Exploring Kent's Past

It should not be assumed that this site is publicly accessible and it may be on private property. Do not trespass.

Monument details

Summary

1954 wreck of the Light Vessel which broke anchor in gale-force winds and is said to have stranded and capsized somewhere in the Kellet Gut area of the Goodwin Sands, in the region on 1 mile ESE of the Goodwin light. Her wreckage is said to be visible at low water but she has not been positively identified in a specific location. She was built of steel in Dartmouth in 1937. An earlier light vessel on the South Goodwin Station was sunk following aerial bombardment during World War II (901832).

Monument Types

• (Former Type) ADMIRALTY SIGNAL STATION (Sunk 1940, Undated)
• WATERCRAFT (Modern - 1937 AD to 1937 AD)
• WRECK (Modern - 1954 AD to 1954 AD)

Full description

If you do not understand anything on this page please contact us.

Vessel remains:

The UK Hydrographic Office have no named record for the wreck, although given the large number of vessels in the vicinity it is probable that she is one of those as yet 'unidentified'. There are only a few clues to the location of her wreck, Source 1 states that 'at low tide traces of her can still be seen today', and that the last observed sighting of her in 1954 was from 'the East Goodwin Light Vessel [which] saw its sister ship sweep past six miles north of the station... and shortly afterwards... hit Kellet Gut.' Source 2 shows newsreel footage released on 2nd December 1954 of the capsized and almost submerged vessel, and Source 3 gives approximate position of the wreck as 51°10.45N, 001°32.40E which puts her approximately 0.8 miles ESE of the S Goodwin light. Source 4 shows a photograph of the capsized, though as yet not submerged vessel.

Documentary evidence:
The second of the South Goodwin Light Vessels to be lost, Sources 4 and 3 describe how 'during one of the worst gales to be remembered on the coast the vessel was driven from her moorings up the eastern side of the sands where she capsized, drowning all seven of her crew. The lifeboats from Walmer, Dover and Ramsgate were in attendance, as well as the Trinity House tenders VESTAL and PATRICIA, HMS ROMOLA and a team of naval divers. At fist light a helicopter hovered over the wreck as it lay on its side, partly buried in sand, but there was only one survivor.' 'The galley door was under water sealing off the exit, but one man... scrambled through the skylight and into the inferno that was raging above. Meanwhile lifeboats from Dover and Ramsgate, and a United States search and Rescue helicopter snatched [the survivor] from the hull. He had survived the worst channel storm in two centuries. The lifeboats [attempting to rescue his fellow crewmen] could not get near the light vessel and within hours the tide had enveloped her and those trapped inside her hull. The extreme weather lasted a further day, and on 28 November divers eventually were able to get on board. There was no trace of the crew, not a single body was recovered.' (1)

The ship which previously served as the South Goodwin lightship is thought to have been bombed in 1940, during the Battle of Britain and is described in NMR records 901832, and 1399286.

Built: 1937
Where built: Dartmouth
Builder: Philip and Son
LBD: 119 x 26 X 15ft, 36.27 x 7.92 x 4.57m
Tonnage is not known and she would have had no means of propulsion.
Owner: Trinity House, London

An earlier South Goodwin Lightship was bombed and sunk by the Germans on 25th October 1940 (901832). This ship was one of the Trinity House lightships around the coast which were manned with wireless telegraphy sets and operators on board. These ships were in contact with local coastguard stations and their main role was to guide shipping into safe harbour and act as a lookout for ships in distress. Although Trinity House was impartial during the First World War it is possible they (or staff on military attachment) were involved in some war work. The lightships with wireless telegraph sets are included on the First World War admiralty list of home wireless stations in National Archives file ADM137.4680. (1)

<1> Oxford Archaeological South, 2016, First World War Wireless Stations in England. (Bibliographic reference). SKE31551.

Sources and further reading