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Brunette ( "Doorknob Wreck" ) |
side-scan sonar image
The wreck of the Brunette bears a striking resemblance to the
Delaware. The form of a ship is clearly evident (although not in the picture below), from the chain locker at the bow to the propeller at the stern. One difference is that while the
Delaware was wood, the Brunette was iron, so instead of ribs, the wreckage is outlined by rusted metal hull plates protruding slightly from the sand. Another difference is that the
Delaware lies in mud, while the Brunette lies in clean sand. So I guess they're not all that alike after all.
Overall, this wreck seems smaller than the Delaware. The tonnage quoted above is almost certainly the cargo capacity, not the gross tonnage. In any case, the Brunette was a very small steamer for her time, and sank in only ten minutes after her port side was smashed in by the much larger Santiago de Cuba.
The highest part of the wreck is the large steam engine, which stands crooked amidships, perhaps 10 ft tall. From there the drive shaft extends back to the four-bladed iron propeller, which is over six feet in diameter. The stern has collapsed and flattened, and from beneath one of the hull plates I once took a four pound lobster. The boilers in front of the engine are a good place for spearfishing.
The Brunette is known as a good digging wreck, having produced many fine artifacts when it was initially discovered. Capt. Steve adds: "We have recovered school bells, horse spurs, keys, doorjambs and of course the doorknobs, gunpowder flasks, small pocket knives, brass buttons, pewter forks, spoons, Missaquois Soda bottles, and assorted hardware ( we used to refer to it as the "Rickel Wreck" for all the hardware we found ... alas now we'd be forced to call it the 'Home Depot Wreck'. )"
BrunetteThe Brunette was a 274 ton screw propeller freighter, built in 1867 by Pusey & Jones Yards, Wilmington, Delaware. On February 1, 1870, the Brunette was en route from New York to Philadelphia with a general cargo. At 10:00 PM she collided with the Santiago de Cuba.
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer "On Tuesday afternoon at 6 pm the steamer Brunette, Capt Doane, left the Lorillard Steamship Dock, bound to Philadelphia. She was laden with an assorted cargo, and about three quarters full. Including officers there were thirteen souls on board. Nothing of interest occurred until about 20 minutes past 10, when a steamer was noticed bearing down for the
Brunette. She proved to be the Santiago de Cuba. It seems that the Brunette
attempted to cross the bow of the Santiago de Cuba and failing to do so in time, the two vessels collided. Every effort was made on board both vessels to avoid the disaster by reversing the engines, but the orders were given too late, and the Santiago de Cuba struck the
Brunette a terrific blow in the port broadside, completely crushing her in and keeling her over to starboard." Two of the Brunette's crew perished in the accident.
Captain George Hoffman found this wreck a few years back. When divers started to dig, they recovered crates of brown and white marble door knobs, pocket knives and bottles. All that is left of her is her propeller shaft, coal fired steam engine and boilers. The "Door Knob Wreck", as she is more commonly known, rests 200 feet away from the Cadet in 70 feet of water. The Brunette
is one of New Jersey's best artifact wrecks.
Excerpted from Wreck Valley CDROM by Dan Berg
The engine. It is not just crooked, it is actually smashed right off its
mounts, held in place now only by the piston connecting rod and rust.
I wonder what hit it that hard?
The propeller.
"Diving the Elusive Brunette"
video courtesy of Dan Crowell,
sdp-video.com
Our tour begins at the propeller, and goes forward along the shaft to the crooked engine. Forward of the engine, divers search for lobsters around the collapsed boilers. We then head back along the shaft to the prop. So what's so elusive about the Brunette? Nothing really, except the extraordinary viz you see here.
The Brunette lies almost within swimming distance of the Cadet
Rusted flywheel.
Bouquet of sea anemones on the engine.
More sea anemones inside the engine, with white coral above.
There don't seem to be any extant images of the Brunette before sinking, but here
is the
Santiago de Cuba that sank her, armed for Civil War service
Santiago de Cuba, a 1567-ton (burden) wooden side-wheel steamship, was built in 1856 at New York City for commercial use. She was purchased by the U.S. Navy in September 1861, converted to a cruiser and commissioned as USS Santiago de Cuba in November 1861. Sent to the Gulf of Mexico area to enforce the blockade of the Confederate States and protect American shipping, she proved to be a very successful blockader. USS Santiago de Cuba was decommissioned in June 1865 and sold at auction in September. She soon reentered commercial employment and operated as a steamship for the next two decades. She was converted to a barge in 1886 and renamed Marion. The old ship finally passed out of service in about 1899.
You can still find doorknobs, if you know where to look.
These small doorknobs from the Brunette are polished brown marble; rarer are white marble ones. The metal shafts are more delicate than the stone, and are seldom found intact. The pot metal backing plates are even more fragile, and although there was originally one with every doorknob, almost none remain today.
These doorknobs were originally part of the ship's cargo, and were packed in large crates. When found, they were concreted in a black, coal-like substance. Traces of the original packing crates were still evident in places. Scrubbing with a dilute acid solution removed a graphite-like black coating and revealed the lustrous brown marble beneath.
They usually come up embedded in a coal-like mass.
The broken knob at the lower-left above shows how the pot metal shafts were assembled: cast in place after the big mounting hole and smaller diagonal retaining holes were drilled into the back of the knob.
Decorative brass curtain sliders found in abundance on the wreck
Brass keys
Side scan sonar image, artifacts, and comments courtesy of Capt. Steve Nagiewicz
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"Cadet" / "Cramer's" / John H. Winstead |
The
John H Winstead was under tow in a string with the Millville and another barge when the Millville began to sink in rough seas. The towing tug immediately released all the barges to pick up the crew of the Millville, which sank soon after. The remaining two barges rode out the storm at anchor, but the Winstead sank the next morning.
Together with a completely erroneous listing for the ship Valparaiso, and perhaps confused by the proximity of the Brunette, these became known as the "Three American Barges." Despite the well-documented sinkings, the original names were mostly forgotten as the wrecks took on a host of nicknames, until Dan Lieb of the NJHDA straightened it all out. However, this popular dive site will surely continue to be known as the Cadet.
John H. Winstead
There is still coal to be found among the wooden ribs. Fishing is usually excellent; lobstering much less so. The bottom is silty, and visibility is often poor.
side-scan sonar image
The Cadet lies almost within swimming distance of the Brunette
Side scan sonar image and diagram courtesy of Capt. Steve Nagiewicz of the dive boat Diversion II.
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"String Wreck" / Millville |
The "String Wreck" is in fact the Millville, located approximately 1000 feet east of the Cadet. The wreckage is very low-lying and broken-up. It is so-named because you cab swim to it from the Cadet, navigating with a very long piece of string. ( This is hardly recommended ! )
Although they sank just a day apart, the Millville sank during the storm, and apparently was bashed to pieces, while the Winstead or Cadet is one of the more intact schooner barge wrecks along the coast.
I make no claim as to the accuracy, validity, or appropriateness of any information found in this website. I will not be responsible for the consequences of any action that is based upon information found here. Scuba diving is an adventure sport, and as always, you alone are responsible for your own safety and well being.
Copyright © 1996-2008 Rich Galiano
unless otherwise noted
( more or less )
