The wreck identified as the THEME lies in 63m of water with its keel orientated 150 (bow)/ 330 (stern) degrees. It has a surveyed length of 54m, and a width of 8.3m.

This wreck was originally located and examined by the UKHO in 1976. and again in 2013 when it was described as having a strong magnetic anomaly, but with its bow distorted and raised upwards. The ship's bell was recovered in 2001 confirming its identification. It was subject to a detailed survey by Bangor University in August 2020. Associated research was undertaken by Dr Innes McCartney (2022) for the Echoes from the Deep project, which corroborated the existing identification of the wreck as the THEME.

Event and Historical Information:
The THEME was a steel-hulled screw-steamer launched in late 1894 or early 1895 (the Lloyds Survey report is ambiguous, listing both), by the Ailsa Shipbuilding Co. Ltd of Troon (Official No. 104457, Yard No. 47). The vessel was 504 grt, 53.6m in length, 8.1m width, and 3.5m depth. It was powered by a 2-cylinder compound expansion engine with a single boiler, single shaft and screw, and carried a two-masted schooner rig. At the time of loss the vessel was owned by W. A. Granger and registered at Belfast.

The THEME was carrying coal from Swansea to Belfast in December 1895, master J. Ferguson, and was last sighted off Bardsey Island on 25 December 1895. It was eventually posted missing at Lloyds with the loss of all 11 crewmembers.

Sources include:
Board of Trade Wreck Return 1895 Appendix C Table 1 pg151 (881)

Larn and Larn Shipwreck Database 2002

Lloyds Register Documentation, LRF-PUN-GLS171-0170-R: https://hec.lrfoundation.org.uk/archive-library/ships/theme-1895/

McCartney, I., 2022. Echoes from the Deep. Leiden: Sidestone Press. https://www.sidestone.com/books/echoes-from-the-deep

UKHO ID 7348: Contains public sector information, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0, from UK Hydrographic Office.

https://www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?133915

J. Whitewright, RCAHMW, November 2024.

Site Record

Theme (UKHO 7348)