The wreck of the SONNIA was subject to a detailed survey by Bangor University in June 2019. Associated research was undertaken by Dr Innes McCartney (2022: 107) for the Echoes from the Deep project, which corroborated the existing identification and association with UKHO 7365 (NPRN 272203).
Event and Historical Information:
The SONNIA (ex GOLDFINCH (1903-1930)) was a screw steamer built in 1903 by Selby Shipbuilding and Engineering Co. Ltd. at Selby (Yard No. 68, Official No. 118345). The vessel was 246 grt and measured 36.1 x 7.1 x 2.6m and was powered by 1 x 2 cyl. compound steam engine, one steam boiler, three plain furnaces, one shaft, and single screw, with a speed of 8 knots; machinery by G T Gray, South Shields. At the time of loss, the SONNIA was owned by Mrs M Fielding and registered in London.
On 24 October 1930 the SONNIA was on a voyage from Rostrevor to Garston with a cargo of timber when it sprang a leak and subsequently foundered at a reported location seven miles northeast of the Skerries.
Sources include:
Lloyd's Register Casualty Returns, 1 October - 31 December 1930, p.5 (b)
McCartney, I., 2022. Echoes from the Deep. Leiden: Sidestone Press. https://www.sidestone.com/books/echoes-from-the-deep
UKHO ID 7365: Contains public sector information, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0, from UK Hydrographic Office.
J. Whitewright, RCAHMW, December 2023.
This record was created 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.