aircraft , and in the process , he said , “ We didn ’ t find the aircraft , but we did find a train set .”
I asked him what he meant , and it turned out that a survey had located a contact on the seabed and sent down a remotely operated vehicle to see what it was . There , side by side , were two steam trains , each with three wagons behind . It was not what they had been looking for , and so they had moved on . My friend did , however , keep his promise to send me the position of the train set .
I was nonplussed when this data arrived , as it was in a now obsolete format known as Decca . Converting the old data to the modern GPS WGS84 system proved tricky ( and , as it transpired , inaccurate ). So , despite searching the area , I had no luck . However , I never forgot about what I ’ d been told and hoped that one day in the future I ’ d be able to pinpoint this most unusual wreckage .
Train-set discovered ?
In July 2019 , 15 years later , I took a small group of my regulars out for a week ’ s diving off the Isle of Wight . The intention was to investigate a series of underwater anomalies to see what was there . The thrill of finding the unknown is very attractive , but there ’ s always a risk that what you ’ ll end up finding is a modern yacht , a bundle of lost lobster pots or some other discarded rubbish .
That week , we were in luck . On day one the anomaly turned out to be a small missing steamer from 1887 , overlooked by previous surveys . On day two , the contact was an inverted wreck in two pieces , the bows separated from the main body of the wreck by more than 100 metres .
The wreckage still contains intact wheels and axles
However , it was the third day that proved to be the most exciting . Diving in 40 metres of water on a small contact , it became clear that something unusual had been found . A diver recovered a small brass nameplate dated 1864 . The nameplate bore the words : CANADA WORKS , BIRKENHEAD , No . 173 , 1864 . ( The item was raised in accordance with MMO rules , and the action was reported to the Receiver of Wreck , as required by law )
I knew of no shipwreck built in that year and lost in the area , but as the divers surfaced , the news unfolded and it sounded like this might be the train set .
This was the nameplate from a locomotive on the seabed . Divers described the site as full of brass and copper , with fittings lying all around and large iron wheels ; spoked , smaller wheels on axles , a boiler with heavy duty brass endplates , and brass tubes , plus quantities of coal . Most of the thinner gauge ironwork had apparently disintegrated , with just the heavy pieces and brass work surviving .
Fortunately , one of the divers , Cathy de
Lara , is handy with a camera and some good images were obtained . However , the divers reported one locomotive boiler , not two , and couldn ’ t see any wagons , despite the water clarity being good . So , was this the original train set , or another wreck entirely ?
I had to find out and I made contact with Peter Thorpe , Library and Archive Assistant at the National Railway Museum , in York . He advised it was likely that locomotives going for export would be sent soon after being built , and that what we had found was built by civil engineering partnership Peto , Brassey and Betts , who operated at the Canada Works at the time .
I started my search from January 1864 , but had no idea of the date of sinking , the name of the ship carrying the locomotive or the circumstances of its loss . Peter also provided information suggesting that 20 locomotives were built at the Canada Works for the Jutland- Fünen Railway at around that time . The serial numbers of 14 were known , but there were six missing . Well , one of those six we now know was No . 173 . I began a search of the archives and within half an hour I had some answers .
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