine | 9 May 1942 | Sunk by depth charges from USCGC Icarus.[50][51] | 34°21′N 76°35′W / 34.350°N 76.583°W |
U-576 | Kriegsmarine | 15 July 1942 | Sunk off Hatteras by depth charges from aircraft and gunfire from SS Unicoi.[19] | 34°31′N 75°13′W / 34.51°N 75.22°W |
U-701 | Kriegsmarine | 7 July 1942 | Sunk off Cape Hatteras by depth charges from aircraft.[52] | 35°14.330′N 75°06.690′W / 35.238833°N 75.111500°W |
U-85 | Kriegsmarine | 14 April 1942 | Sunk off Bodie Island by gunfire from USS Roper.[53] | 35°33′N 75°08′W / 35.55°N 75.13°W |
Ulysses | United Kingdom | 11 April 1942 | British passenger and cargo ship; torpedoed by U-160 south of Cape Hatteras.[54] | |
USS Underwriter | United States Navy | 2 February 1864 | Captured and burned by Confederate forces off New Bern. | |
Valour | United States | 18 January 2006 | Sank in a storm | |
Venore | United States | 23 January 1942 | American freighter; torpedoed off Hatteras by U-66.[55] | 34°50′N 75°20′W / 34.833°N 75.333°W |
Veturia | United Kingdom | 20 February 1918 | British freighter; ran aground on Diamond Shoals in fog. | |
USS Virginia | United States Navy | 5 September 1923 | Bombed as target off Cape Hatteras. | |
W.E. Hutton | United States | 18 March 1942 | American fuel tanker; torpedoed by U-124 off Cape Lookout.[42][56] | 34°05′N 76°40′W / 34.08°N 76.67°W |
West Ivis | United States | 25 January 1942 | American freighter; torpedoed off Hatteras by U-125.[55] | 35°03′N 73°10′W / 35.050°N 73.167°W |
EM[a] Wilcox | 30 September 1943 | Foundered off Nags Head in a storm.[57] | ||
William Rockefeller | United States | 28 June 1942 | American tanker, torpedoed by U-701.[58] | 35°14′11″N 75°2′1″W / 35.23639°N 75.03361°W |
USS Yancey | United States Navy | 1990 | Sunk as an artificial reef off Morehead City. | |
York | 22 January 1942 | Freighter; torpedoed by U-66. | ||
Zane Gray | United States | 1974 | Liberty ship sunk off Pea Island as an artificial reef. |