The steel steam trawler TR-11 built by Collingwood SB Corp, Ontario (Yard No 57) for the British Royal Navy was launched on 28th June 1918. The TR series vessels were a class of minesweeping vessels built during World War One. A total of forty five were constructed measuring 130.0′ x 23.0′ x 12.7′ and their tonnage was 288 gross tons, 116 net tons. TR-11 was powered by a 3 cylinder triple expansion steam engine by Marine Iron Works, Chicago delivering 86 nominal horse power. She was armed with a quick firing 12 pounder 78 mm deck gun. After the war she was sold to Boston Deep Sea and Ice Co Ltd who renamed her San Sebastian and registered her in Fleetwood FD126.
Extract Lloyd’s Register 1936.
Builders GA drawing – Lloyd’s Register
She ran aground on rocks off Ardbeg in the drizzle in the early hours of the morning of 16th January, 1937 as she steamed north towards the fishing grounds from her home port of Fleetwood. As she struck a reef about two miles offshore she rolled over onto her side and sank almost immediately. She went down so quickly that her crew had no time to prepare or to fire distress signals and they were plunged into the icy water to fight for their lives. Of the crew of thirteen, nine made it to various nearby rocks but four were lost.
SS San Sebastian underway
The crew huddled together in groups on the exposed rocks until dawn when the coaster Pibroch, on the last stage of her voyage from the Clyde to Lagavulin Distillery, passed by and noticed the frozen men waving from the rocks. Eight of the crewmen were taken aboard and ferried to Ardbeg but the last man, Captain Richard Pook, was missed as he had reached a rock a little further from the wreck. His crew thought that he had been lost with their other colleagues. As the day wore on the captain began to think that he would have to spend another lonely, cold night on his rock and, thinking that he might not survive, decided to try to reach the shore swimming from rock to rock. He had covered about a mile towards the shore when, at around 2pm, some eleven hours after his ship went down, his movements were noticed from the shore by a local fishermen called Archibald MacAllister and James McCallum who put out in their boat and brought the exhausted skipper the safety.
Lloyd’s casualty Report – Lloyd’s Register
At the subsequent enquiry held in Liverpool Captain Pook was found totally to blame for the loss of his ship in not verifying his position, not being on deck when he should have been, setting a wrong course and making no allowance for the tide. His certificate was suspended for 12 months and refused to grant him a mate’s certificate in the meantime.
The wreck of the San Sebastian lies on the south east side of a reef called Garrisgeirs which is shown but not named on charts of the area. It lies north west of the reef called Iomallach, which is named on the charts, and close by the wreck of the Luneda. The wreck of the San Sebastian lies in position 55° 37.533’N, 006° 04.580’W (GPS). The larger parts of the wreck, including her huge boiler, lie at the foot of the reef in 11 metres on a sand a shingle seabed. There are also substantial portions of wreckage spread across the top of the reef in 3 or 4 metres. The site is not subject to tidal flows but can be exposed to a heavy swell when the wind is from the south or east.
