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Wreck of Brother Jonathan

United States

Position
About 41.8° N, 124.3° W (within about 10 km)
Sank
—
Cause
—
Depth
—

Protection status

Location generalised to protect a protected site

The position shown is generalised to within about 10 km. The exact position is not published.

Officially designated: California Historical Landmark.

Legal basis: California Historical Landmark.

How this was decided: Voydar's protection rules, from the sources we hold, confidence 90%. When in doubt, Voydar generalises the position.

Brother Jonathan was a paddle steamer that struck an uncharted rock near Point St. George, off the coast of Crescent City, California, on July 30, 1865. The ship was carrying 244 passengers and crew, with a large shipment of gold. Only 19 people survived, making it the deadliest shipwreck up to that time on the Pacific Coast of the United States. Based on the passenger and crew list, 225 people are believed to have died. Its location was not discovered until 1993 and a portion of the gold was recovered in 1996. The ship was also instrumental in setting off the 1862 smallpox epidemic in the Pacific Northwest, which killed thousands of Indigenous people in the region.

History from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA.

About this wreck

Brother Jonathan is a recorded shipwreck site. Voydar shows wreck locations alongside live ship traffic, free, from Wikidata and public hydrographic records.

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