SS Norwich City
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Historical records give us a fairly clear picture of the S.S. Norwich City’s construction and operation as a cargo vessel in the British Mercantile Fleet, and her demise on the reef at Gardner Island in the Phoenix Group. What is not so clear is whether she played a passive role in the saga of Amelia Earhart seven and a half years after her grounding. Knowing more about the S.S. Norwich City may help to understand if there was a relationship to artifacts found at The Seven Site and to a post loss radio message that could have provided clues to Earhart’s location.
Construction and Early History
The S.S. Norwich City was launched as the S.S. Normanby on July 12, 1911 at the West Hartlepool yard number 792 of William Gray and Company. Originally built for the London and Northern Steamship Company, she was registered out of London as ship number 132596. The 397 foot bulk carrier had a beam of 53 feet 5.5 inches. The keel had been laid five months earlier on February 9, 1911, and was constructed of steel. She was driven by a Central Marine 412 BHP (1960 IHP) triple expansion reciprocating steam engine whose three cylinders of 70, 40, and 26 inches propelled the ship at an operating speed of 9 knots. Fitted with two multitubular steel boilers, steam was produced at 180 psi. The steering gear and windlass machinery were also operated by steam. At launching, the gross tonnage was calculated to be 5633.2; her displacement was 8730 tons.
The London certificate was given up and cancelled on April 24, 1919 when the ship was re-registered at Bideford, UK, to the St. Just Steamship Company, Limited, with Sir William Reardon Smith, Limited, designated to manage the vessel. The ship’s name was changed to S.S. Norwich City by Board of Trade minutes number 2544. In 1928 modifications to the ship had changed her gross tonnage to its last recorded gross tonnage of 5587.08.
By 1922 the Reardon Smith fleet had grown to 39 vessels. On July 2, 1928, the name of the St. Just Steamship Company, Limited, was changed to Reardon Smith Lines, Limited, and continued to expand.
S.S. Norwich City and the Second Narrows Bridge
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The S.S. Norwich City was involved in an accident, striking Vancouver’s Second Narrows Bridge the year prior to her grounding on Gardner Island. In Vancouver, B.C. the bridge across the tidal bore known as Burrard Inlet was completed in 1925 with its companion rail bridge completed in 1926. The name “Second Narrows” derives from the second narrowing of Burrard Inlet. The bridge was low, and the bascule was built near the south shore in shallow water in order to eliminate the cost of constructing two expensive towers for a lift span, against the recommendations of shipping experts. On April 23, 1928 the S.S. Norwich City struck the Second Narrows bridge. It was the 18th major bridge mishap in the bridge’s three year existence. The S.S. Norwich City was taken to the Burrard Dry Dock Company, where repairs and painting were completed.
SS Norwich City’s Stranding on Gardner
On the night of Friday, 29th November 1929, whilst on passage from Melbourne to Vancouver, the SS Norwich City was wrecked on Gardner Island, with the loss of 11 lives.