Maritime record MWX5197 - Southampton Belle

A tug that sank in 1955 at Holes Bay. Her date of loss is not precisely known, but she is believed to have stranded on the sand in July of that year.

A tug that sank in 1955 at Holes Bay. (1)

Vertical datum: LAT
Horizontal datum: WGS 84
Quality of fix: Position precisely known.
Charted as SOUTHAMPTON, partial wreck, on the sands at east of Hole Harbour, east of Cobb's Quay Marina.

Vessel remains:

Position noted as 50°43'.356 N, 001°59'.487 W. (1)

Sonar length 30m, sonar width 15m, orientation 0° (1)

'Badly rusted and decayed.' (1)

'Hull remains of small steel tug... ' (1)
29.11.77

Documentary evidence:

'This wreck lies near the new industrial road at Sterte, Grid Reference SZ 007915. Pool Harbour Commissioner
Minutes of 24.08.1955 show receipt of verbal application by a Mr Howard, Wicor Boatyard, Portchester, to break up
the wreck of the tug SOUTHAMPTON, lying in the mud in Hole's Bey. Thought to be ex-MUWO.' (2)

Built: 1911(2)
Builder is not known
Where built: Leith (2)
LBD: 30 x 15m (1); 16.19 x 3.51 x 1.62m (2)
Propulsion: Screw-driven steam engine. (1)
Ownership is not known.

No further information about the vessel could be found and unfortunately the discrepancy between the vessel
dimensions given by sources 1 and 2 cannot be resolved.

Date of loss qualifier: Reported date of loss

One additional sources are mentioned in the Shipwreck Index of the British Isles, but unfortunately the abbreviation
used is not listed by that publication and is not known. It appears as: LSWC p13 (photo)

<1> Le Pard, G, 1995-2003, Dorset Coast Forum Maritime Archaeological Database (Digital archive). SWX8707.

<2> Larn, R, and Larn, B, 1995, Shipwreck index of the British Isles, volume 1 : Isles of Scilly, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset Section 6, Dorset (AJ) Vol 1 (Monograph). SWX4541.

<3> https://www.wrecksite.eu/Wrecksite.aspx, Accessed 16-JUL-2010 (Digital archive). SDO20096.

<4> National Record of the Historic Environment, 1524893 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Dec 5 2023 3:44PM