Left ... Backstamp on a piece of broken crockery recovered from the wreck. The backstamp reads Bridgwood made in England. This design was stamped on Bridgwood pieces during the first quarter of the 1900's, this in turn tying in with the loss date of the Clansman in 1924. Paul Hennessey. Reported to the ROW 2022.
SS CLANSMAN / ex ETHEL
Above ... Damaged shaft tunnel (Paul Hennessey)
CLANSMAN / EX ETHEL
ANGLIAN DIVERS, NORFOLK (BSAC BRANCH EAB11) ADOPT A WRECK / NAUTICAL ARCHAEOLOGY SOCIETY
TEAM MEMBERS Paul Hennessey, Roger Smith, Mike Thomas, Ben Cannell, Leigh Reeves, Simon Phelan, Lucy Johnson
In 2021 Anglian Divers ( BSAC branch EAB11) adopted the wreck known as the Ethel through the Nautical Archaeology Society's Adopt a wreck Scheme . During the winter of 2021 into 2022 the team researched the site known as the Ethel with a view to collating as much information on the site as possible prior to the start of the 2022 diving season. During the teams research it became apparent that the site in question was more than likely a miss identified wreck. The UKHO and the Admiralty have the site listed as that of the Ethel, this being said neither offer any further reference as to the vessel other than name and position, in turn this site has been designated that of the Ethel due to the fact a bell was recovered from the site with the name of Ethel upon it during the early 1980's. During the 2022 dive season Anglian Divers undertook several dives on the site and have concluded that this is in fact the wreck of the Workman Clark built Clansman. For a full detailed account of Anglian Divers Findings, plus video footage, site maps, history of loss and build please see below.
Position .... 52 53 742 N / 001 31 683 E
Type ... Cargo. Plumb bow, counter stern, engine midships, x1 deck, bridge deck 28 feet, forecastle 26 feet
Construction ... Iron
Tonnage ... 300 grt
Dimensions ... 45.6 x 6.6 x 3.2 mtrs
Engine ... 2 cylinder compound / Hp 19 / Lp 38 x 30 inch stroke
Boiler ... x1 scotch type. Dimensions ... Diameter 11 feet 3 inches // Length 9 feet 4 inches // Furnaces x2
Power ... 60hp
Built ... 1880
Launched ... 20th August 1880
Lost ... 22/10/1924
Cause of loss ... Foundered
Port of registration at time of loss ... Lowestoft
Builder ... Workman, Clark & Co Ltd, Yard no1 Belfast (official number 81960)
Engine builder ... J. Rowan & Sons Ltd, Belfast
Owner at time of loss ... Great Yarmouth Shipping Co Ltd, Lowestoft
Voyage ... Hull - Great Yarmouth
Cargo ... General / unspecified
General depth ... 25mtrs
Lives lost ... 0
Below ... Counter stern framework (Paul Hennessey)
History of ownership
Built in 1880 as the Obakh for A. McMullin of Belfast
Subsequent owners
1881 ... A. Godin & Cie, Le Harve
1883 ... Thomas Banks, Swansea / name change to Ethel
1885 ... David Macbrayne, Glasgow
1910 ... David Macbrayne Ltd, Glasgow / name change to Clansman
1916 ... A. F. Blackater, Glasgow
1918 ... P. S. Cooper, Glasgow
1920 ... A. M. Gibson, Glasgow
1921 ... Middleton SS. Co, Glasgow
1922 ... T. Small & Co Ltd, Lowestoft
1924 ... Great Yarmouth Shipping Co Ltd, Lowestoft
Below ... Starboard low level hull (Paul Hennessey)
Identification of the Clansman (2022)
Originally detected in 1982. The original UKHO report for this site (early 1980's) states that a bell with the name Ethel upon it was recovered by civilian divers from a wooden steam ship at the position listed at the head of this page. On contacting the diver who had recovered the bell along with his two dive buddies at the time, it transpired that the bell had in fact been recovered from a vessel of metal construction and not wood as stated by the UKHO. During communication with the diver who had raised the bell he conveyed he had researched the wreck himself back in the 80's and had discovered that the name Ethel was a former name of the wreck in question, but sadly could no longer remember the name of the vessel when she went down. It was not uncommon when a vessel had a change of name that the name on the bell would not be updated. Sadly the other two divers who were on the dive at the time of the recovery of the bell and would have in turn more than likely been told of the wrecks true identity have since passed away. Furnished with this information, this in effect offered a giant head start in rediscovering the wrecks identity at the time of her loss. After researching known steam ship losses in the area with any association to the name Ethel only one vessel came to light, this being the Workman Clark of Belfast built Ethel, later named and lost as the Clansman.
A few miles south of the position at the head of this page the UKHO have a site listed as possibly being that of the Clansman. After researching the build specification of the Clansman it can be confirmed this is not the wreck of the Clansman, this being due to the fact that the boiler detail does not match that of the Clansman, ie the boiler at this site is of a larger construction than that of the Clansman and it is fitted with four corrugated furnaces, the Clansman's boiler was only fitted with two furnaces, in turn the wreck at this position is now to be considered an unknown. Position 52 51 09,1 N / 01 35 45, 3 E. With the UKHO possible identity of the Clansman now being disproved the team in turn focused its efforts on comparing on site data with the Workman Clark built Clansman / ex Ethel.
SITE SURVEY
On conducting an initial survey of the site on the 8th July 2022 the site was shown to have dimensions and machinery consistent with that of the Clansman. In addition an item of broken crockery was recovered from the site (below) showing itself to have been produced during the first quarter of the 1900's, this in turn being consistent with the period of the Clansman and her loss. Further surveys of the site combined with measurements taken of the single boiler plus the engine and its two cylinders (Hp and Lp) proved to be conducive with that of the Clansman's registered build and specification. Conclusion .. It can now be concluded that from data taken from the wreck site and the recovery of the bell in the 80's that the site listed at the head of this page is to be now confirmed as the Clansman / ex Ethel built in 1880 by Workman Clark of Belfast as the Obokh, lost October 1924.
Below ... Anchor (Paul Hennessey)
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Circumstances of loss (Courtesy of Eryl Williams, Henry Blogg Museum, Cromer)
Whilst on route from Hull to Yarmouth with a general cargo, the Clansman found herself in a ENE gale off the Norfolk coast. Due to heavy sea conditions the deck cargo of the Clansman shifted and in doing so compromised the efficiency of the vessels scuppers. This in turn drastically reducing the flow of water off the Clansman's deck. In addition the heavy seas washed off the Clansman's hatch covers. Combining the effect of these two factors the Clansman found herself taking on water via the now open hatches and various other openings in the vessel and eventually went under. All of the Clansman's crew were able to take to the ships lifeboat and await rescue.
Rescue (Courtesy of Eryl Williams, Henry Blogg Museum, Cromer)
On the 22nd October 1924 at 10.07 during a ENE gale the Cromer lifeboat H.F. Bailey was launched after receiving a telephone message from Overstrand stating that a small boat filled with men had been spotted and that their situation was described as being critical. Within a few minutes of being launched the engine of the H.F. Bailey suddenly stopped. After 2-3 failed attempts at starting the engine and getting her to take the clutch the decision was made to prepare to make way under sail. Just as they were about to set off the mechanic managed to get the engine started and to take the clutch. With this the sails were furled and the lifeboat proceeded under the power of her engine towards Overstrand where they spotted the small boat and its men. After negotiating the heavy seas the H.F. Bailey managed to get along side the small boat (Clansman's lifeboat) and take off the 9 men at 11am. Due to the gale force conditions making it impossible to return to Cromer, the H.F. Bailey proceeded to Yarmouth where she arrived at 3pm. Captain Spurling of the Clansman informed Coxswain Blogg that their vessel had sank at 5.30am. In all the nine crew members of the Clansman had been adrift in the ships lifeboat for over 6 hours prior to their rescue by the H.F. Bailey. The nine men were reported to be very cold and exhausted after the terrible time spent in their small boat in such heavy seas.
H.F. Bailey crew members ... H. Blogg (Coxswain), J. Davies, G. Balls, H.W. Davies, W.M. Allen, R. Davies, R. Cox, L. Harrison. R. Blogg, J.J. Davies, R. Barker, Wal Allen.
H F Bailey (ON 694),was a Watson class lifeboat built at a cost of £7,569 by J.S. White, of Cowes, Isle of Wight. She was 45 feet in length, single screwed, her engines delivering 80hp.
Below ... Link to Henry Blogg Museum
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Workman, Clark & Co Ltd (Belfast), builders of the Clansman. George Smith Clark was born in Paisley in November 1861. After his education at the Merchiston Castle school in Edinburgh he went on to become an apprentice at Harland and Wolff. In 1877, at the age of only 16, Clark opened his own shipyard along with financial backing from his uncle George Smith. In 1880, Clark at the age of 19 joined forces with the 24 year old Francis Workman, a former apprentice at Harland and Wolff to set up their company Workman, Clark & Co. In the early days of the company they out sourced the manufacture of their engines to Rowan & Sons of Belfast and various other engine builders of the time. As of 1891 the company there after made their own engines. In addition to building their own engines the company pioneered the development of the Charles Parson turbine. During WW1 Workman Clark built 35 vessels for the Admiralty, along with many merchant ships in order to replace those lost to German U-Boats. In the post war years the demand for new vessels remained high. In 1920 the company had orders for 37 vessels. In 1921 orders started to drop off and in 1927 the company went into temporary liquidation. In 1928 the company was revived as Workman, Clark (1928) Ltd. In 1934 Workman, Clark (1928) Ltd launched their last ship, this being the 8,000 to tanker Acuus. George Clark died at his home in Fort William Park on the 23rd March 1935 and was buried on the 26th March in the Belfast City Cemetery.
Below ... Sign recovered from the Engine room area. Simon Phelan. Reported to the ROW 2022.
J. Rowan & Sons, builders of the Clansman's engine and boiler... York Street Foundry Belfast. Builders of various industrial machinery including cranes, threshing machines, boilers and stationary steam engines .
Below ... Remains of the bow (Paul Hennessey)
The Clansman today (2022)
At a depth of only 24mtrs and a length of 45mtrs there is plenty of time to take in all that this magnificent wreck has to offer. Unlike many of the other wrecks in the area the Clansman has not been subject to the destructive effects of dispersal and in turn has collapsed in a natural way over time with many of her prime features still in tact. Starting at the stern the first thing you will notice is the overhang of the intact counter stern, beneath the overhang is a four bladed prop, though only two of the blades are now still intact. Moving forward towards midships where the small 2 cylinder compound engine and single ended Scotch type boiler are located you will find the shaft tunnel that runs along the base of the aft hold. Half way along the tunnel there is a hole, looking inside it can be seen that the tunnel is now sanded up inside and in turn the shaft cannot be seen. The aft hold is sanded in to about half way up to the top of the prop shaft. As with the rest of the Clansman, all the deck has long collapsed, however in the bottom of the aft hold can still be found the intact hatch coaming that has dropped in to the bottom of the hold when the Clansman broke up. From the stern to the engine can be found various pieces of collapsed wreckage, a winch and double bollards. As with the rest of the site the majority of the hull walls and ribs have collapsed outwards and can now be found on the seabed both port and starboard along with the remains of sections of the deck, this standing upright with a height of two feet in places. The engine room area, ie engine and boiler are upright and intact and make for a very interesting area of the site complete with associated pipework and small pieces of machinery. To both port and starboard of the boiler can be found large pieces of bunker coal for the boiler, this being piled between the boiler and the remaining lower hull. Moving forward from the boiler and heading towards the bow you will once again find various collapsed wreckage a winch and double bollards. Once at the bow (plumb bow), with the bow standing no more than 10-12 feet tall you will find two Admiralty type anchors. For the most part very little now remains of the bow, however it is still recognisable and makes for an interesting part of the dive. Of note ... Whilst surveying the site, what appeared to be two rolls of Linoleum, ie Lino flooring were seen. In addition to this there are a great deal of what seem to be white rubber disks, these being some 10 inches in diameter and one inch thick. Also scattered around the site are donut shaped rubber rings, these being about six inches in diameter. At the time of the Clansman's loss she is listed as carrying a general cargo, no doubt the items mentioned were part of her cargo when she was lost.
Video footage (Engine to bow)
Video footage (Engine to stern)
Below ... Two site maps depicting the general layout of the site
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