RMS Niagara

See also USS Niagara for several warships of this name.

Location of the wreck of the RMS Niagara.

RMS Niagara was a 13,415 gross ton ocean liner, length 165.5m x beam 20.2m, two funnels, two masts, triple screw, speed 17 knots. Accommodation for 290-1st, 223-2nd, and 191-3rd class passengers. She was built by John Brown & Company, Clydebank, launched on 17 August 1912 and owned by the Union Steam Ship Company. She was nicknamed the Titanic of the Pacific, but after the sinking of the Titanic this was dropped in favour of Queen of the Pacific.

At the start of World War II, RMS Niagara was in service with the Canadian-Australasian Line from Auckland, New Zealand, to Suva and Vancouver. On 19 June 1940 she was under the command of Capt. William Martin and had just left Auckland when, off Bream Head, Whangarei, she struck a mine laid by the German auxiliary cruiser Orion and sank in 121 meters of water. No lives were lost but a large consignment of gold from the Bank of England was in the Niagara's strong room and went down with the ship.

The gold was payment from England to the United States, which had not yet entered the war, for munitions in the fight against Germany.

Melbourne company, United Propriety Salvage Ltd was promptly contracted to recover the gold, at the time it was one of the deepest salvage operations ever undertaken.

The team was led by Capt. J.P.Williams and John Edwards Johnstone on the ship Claymore.

Claymore

The Claymore, built in 1902, 260 tons gross, was an old coastal steamer. When first sighted for the salvage job she was a hulk rusting on the banks of Auckland harbour. Before recovering any gold the Claymore had to be salvaged herself.

Once restored the salvage team based themselves out of Whangarei and commenced operations on 15 December 1940. It took the Claymore approximately two months to locate the wreck, which they did by dragging their anchor along the seabed, and minefield. Twice during the locating phase of the operation she fouled unexpoded mines and was almost sunk herself.

On 2 February 1941 the resting place of the Niagara was located and the salvage team started the arduous and hazardous task of retreiving the gold on behalf of HM Treasury. They were armed only with rudimentry equipment, a viewing/diving chamber, radio, and a grab lowered from the surface.

Williams and his team successfully recovered more than eight tonnes of gold after blasting a hole in the hull of the ship. 555 gold bars were removed, followed in 1953 by a further 30 gold bars, leaving 5 bars still unrecovered in the wreck.

Claymore

Further reading