''Maine'' was a British

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

launched in 1904 as ''Sierra Blanca'' for the Sierra Shipping Co. Ltd. She was sold to the Atlantic Transport Co. Ltd. in 1913 and renamed ''Maine''. She was

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, such ...

ed and sunk in March 1917 by .

Description

The ship was long, with a beam of . She was powered by a

triple expansion steam engine A compound steam engine unit is a type of steam engine where steam is expanded in two or more stages. A typical arrangement for a compound engine is that the steam is first expanded in a high-pressure (HP) cylinder, then having given up heat ...

which drove a single screw propeller. It could propel her at .

History

''Sierra Blanca'' was built by D. & W. Henderson & Co.,

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

for the Sierra Shipping Co. Ltd. She was launched on 19 November 1904 and completed in January 1905. Her port of registry was

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

and she was operated under the management of Thomson, Anderson & Co. Her maiden voyage was to

Mobile, Alabama Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. After a successful vote to annex areas west of the city limits in July 2023, Mobil ...

, United States, at which port she arrived on 26 January 1905. On 26 July 1908, ''Sierra Blanca'' ran aground on the South Lyconia Reef. She was refloated after jettisoning 300 tons of cargo and put in to

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

in a severely damaged condition on 31 July. In 1913, ''Sierra Blanca'' was sold to the Atlantic Transport Co. Ltd. and was renamed ''Maine''. On 23 March 1917, ''Maine'' was

ed and sunk in the

English Channel The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...

off

Berry Head Berry Head is a coastal headland that forms the southern boundary of Tor Bay in Devon, England. Lying to the east of the town of Brixham, it is a national nature reserve (United Kingdom), national nature reserve and a local nature reserve. Berr ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

() by . ''Maine'' was on a voyage from

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, United States. There were no casualties. She was carrying

chalk Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Ch ...

and general cargo. She sank "gracefully, upright and on an even keel" and sits on shingle deep at . The Torbay

British Sub-Aqua Club The British Sub-Aqua Club or BSAC has been recognised since 1954 by UK Sport as the national governing body of recreational diving in the United Kingdom. The club was founded in 1953 and at its peak in the mid-1990s had over 50,000 members ...

bought the wreck for £100 in 1962 and salvaged the bronze propeller, selling it for £800. The propeller was proudly displayed on a plinth outside the Safeway supermarket in

Paignton Paignton ( ) is a seaside town on the coast of Tor Bay in Devon, England. Together with Torquay and Brixham it forms the unitary authority, borough of Torbay which was created in 1968. The Torbay area is a holiday destination known as the Engli ...

town centre, until the redevelopment of the site in the early 2000s. The propeller was being sold for scrap, but was rescued by a farmer and now is in a field in

Kingsteignton Kingsteignton ( ), is a town and civil parish in south Devon, England. It lies at the head of the Teign Estuary to the west of Teignmouth in the Teignbridge district. It is bypassed by the A380 and is also on the A383, A381, B3193 and B31 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maine 1904 ships Merchant ships of the United Kingdom Steamships of the United Kingdom Maritime incidents in 1908 World War I merchant ships of the United Kingdom World War I shipwrecks in the English Channel Ships sunk by German submarines in World War I Maritime incidents in 1917 Wreck diving sites in the United Kingdom