Foam Queen

Although nothing has been recovered that positively identifies it as Foam Queen, the position — close to two other ships lost in the same convoy, SS Storra and SS Dona Isobel — plus the fact we were looking for a ship that had its stern blown off and carried a 12‑pdr gun, makes this a pretty safe bet.

Although we haven't located the gun or the engine it's likely to be in the area as wreckage is strewn about. Quite how intact any of it is after being hit by a torpedo remains to be seen

https://www.adls.org.uk/

The 'Gentle Lady' has a piece mentioning SS Foam Queen being loaded at Dunkirk

https://antiquesmedalsmilitaria.co.uk/products/ww2-dunkirk-ss-foam-queen?utm_source=copilot.com

Lifebuoy from the SS Foam Queen

 https://historicalrfa.uk/requisitioned-auxiliary-foam-queen/

Good source of information

WRECKSITE - FOAM QUEEN CARGO SHIP 1922-1943

 Foam Queen video

                                                                                BVLS

Unknown Buried wreck

 

After spending ten minutes swimming around looking for whatever had appeared on the sounder, I realized I was actually over a raised section of seabed. As I kept searching, pieces of metalwork began to appear, some resembling cannons at first glance. After breaking off the concretion, it turned out to be just cast iron pipe, but there was all sorts of ironwork hidden just beneath the sand.

Worth another look

Unknown Trawler (Rye)

No name for this trawler but artifact recovered dates it to the 1940's possibly late 40's . Diesel engine. Couple of portholes and some nice glass cases for the batteries. 

1.5km SE of Slate Wreck2

Short film of the wreck

Engine

Portholes

Slate Wreck2

 

Another slate wreck and again it's almost impossible to say which ship it was. Silty site . Wood is well preserved under the silt. No clues unfortunately.

Search Wrecksite.eu for Slate Wreck2 for position

Video of wrecksite

Slate Wreck

 

Took a chance on what might have just been more rocks but got lucky and found the remains of a ship. Though that’s probably a stretch since no ship is visible—unless you brush away some sand to reveal a bit of planking. It’s hard, if not impossible, to say what ship it was without any clues. The best clue would be a bell, but if it doesn’t have a name on it, you’re out of luck. You could make an educated guess if there’s a record of a ship carrying slate in the area, but so far nothing has turned up.

Click here for a short film of the site

Bell and bell ends

Vesuvius

 

Launched as Avon February 1870

Depending on what report you read it was 4 miles to 11 miles that the two ships collided.

 

The wreck, or what is left of it, is sitting 3.5 miles from Hastings and with no other wrecks in the area that could possibly be the Vesuvius it's a good bet that what is left on site is in fact the remains of that ship.

The ship has sunk into the sand and after being blown up there is not a huge amount left sticking up, but some remains. The 2 cylinder engine sits up to only 8m below the water at low tide and the prop shaft out the back of the engine leads to the 4 bladed prop. Going forward there is pieces of wreckage poking out the silty seabed and another larger piece of wreck further forward, but nothing is recognisable. Even the boiler in front of the engine has been blown to pieces and pieces of boiler tubes are sticking up.

Not a very inspiring dive but the fact the Vesuvius does not appear in the shipwreck index or Dive Sussex and was lost to history, for me , makes this an interesting site.

Footage of engine

 

Tyro

 

Run down by the steamer Mars, 1869