Ship's Propeller - Steamship Leif Eriksson

Propeller, Georgetown, S.C.

I think this is a new addition to the waterfront in Georgetown, S.C. I haven't seen it before and it is so huge it would be hard to miss. What a great sight it is against the old textured brick wall.  The Post & Courier has the story describing how the wreck was finally identified resting in 100 feet of water off Bulls Bay.

Diver's Notes: The "Anchor Wreck" is the final resting spot of an unidentified steamer in approximately 100 feet of water off Charleston, South Carolina.  The site is noted by three large anchors aft of the bow, hence the name.  Aside from scattered hull plates and other wreckage, the site is dominated by a large triple expansion engine and two boilers.

 

After conducting research on potential suspect vessels, we believe the "Anchor Wreck" to be the remains of the freighter Leif Eriksson.  The Eriksson was a Norwegian steamer built in 1889.  The 2,218 ton vessel was 274.5 feet in length and 38 feet in breadth.  The Leif Eriksson was bound from Matanzas, Cuba, with a cargo of sugar for Philadelphia when she sunk following a collision with the steamer City of Everett in February 1905 off Bull's Bay, just north of Charleston.  The City of Everett was a whaleback with an overhanging cigar-shaped bow, which cut into the Eriksson's hull deeply and ripped her open far below the waterline.  The Eriksson sank in less than 10 minutes.  Period newspaper articles documented she came to rest upright in approximately 14 fathoms (84 feet) of water with her masts still showing.  Based on the machinery, depth, location, recovered artifacts, and dimensions of the wreck site, we believe the Leif Eriksson is the most likely identity of the "Anchor Wreck."