Upright structures on the sea floor, with sea life swimming around.

Glenbank, 1911

Published

6 October 2022

Last Updated

7 December 2022

Ship

Glenbank

Country of origin

Finland

Built

1893

Rig

3 masted barque

Tonnage (gross)

1481

Port Departed

San Nicholas, South America

Port Destination

Balla Balla, Western Australia

Wrecked

6 February 1911, off Legendre Island

Discovery

Kevin Deacon, Johnny Debnam, Tom Radley, Justin Leech, and Luke Leech

Protection

Commonwealth Underwater Cultural Heritage Act 2018

History

In November 1910, the steel barque Glenbank arrived at Balla Balla, Western Australia. The ship had been chartered by Whim Well Copper Mines Ltd to transport copper ore from Balla Balla to the United Kingdom.

The Whim Well Copper mine was located about 20 kilometres inland from the coast. A private, single-track, narrow-gauge railway was used to transport the copper ore from the mine to Balla Balla jetty, which had been leased to the company. At the jetty, the ore was put on to lighters (a type of flat-bottomed barge) and ferried out to the anchorage near Depuch Island. There, the ore was loaded on to cargo ships, such as Glenbank. This would have been a manually laborious and time-consuming process; it could take months to load a ship.

Glenbank had 20 crew members (mostly Russian, Norwegian, and Finnish) and was under the command of Finn, Captain Fredrik Moberg.

Departments

Maritime Heritage

Keywords

Shipwrecks

Colourised image of Glenbank under full sail.

State Library of Western Australia, C85b

Lighter at Balla Balla jetty, 1912.

E. L. Mitchell | State Library of Western Australia, 013987PD

Jetty with a small train pulling empty wagons.

Train at Balla Balla jetty, 1912.

E. L. Mitchell | State Library of Western Australia, 013988PD

Three rows of men posed on a ship's deck.

Crew of Glenbank, with Captain Moberg in the middle.

Rauma Maritime Museum

Shipwreck

On 6 February 1911, Glenbank was anchored off Depuch Island, partially loaded with 1,600-1,800 tons of copper ore. It was cyclone season and by the afternoon the worsening weather conditions indicated a severe cyclone was imminent. Glenbank’s anchors began to drag and Captain Moberg decided to leave Depuch anchorage and ride out the gale at sea. The partially-loaded ship was in the open ocean by 9pm; where, despite the efforts of the crew to furl the sails, the high winds swiftly caused the ship to heel, capsize, and sink. A large amount of wreckage washed up on nearby islands, however initial efforts to locate survivors or the wreck were unsuccessful, with one diver reporting that visibility was limited by muddy waters.

Mud map of the Western Australian coast and Glenbank's route away from Depuch Island.

Map published in The Sunday Times showing the final journey of Glenbank, 1911.
Credit: The Sunday Times, 12 February 1911

Antti Ketola

Only one member of Glenbank’s crew survived. Antti Ketola, a 22-year-old Finnish seaman provided an account of what happened to Glenbank and his own survival to The West Australian newspaper:

"About 8 p.m. we were having something to eat, when all hands were called on deck, and six of us were ordered aloft to take in the leeside of the lower main topsail, but only myself and the third mate went aloft. It was blowing that hard I could scarcely get up the rigging. We made the lee side of the topsail fast, and whilst doing so the vessel took a heavy list. She was shipping heavy seas at the time. I was on the yard, and the third mate got as far as the mast, when the vessel capsized right over… I stuck to the end of the yard until it sank, and then commenced to swim… I just kept myself afloat. About half an hour afterwards I saw a shark, but kept it off with my knife every time that it would attempt to come near me… As the sun was rising next morning I landed on the island.”

(The West Australian, 13 February 1911)

Ketola was on Legendre Island for three days, surviving on raw shellfish. He was eventually seen and picked up by the pearling lugger, Pearl, and taken to Cossack.

Factors contributing to the wreck

Weather

Many ships have come to grief on the north-west coast due to the hazardous weather conditions of the November to April cyclone season. For Captain Moberg, there were no good options. As the wind picked up and the seas became rougher, Glenbank had begun to drag and remaining there might have seen them wrecked on the rocks, as occurred with the barque Crown of England (also loaded with copper ore) at Depuch Anchorage a year later.

Unsecured cargo

It is likely that unsecured cargo shifting in the hold during the storm contributed to Glenbank heeling and capsizing so quickly.

Glenbank was still in the process of being loaded with ore when Moberg decided to quit the anchorage. The cargo had not yet been trimmed and other stowage preparations had not yet been made. Exacerbating the situation, only some of the ore was bagged; the rest was loose (in ‘bulk’) and was more susceptible to shifting if not stowed properly. In his account, Ketola said:

"The cargo was not trimmed fore and aft in the hold. There was about 200 tons of ore in the ‘tween decks on top planks. The planks were not fastened to the beams. There were no shifting boards on the stanchions in the lower hold, nor in the ‘tween decks. We had bolts and screws to fasten the planks in the ‘tween decks but none were secured down."

(The West Australian, 13 February 1911)

Brown and red lumpy ore, with some green stripes.

Sample of copper ore recovered from the Glenbank wreck site during the 2021 expedition.
Credit: WA Museum

Trimming involves stowing cargo evenly throughout the hold and between decks (‘tween decks), to avoid uneven weight distribution that might impact a ship’s stability or maneuverability. Ketola mentioned the shifting boards not being in place; these were vertical boards that would normally be placed down the centre of the hold that would stop cargo moving from one side of the ship to the other. Combined with the unbolted planks on the ‘tween decks, there was little to stop the loose ore from moving and further destabilising the ship.

Search for Glenbank

Within days of the sinking, wreckage from Glenbank had washed ashore on Legendre, Hauy and Delambre Islands and a large quantity of wreckage was drifting in Nichol Bay. The Roebourne police cutter searched the coastline for survivors and divers from a pearling lugger were engaged to search for the wreck. Schooner Queenie Alice was also dispatched from Cossack by Dalgety and Co. to aid in the search for the wreck and any survivors without success.

In April 1911, a pearl diver claimed to have found the wreck inside the Legendre Reef, but this seems unlikely.

Discovery

A site believed to be Glenbank was first reported to the WA Museum in 2019 by Johnny Debnam, on behalf of primary finder Kevin Deacon, and members of the dive team who conducted the first dive on the wreck—Johnny Debnam, Tom Radley, Justin Leech, and Luke Leech.

Three-dimensional scan of ship wreck on the sea floor.

MBES 3D view of the wreck, with stern in the foreground. The deck beams protruding vertically from the seabed near the centre of the wreck, demonstrate the complete separation of the upper deck from the starboard hull plating, 2019.
Credit: Precision Hydrographic Services

Edge of Glenbank’s starboard hull, captured by a remote operated vehicle, 2021.
Credit: VAM Media | Terra Australis Productions

WA Museum expeditions

2019

After the site was reported, the WA Museum contacted Precision Hydrographic Services who, as an in-kind contribution, conducted a side scan and multibeam echo sounder (MBES) survey of the wreck site. The MBES survey provided precise depths and dimensions of the site.

Two vertical lines, the one on the right shows the loose shape of a ship on its side.

Precision Hydrographic Services

Imagery from the side scan sonar survey of the Glenbank wreck site, 2019.
Credit: Precision Hydrographic Services

Precision Hydrographic Services | WA Museum

Glenbank wreck site annotated to show the main features.
Credit: Precision Hydrographic Services | WA Museum

2021

Between 13 and 24 August 2021, the WA Museum conducted their first site inspection of the wreck site as part of the Disney+ documentary series ‘Shipwreck Hunters Australia’, in collaboration with Terra Australis Productions and VAM Media. During the inspection, the site was surveyed by divers, and a remotely operated vehicle (ROV).

The site was that of a three-masted steel or iron sailing barque, which was about 75 metres in length. Most of the hull was buried, however large sections of the starboard hull plating protruded from the seabed and a little of the port-side hull plating was visible. Remains of the masts, yards and steel wire rigging were collapsed to the port side. WA Museum maritime archaeologists recovered samples of copper ore from near the centre of the wreck site.

Wreck site with ship overlayed showing the bow resting at about 45 degrees to the rest of the ship.

Historical image of Glenbank scaled and overlaid onto the wreck features, captured by MBES, to indicate the layout and extent of collapse.
Credit: Precision Hydrographic Services | WA Museum

The unusual site formation, along with the historical accounts of the vessel turning upside down and deck planks being washed up on beaches, enabled the WA Museum team to piece together what happened to Glenbank.

The evidence indicated that the ship was effectively split apart during the sinking event. The opposing forces of the weight of the ore; trapped air in the hull; and the weight of the steel masts, yards, and rigging put immense pressure on the hull and deck structures. This likely caused the upper deck, and possibly lower deck, to separate from the starboard-side hull plating.

The WA Museum’s positive identification of the wreck as Glenbank is supported by:

Wreck type: the wreck is a riveted steel or iron three-masted barque and Glenbank is the only ship of that type reported lost in the area.
Location: the wreck site location matches Ketola’s report of Glenbank sinking north of Legendre Island, with land sighted off the port bow before the ship turned into the wind.
Dimensions: MBES measured the site at 75 metres, Glenbank was 73 metres in length. The variation can be accounted for by minor differences in calculating vessel length and wreck disintegration processes.
Cargo: Glenbank’s cargo was copper ore, and samples of copper ore were recovered from the wreck site.

Learn about the other wreck sites featured on 'Shipwreck Hunters Australia'.

Protection

Glenbank is protected under the Commonwealth Underwater Cultural Heritage Act 2018. It is an offence to damage, disturb, or remove any artefacts from the wreck without a permit.

Satellite image of the Western Australian coast, overlaid with a chart, showing the location of the Glenbank wrecksite.

The Glenbank wreck site is located in the National Park Zone of the Dampier Marine Park.
Credit: WA Museum

Glenbank also lies within the National Park Zone of Dampier Marine Park, where no recreational or commercial fishing is allowed, and a permit is required for any commercial, non-fishing tourism. Recreational diving within the National Park Zone is allowed without a permit.