The wreck of the RIVER HUMBER lies in 47m of water and is orientated 140 (bow)/320 (stern). The wheelhouse and superstructure is situated aft and has collapsed. The holds are full of silt.
The wreck of the RIVER HUMBER was subject to a detailed survey by Bangor University in February 2013. Associated research was undertaken by Dr Innes McCartney (2022: 107) for the Echoes from the Deep project, which corroborated the existing identification.
Event and Historical Information:
The RIVER HUMBER was built by Hepples (1919) Ltd at South Shields in 1920. Technical and configuration specifications were given as 315gt,137nt; 135ft length x 23ft 3in breadth x 9ft 7in depth; screw propulsion powered by a single steam boiler linked to a compound engine producing 65hp; machinery by Shields Engineering Co Ltd, South Shields. The vessel was placed on the port of Bristol Shipping Register on 24 February 1922 (2 in 1922 , formerly 59 in 1920 at Newcastle) the owner at that time was Arthur William Page of Bristol. The ship was sold to Charles Neill Ltd of Bangor, Co Down, coal merchants, in November 1926. The RIVER HUMBER was in collision with HMS FOLKESTONE on 4 June 1940 and sank some 8 miles east-northeast of the Skerries. The wreck was located by HMS FOX in March 1987.
Sources include:
Larn and Larn shipwreck database 2002
Lloyd's Register Casualty Returns, 1 April - 30 June 1940, p.8 (f)
Lloyd's Register of British and Foreign Shipping, 1 July 1936 - 30 June 1937, number 82784 in R
McCartney, I., 2022. Echoes from the Deep. Leiden: Sidestone Press. https://www.sidestone.com/books/echoes-from-the-deep
Port of Bristol Shipping Register 1916 - 1928, Bristol Record Office 37908/1/14, folio 65
SS River Humber, Wreck Site EU
UKHO ID 7350: Contains public sector information, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0, from UK Hydrographic Office.
J. Whitewright, RCAHMW, May 2023
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.