Page 21 - Bulletin 9 2005

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India trader, but the startling differences in construction technique and technology could go
a long way in piecing together the design sequence of ships as it has developed over the

centuries. These relatively modest wreck sites may yet form an important part in maritime
archaeological study.

The Brusnwick and Bato wreck sites do not, from all accounts, hold a great deal of social
information in and of themselves as might be reflected in wreck sites containing a large

artefact assemblage, but their role in history and their mere presence represent and point to
important historical, political and social trends. The trade, colonial, political and social

dramas being played out on the global stage were not only reflected in events at the Cape,
but, in some cases, dictated by what was happening here. The examination of these wrecks,

therefore, goes far beyond their physical remains and it is important that their significance

and historical value be preserved for study.

False Bay’s wreck sites offer a wide variety of representative vessels. Ships such as the

Clan Stuart are not unique to this coast, but offer good insight into shipping trends and
activities. This Clan Line turret steamer went ashore in Simon’s Bay in 1914, some three

months after the start of World War I. The Clan Stuart was lying in the roadstead waiting
for a berth when she dragged her anchors in a south-easterly gale and ran onto the rocks.

Although several attempts were made to re-float the vessel, all proved futile and she was
eventually abandoned. Her engines were removed and her entire teak deckhouse and

captain’s quarters were brought ashore and re-erected behind the Glencairn Hotel as

housing for the hotel manager. The engine block, parts of the ship’s structure, and the
propeller and shaft still remain at the site, the engine block being above water and visible

from the shore.

The unexceptional nature of this vessel makes it an interesting case study. The development
of the turret steamer was a direct result of the opening of the Suez Canal. Canal fees were

based on a ship’s deck space so ship designers, in an effort to make shipping through the