Archaeological remains associated with the loss of this vessel are not confirmed as present at this location, but may be in the vicinity.

Event and Historical Information:
The FELLSIDE was a steel-hulled steamship built in 1901 by Murdoch & Murray of Port Glasgow (Yard Number 184) and registered in Belfast (Registration Number 111037). Technical and configuration specifications are given as 377nt (872gt), length 208.8ft x breadth 30.1ft x depth 12.8ft (63.60m x 9.16m x 3.86m), with a screw propulsion 3 cylinder triple expansion steam engine (by D Rowan and Company of Glasgow) and single boiler, generating 114 horsepower. The vessel also had 2 masts. At the time of loss, 8 January 1924, the vessel was owned by Farley Steam Navigation Company Ltd. And captained by J. T. Nelson. The FELLSIDE was sailing from Bordeaux to Swansea, with a cargo of pit wood, when it was lost in a gale, in Oxwich Bay, Southgate, Heatherslade Bay. The FELLSIDE was driven ashore, wrecked and then broken up for scrap. No lives were reported lost.

Sources include:

Bennett, T. 1992, Shipwrecks Around Wales, Volume 2, pp.33-4 (photo)
Cardiff Court of Petty Sessions, Board of Trade Inquiries 1924, CL P/S Cbo BT 225
Edmunds, G. 1979, The Gower Coast, p.54 (photos x 2)
Larn and Larn Shipwreck Database 2002
Lloyd's Register Casualty Returns, 1 January - 31 March 1924, p.9 (g)
Lloyd's Register of British and Foreign Shipping, 1 July 1919 - 30 June 1920, number 13282 in F

Maritime Officer, RCAHMW, June 2011.

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.