Wreckage from the KIRKMICHAEL was originally reported in 1976, with a further diver's report (by K. Hurley) in 1989 which located the site on the seaward side of Holyhead Breakwater, c. 300m from the Breakwater Lighthouse. The wreck is close by to that of the OSSEO (see NPRN 272227), with the 1989 report noting that the two are difficult to distinguish from one another. The ship's bell has been recovered and is located in Holyhead Maritime Museum.
The UKHO location for the wreck is placed on the inshore side of the breakwater. However, the diver reports, accounts of the sinking, and a photograph of the ship on the breakwater the following day make it clear that the wreck location is on the seaward side.
Event and Historical Information:
The KIRKMICHAEL was a steel-hulled three-masted barque built in 1882 at Sunderland by W Doxford & Sons (Official No. 86269, Yard No. 142). The vessel was 202ft in length, 33.1ft breadth, 20.1ft depth; 1 deck, 1 bulkhead. At time of loss the vessel was owned by A. J. Steel & Son, Liverpool.
On 22 December 1894 the KIRKMICHAEL was on passage from Glasgow and Liverpool to Melbourne under the command of master T Jones. Having lost most of her canvass, the barque was attempting to make a run for Holyhead under bare poles. The barque was driven against the outer wall of the breakwater. The Holyhead lifeboat was launched at 10.30am, but the lifeboat was swamped. Six of the lifeboat's oars were washed away forcing it to return. The rocket lifesaving crew mean crawled along the breakwater and managed to get a line onto the stern of the barque by which 11 men were taken off. The 1st and 2nd mate had taken to the rigging, one fell to his death and the other died of exposure. The ship's steward remained onboard to be taken off in the morning when the weather had abated.
Sources include:
Bennett, T, 1987, Shipwrecks around Wales, Vol 1, pp.57-8
Y Brython Cymreig, 28 December 1894, p.1
BSAC Wreck Register Supplement Vol 7-1, 44 (287)
Larn and Larn Shipwreck Database 2002
Lloyd's Register Casualty Returns, 1 October - 31 December 1894, p.12 (h)
South Wales Daily News, 31 December 1894, p.5
UKHO ID 7253: Contains public sector information, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0, from UK Hydrographic Office.
https://www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?11433
J. Whitewright, RCAHMW, July 2025.
This record was enhanced in 2020 with funding from Lloyd's Register Foundation as part of the project ‘Making the Link: Lloyd's Register and the National Monuments Record of Wales’. Visit Lloyd’s Register Foundation Heritage and Education Centre for more resources.