Wrecks of Saint-Pierre harbor

Saint-Pierre before the eruption of 1902.

Wrecks Map

The eruption of Mount Pelée on May 8, 1902 generated a pyroclastic flow, also known as nuées ardentes (Fr: burning clouds), that destroyed the town of Saint-Pierre, Martinique in a few minutes. At the time of the eruption, Saint-Pierre was the administrative and economic capital of Martinique.

During this eruption, many boats were in the bay of Saint-Pierre. Like the city, they were destroyed in an instant. The majority caught fire, destroying property on board.

The fishermen knew the locations of some of the wrecks and would cast their nets in areas rich in fish. With the advent of scuba diving in the 1970s, wreck hunters set out to search for the sunken boats. Michel Météry discovered the majority of these wrecks. Jacques Cousteau, Albert Falco and Dominique Serafini on the Calypso were also among those who searched for them.

The boats are now very attractive diving sites for divers who live or come to Martinique and all local diving clubs organize trips to the wreckages. The Roraima, by its size and the quality of conservation, is the most emblematic of these wrecks. The Tamaya is the most mysterious because it is too deep for air diving. The Grappler with his "treasure" is still sought after.

To preserve these cultural and heritage assets of Martinique, in 2012, the city of Saint-Pierre and the French state made the decision to protect the wrecks resting in Saint-Pierre's harbor.

The Frank A. Perret Museum of Saint-Pierre recently launched a podcast in French dedicated to the wrecks. This podcast highlights various speakers, presented in alphabetical order: Mathurin Cadenet, originally from Saint-Pierre (nicknamed "Pierrotin"); Daniel Eustache, also Pierrotin and fisherman; Jean-Sébastien France, diver and president of the Association for Research and Valorization of the Archaeological Heritage of Martinique (ARVPAM); and Michel Météry, diver and discoverer of the wrecks in the harbor of Saint-Pierre.

Archaeological research

The harbor of Saint-Pierre is now recognized for its significant archaeological value. Due to its historic status as the capital of Martinique and the large number of boats that it permanently welcomed, the harbor preserves traces of the past under its waters.

The University of the West Indies has organized several excavation campaigns in collaboration with the Naval Archeology Research Group (GRAN) and the Laboratory of Medieval and Modern Archeology in the Mediterranean (LA3M). The Department of Underwater and Underwater Archaeological Research (DRASSM) of the Ministry of Culture also carried out; research, prospecting, inventory and geophysical studies of the site.

During its various campaigns, the GRAN established a detailed list of fragments and wrecks in the bay as well as throughout Martinique. In 2023, the European Union launched the ecoRoute program in Martinique, focused on "The northern route around the wrecks of Saint-Pierre". This program is supported by the Archaeological Association Small Antilles Archeology (AAPA).

Amélie / Raisinier

Amélie/Raisinier was Belem's sister ship and was 48 meters (157ft) long. It was built in 1890 at the Sevestre shipyard in Chantenay following an order from Simon and Duteil of Nantes. Having left Marseille, it arrived in St Pierre at the end of April 1902. It suffered a leak in its hull while it was anchored in the harbor and the crew battled the damage for two days before it was towed to Turin Cove by the Diamant for repairs, where it finally sank. During its research, GRAN discovered various fragments, including the remains of an iron sailboat, badly damaged by the sea, near Raisinier beach.

The wreck lies at a depth of 12 m (39 ft). It is accessible by snorkeling.

Biscaye (ex Gabrielle)

The Biscaye was a three-masted schooner-rigged sailing ship, built of wood with a hull lined with copper plates. It was built in Bilbao in 1878, and measured 32m (105ft) long by 7m (23ft) wide.

Armed by the Vidart et Legasse house of Bayonne, this sailing ship was under the command of Captain Jules Trévty and had eight crew members. It ensured the transportation of cod between Martinique and Saint Pierre and Miquelon. Departing from Bordeaux on February 17, 1902, it reached Saint Pierre and Miquelon before arriving in Saint-Pierre, Martinique with a cargo of 700 barrels of cod on May 6. On May 8, 1902, it was anchored in the bay of Saint-Pierre, less than 200 m (660 ft) from the shore, facing Place Bertin. Archaeological excavations of the wreck revealed the presence of cod barrels.

Due to its construction, it probably caught fire quickly, unless the small tidal wave following the fiery cloud caused it to capsize and sink.

The wreck was rediscovered in the 1970s and was initially misidentified as that of the Gabrielle. The wreck measured 32m long, while the Gabrielle measured only 23 m (75 ft 6 in). Although the Gabrielle was at anchor on May 8, she was not found. The wreck was the subject of the 1994 dedicated research by GRAN. During their underwater diving, the following report was made.

The wreck of a ship, characterized by a copper-lined hull, is located practically in the axis of the Saint-Pierre pontoon. Oriented east-west, with the front facing east, it rests on a slope: the front is 29 m (95 ft) deep and the rear is 39 m (128 ft) deep. The hull is approximately 40 m (130 ft) long. The ship is lying on its port side, clearly revealing its starboard membranes and the remains of the planking with the lining.

The metal rudder, relatively well preserved, emerges one m (3 ft 3 in) from the sand. It has a thickness of 24 centimetres (9.4 in) at the top and a width of 60 cm (24 in). The notch, intended to receive the upper hinge, measures 17 cm (6.7 in) high and is located 8 cm (3.1 in) below the preserved top of the rudder. The lining measures 7 cm (2.8 in) thick, the membranes 17 cm thick and 30 cm (12 in) wide, and the planking 10 cm (3.9 in) wide.

An anchor, approximately 2 m (6 ft 7 in) long, lies to the northeast of the front of the wreck, approximately 20 m (66 ft) away, oriented east–west. It is likely that it belongs to the wreck.

Michel Météry had initially named this wreck Gabrielle, because its position seemed to correspond to that of the Gabrielle anchorage according to Lacroix's book. However, Bureau Veritas records indicate that the Gabrielle, which sank at Saint-Pierre from the Knight armament, measured 23 m long, while this wreck measures 31.

Three elements lead to the identification of this wreck as that of the ship Biscay:

• The length of the ship.
• The type of doubling.
• The cargo of fish.

The data is summarized below:

• Length preserved between 29.10 and 31.20 meters.
• Lining and doweling in yellow copper alloy.
• During the 1994 survey, a cargo of barrels containing skeletons of gadids (fish of the cod family) was discovered in the bottom of the ship.

Among the ships sunk at Saint-Pierre, only the Biscay has a length corresponding to these measurements.

Clémentina

The wreck is a hull bottom approximately 20 meters long, belonging to a locally built coaster. This wreck was the victim of several lootings or attempted lootings, which led the Directorate of Antiquities to file several complaints with the gendarmerie. Some objects were saved thanks to these interventions. Not listed on Hydrographic Service documents, it is nevertheless well known to local divers.

Characteristics of the wreck

• Hull: Wooden, lined with copper.
• Position: The hull rests on the keel, on a slope covered with mud. The rear of the boat rests at a depth of 50 meters (49 meters on the mud at the foot of the rudder) and the front is 40 meters away, giving the boat's axis an angle of 30° to the horizontal (slope of 56%). This axis is oriented at 116°.
• Dimensions: Total length of the hull without the rudder: 20.6 meters. Retained width: 6.80 meters.

Saffron details

• Material: Metallic, still in place and very visible, protrudes 90 cm from the vase.
• Dimensions: Width of 75 cm at the top, 87 cm at the level of the vase. Thickness of 17 cm.
• Fixing: The upper rudder fixing hinge is still movable on its axis and still carries its fixing rivets with a diameter of 2 cm. The wooden parts have disappeared, leaving only the metal frames.
• Rudder: The preserved part of the rudder, stern post (31 cm) and counter post (21 cm), does not show any trace of a propeller cage, indicating that it was a sailboat.

Structure and materials

• Background: The shape is preserved by the copper plates of the doubling, forming a hollow mold of the hull. On the two front levels, the wood remains visible.
• Sampling of the frames: Bordered 6 to 7 cm thick, membrane 18 x 18 cm, lining approximately 6 cm thick.
• Dubbing plates: The front plates are twisted, probably as a result of an impact. The vessel's modest size suggests a barge or coaster.

Analysis and discoveries

• Wood species: Analysis revealed the use of three different species: spruce for the lining, pine for the frames, birch for the planking. However, it was not possible to determine the exact species or origin of the wood, which may come from Europe or America.
• Objects recovered: A port lantern cleared by a clandestine survey was saved and placed in storage at the Directorate of Antiquities.

The wreck of 'Clementina' remains a subject of significant archaeological interest, providing valuable information on local shipbuilding and maritime practices of the time.

The wreck lies 20 meters deep.

Dalhia / YMS 82

Le Dalhia / Y.M.S. 82, a BYMS-class minesweeper, was laid down on October 24, 1941 at the Stadium Yacht Basin in Cleveland and launched on June 13, 1942. Transferred to the French Navy on October 5, 1944, she was renamed Dahlia and received the number D.325, in accordance with the tradition of the Y.M.S. all of which were named after flowers. On March 21, 1949, the French navy definitively acquired the Dahlia from the U.S. Navy, and the ship continued its career as a minesweeper.

After World War II, French coasts were littered with mines, and minesweepers like the Dahlia were extensively engaged in mine clearance operations. In April 1950, the Dahlia, accompanied by the ships Genet, Pétunia and Zinia, participated in the clearance of the port of La Pallice and the dredging of fishing areas used by La Rochelle trawlers. Subsequently, the Dahlia was sent to the Antilles for stationary service, where she represented France, defended its interests and provided aid to the local population in the event of natural disasters.

On January 29, 1959, the Dahlia was decommissioned and sold to Établissements Gouyer, a construction materials company in Saint-Pierre. The ship was then used for cabotage between the islands of the West Indies, mainly for the transport of materials. While it was in the harbor of Saint-Pierre (Martinique) to be transformed, workers accidentally set fire to the wooden hull by clumsily using a blowtorch. In its inventory, the Naval Archeology Research Group (GRAN) references the boat with the fragments FR/M/1/A/019.

Diamant

The Diamant was a steamboat 26 meters long and with a tonnage of 30t. It was used to transport passengers between Fort-de-France and Saint-Pierre in Martinique. On May 8, 1902, the Diamant arrived from Fort-de-France with eight crew members and around thirty passengers. While lining up to dock at the Saint-Pierre pontoon, the boat was reducing steam when the eruption of Mount Pelée occurred.

Faced with imminent danger, the commander ordered them to turn back to try to escape the explosion. The inhabitants of Saint-Pierre rushed into the sea to board the Diamant. The ship's boilers, pushed to their limit, exploded under the effort, and the boat immediately sank. Of the forty castaways, only the cabin boy Innocent Jean Baptiste survived. His story was reported by Césaire Philémon.

The boat was going backwards when it sank with him "without him having seen anything", nor without him being aware of how "he had found himself in the water". He had the presence of mind to "dive several times to avoid being burned in the falling hot ashes." But he felt that his strength was abandoning him and was nevertheless able to "head towards the coast and suddenly found himself dry". After which, he was thrown back into the sea and remained on a wreck until his deliverance by the "Suchet". He remembered that the water was warm when he fell into the sea, but as the "Diamond" machine had just blown up, we cannot reasonably infer from the rise in temperature of this water that it was the work of the fiery cloud.

The wreck of the Diamant now lies 30 meters deep. All that remains are the wooden superstrucutres and frames.

Barge du Diamant

Towed by the Diamant, this barge without an engine rests at a depth of 30 meters.

Fause Thérésa

Wooden ship wreck oriented perpendicular to shore appears not to carry significant cargo.

Nord-America

Sailboat barque Three-masted of 558 tons, built in Buccari in 1881. It flew the Italian flag with its home port of Castellamare di Stabia (Campania, Italy). It was loading for Bordeaux under the captain Cilento with a crew of 13.

Roraima

Combination steamship, 2,712 gross tons, built in 1883 at the Aitken & Mansel shipyard, in the Whiteinch district of Glasgow on the River Clyde. It was launched on June 5, 1883. The ship, built of iron, measured 103.63 meters long, 11.64 meters wide and had a draft of six meters. It was powered by two-cylinder low-pressure steam engines from John & James Thomson and Company of Glasgow, and could produce up to 350 horsepower.

The Roraima and its cargo of potassium continued to burn for 3 days before sinking. Of the 68 people on board, only eleven, most of them seriously injured, survived after being transshipped by the French ship Suchet. Clara King, the black nanny of Brooklyn's wealthy Stokes family, survived with eight-year-old Marguerite Hamilton Stokes ("Rita"). Rita's mother, Mary, as well as her brothers and sisters Eric (4 years old) and Olga (3 years old) were killed. The remaining survivors were members of the crew. They were taken from Saint-Kitts to New York by the Korona.

The wreck lies between 40 and 60 meters deep.

Roraima (boat)

Tamaya

Three square masts of 566 tons gross tonnage, 162 feet 52.80 meters long and 8.15 meters wide. It had two decks that were built in iron in 1862 at the Liverpool shipyards. It was registered as a long-distance ship under number 356. Purchased in 1894 then armed by Pitre Rozier, a shipowner from Nantes. Departing from Nantes on February 18, 1902 for Martinique under number 106, it arrived in Martinique on April 27, 1902 and sank on May 8. It was not as lucky as the Belem which, on that day, due to lack of space, had to anchor at Robert (Martinique). It was struck off the Merchant Navy roster on July 21, 1902.

Dived for the first time in 1983 by Dominique Serafini, the wreck was identified the same year by the magnetometer of the D'Entrecasteaux oceanographic building.

Michel Météry is one of the official investigators. The Tamaya is among a rare few wrecks in the harbor to be identified since a bell bearing the inscription "Tamaya 1862", was brought up in 1984. This bell was given to the Franck-A.-Perret Archaeological museum of the City of Saint-Pierre, Martinique.

Crew:

• Théophile Mahéo, born August 30, 1860 in Île-aux-Moines, Commander.
• Charles Le Cerf, second captain.
• Joseph Subject, boatswain.
• Gabriel Le Ian, cook.
• Jean Goubeyre, Michel Gallard, Yacinthe Lab, Pierre Rouxel, J.-Marie Peyraud, Alexis Auvray, Frédéric Mallert, Pierre Gallapel, Raymond Crequier (mousse)

The wreck lies at a depth of 85 meters. Scuba diving is prohibited.

Theresa Lo Vigo

Wooden sailboat with a copper-lined hull, resting in the mud at a depth of between 30 and 40 meters. It was transporting tiles and various construction materials intended for the town of Saint-Pierre, Martinique. Despite its advanced state of disrepair, the wreck is still complete with its cargo and a significant quantity of pottery, some of which shows signs of deformation by heat.

The wreck is located almost parallel to the coast. It was the subject of an archaeological survey in April and May 1992, which helped researchers better understand its structure and cargo. Analysis of the wood revealed the presence of different species:

• Deciduous oak (Quercus sp.): used for keel, frames and lining.
• Spruce or larch (Picea sp. or Larix sp.): used for a plank supported along the keel.
• Spruce (Picea sp.): used for a lining repair board.

The wreck is a popular diving site for its submerged "treasure" (coiled ropes, bottles of wine, barrels of rum), which offers a poignant testimony to maritime history and the natural disaster that struck the region. The relative shallow depth of the wreck, around 40 meters, makes it an accessible dive for experienced divers.

Yacht italien

Wooden boat broken into three fragments. Only part of the starboard side of the bow has been preserved over a length of approximately 10 meters. The planking measures 10 cm thick, the frames measure 23 x 22 cm, and the lining measures 10 cm thick. At the front of the wreck is a small winch, next to a large mass of concretion over 2 meters high.

The wreck lies on a slope with a 20% inclination, with its front facing up the slope. The axis of the bow is approximately oriented at 10°. Copper lining plates are visible on the starboard side. Analysis of the wood samples (planking, ribs, lining) revealed that they are made of oak, although the quality of conservation did not make it possible to specify their origin. The strong section of some structural parts suggests that it was a commercial sailboat. In the seventies, when Michel Météry wrote his book, the wreck was in much better condition, and there is no longer any trace today of the base of the masts that he precisely described.

Nearby is a large metal crate.

The wreck lies at depths varying between 20 and 40 meters. Although the site is in an advanced state of degradation, it still offers valuable information on wooden shipbuilding and maritime trade of the time.

Other missing ships

Grappler

This English steamboat commanded by A.J. BOREHAM was insured for U$531,000. It was one of two ships specialized in repairing submarine cables which maintained the Guadeloupe - Martinique telegraph line. This ship, being the closest to the coast, would have been overturned before sinking. Its wreckage has never been located. It is known that it carried copper cables, but it is also said that he was loaded with all the gold of the city and the rich planters who were preparing to flee. The Grappler's treasure continues to fuel the imagination.

In the harbor, other ships were never found or identified including the Anna Morse, the Korona the Arama, the Adélaïde, a German three-masted ship that came from Hamburg, and the Italian sailing ship the Mario Virginia.

The Sacrocuore di Pompei, a sailing ship from Naples, weighing 558 tons, with a crew of 14, loading for Marseille (shipowner Mr. LUBRANO in Marseille) was also in the harbor.

The Gabrielle, a French schooner from the Knight trading house, owned by the senator of Martinique, was anchored in front of the warehouses on Place Bertin. She was dismasted by a wave, then after listing, she ended up sinking. Her hawsers released, she would have drifted because of the empty barrels in her cargo. Her second captain, Mr. Georges Marie-Sainte, was transported alive to the hospital in Fort-de-France by the Suchet.

Other ships linked to the disaster

Many ships were in the area during the volcanic eruption, but the following did not sink during the eruption.

While the Diamant sank in Saint-Pierre during the disaster, the Rubis and the Topaze, two other ships providing the connection between Fort-de-France and Saint-Pierre, were saved.

The Belem, a sailboat very similar to the Tamaya, was to anchor that day in the harbor. The Tamaya was anchored at the location planned for the Belem. Due to lack of space, its captain, Mr. Chauvelon, had to decide to anchor at Robert (Martinique). The ship was covered in ashes and stones. The upper works suffered some damage and was covered in a caustic and consistent mud, as hard as mortar. After the eruption, it rescued a few survivors of the disaster.

The French cruiser Suchet was a Protected cruiser of the French Navy, launched in 1893 in Toulon. The Rubis, returning from Saint-Pierre, warned the crew of the Suche in Fort de France that the city was on fire. The Suche rescued the survivors of the town of Saint-Pierre at one o'clock on May 8. The ship's captain Pierre Ange Marie Le Bris, commanding the Suchet, sent a telegram to the Ministry of the Navy, at Paris, May 8, 1902 at 9:55 p.m.

Return from Saint-Pierre, a town completely destroyed by a mass of fire around 8 a.m. Suppose the entire population was wiped out. Brought back a few survivors, about thirty. All ships in the harbor burned and lost. Volcanic eruption continues. I am leaving for Guadeloupe to get food.

The Pouyer-Quertier, a French cable ship eight miles from Saint-Pierre, suffered only minor damage. Its commander sent the following message at 8:03 a.m.:

S.O.S. ST-PIERRE DESTROYED BY ERUPTION MONTAGNE PELLE S.O.S.

The Roddam, commanded by Mr. Edward Freeman, was a British ship that had anchored the furthest out in the harbor. It set sail when he saw the fiery cloud falling on St. Pete and arrived at St. Lucia, a neighboring island, with only two men on board. The deck completely burned and the captain himself was wounded. None of them survived. On his arrival, Commander Freeman declared:

We have come from the gates of hell; you can telegraph to the world that there is not a soul alive in St. Peter.

The Neapolitan captain of the Italian ship the Orsolina, who had witnessed the beginning of the eruption and the engulfment of the Guérin factory, knew Vesuvius and was wary of the volcano. Despite the threat of formidable penalties, he was saved by his decision to weigh anchor for Nantes on the night of June 7–8.

He went to customs to ask for his papers to weigh anchor. "Impossible," he was told, "your loading is not finished, your papers are not ready..." — "Well! I will leave without papers..."

He was threatened with formidable penalties.

"Who will apply them to me," he said. "You?... But tomorrow, you will all be dead!...  [citation needed]

Notes and references

External links

• Hess, Jean (1902). La Catastrophe de la Martinique — Notes D'unreporter (in French). Librairie Charpentier et Fasquelle.
• "Groupe de Recherche en Archéologie Naval - Reseach campagne".
• "Groupe de Recherche en Archéologie Naval : Site list".
• Serra, Laurence; Billaud, Yves (September 2019). "Au large de Saint-Pierre – Le dépotoir portuaire de la rade". AdlFI. Archéologie de la France - Informations. Une Revue Gallia.
• The Frank-A.-Perret Museum of the City of Saint-Pierre recently launched a podcast in French dedicated to the wrecks located in the harbor Saint-Pierre. This podcast highlights various speakers, presented in alphabetical order: Mathurin Cadenet, originally from Saint-Pierre (nicknamed "Pierrotin"); Daniel Eustache, also Pierrotin and fisherman; Jean-Sébastien France, diver and president of the Association for Research and Valorization of the Archaeological Heritage of Martinique (ARVPAM); and Michel Météry, diver and discoverer of the wrecks in the harbor of Saint-Pierre.