SS LUDWORTH

RESEARCH AND IDENTIFICATION   PAUL HENNESSEY NWR

Position ... 52 49 959N / 001 31 998E (Off Haisborough beach, inshore)

Official number ... 54722

Type ... Cargo

Tonnage ... 448 grt

Construction ... Iron / x3 masts

Dimensions ... 169.8 x 26 x 14 feet

Builder ... Thomas Wingate & Co, Glasgow

Engine builder ... Unknown

Built ... 1866

Engine type ... None compounding two cylinders. Each cylinder being of 32 inches in diameter with a 27 inch stroke. 70hp

Boiler type ... Unknown

Lost ... 1881

Cause ... Leak then beached at Happisburgh

Owner at time of loss ... W. Green & Holland, London

Depth ... 10mtrs

Circumstances of loss

For a detailed account of the loss of the Ludworth and the findings of the court of enquiry follow the link

Identification of the Ludworth

During Research undertaken by NWR in 2023 / 2024 regarding recorded losses on Haisborough Sands one of the vessels listed as lost on the sands in the book The Shipwreck Index  Of The British Isles Volume 3 was that of the 1866 built steamer Ludworth. Further investigations revealed that the Ludworth had in fact been lost / beached at Haisborough, not on Haisborough sands, this in turn being nine miles offshore. In 2023 NWR along with members of the BSAC East Anglian branch EAB 11 dived a site listed by the UKHO as an obstruction at position 52 49 959 N / 001 31 998 E. The site showed itself to be the remains of a steamer. For the most part the site is little more than 1 - 1.5 mtrs in height, this being what now remains of the upright lower hull. The site showed evidence that the vessel had broken in half aft of where the engine would have been located. The section of the vessel dived in 2023 was complete with a long section of the prop shaft running the length of the lower hull (see diagram below). This in turn dictating that the vessel was mid engined as with the Ludworth. In addition reports state that some time after the Ludworth beached she broke in half, this in turn being consistent with the clean break in the lower hull as seen on site. During the 2023 dive nothing was seen of the vessels engine or boiler(s). As said earlier, the Ludworth is stated as having broken in half sometime after her loss. Therefore it can be assumed if these were never salvaged they, along with the forward section of the vessel are elsewhere in the area.

Conclusion

The site is located exactly as described in the loss report. Present site condition is consistent with that of a vessel that has broken in half. Research has shown no other recorded losses in the immediate area that can offer themselves as potential candidates. It can therefore be assumed that this is the site of the steamer Ludworth.

Below

Diagram showing break in hull.