| Career | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Norwich City |
| Port of registry: | British |
| Route: | Melbourne to Vancouver |
| Laid down: | 9 February 1911 |
| In service: | 1911 |
| Out of service: | 1929 |
| Fate: | ran aground |
| Status: | wrecked |
| Notes: | Ship History [1] |
| General characteristics | |
| Tonnage: | 5587.08 |
| Displacement: | 8730 tons |
| Length: | 397 feet |
| Beam: | 53 feet, 5.5 inches |
| Installed power: | 412 BHP |
| Propulsion: | oil-fired, triple expansion steam |
| Speed: | 9 knots |
| Crew: | 35 |
The SS Norwich City was a British, oil-fired steam freighter powered by a triple expansion steam engine and manufactured in 1911 by Central Marine Engine Works in Britain.
In 1928, the ship ran into the Second Narrows Bridge in Vancouver, B.C..
During a storm on 29 November 1929 the unladen freighter was carrying a crew of 35 men when it ran aground on the reef at the northwest end of Gardner Island (later Nikumaroro Island) in the central Pacific Ocean. A fire broke out in the engine room and all hands abandoned ship in darkness through storm waves across the wide and dangerous coral reef. There were eleven fatalities. The survivors camped near collapsed structures from a late 19th century coconut planting project and were rescued after several days on the island. The devastated wreck of the Norwich City was a prominent landmark on the reef for 70 years although by 2007 only the ship's keel, engine and two large tanks remained. By 2010, only the engine remained above water on the reef.[1]
The wreck site has been investigated as part of an archaeological project (The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery (TIGHAR)) researching the fate of Amelia Earhart.[2]