The Shipwrecks of Point Bennett

There have been several shipwrecks near Point Bennett over the years, both sail and steam. Six years preceding the loss of the WATSON A. WEST the 1917 United States Coast Pilot for the Pacific Coast, gives the following description for this region;

"San Miguel Island is the westernmost of the Santa Barbara Islands, and is the most dangerous to approach."

"Point Bennett, the western point of the island, is a long, narrow, jagged bluff, 40 feet high, rising rapidly to 380 feet; high sand dunes extend inland from the point for 2 miles. There are three rocky islets south of and close under the point, and foul ground extends 3/4 mile westward and northward of the point, but inside the limit of the kelp." Documented vessel casualties in the western region of San Miguel Island during the years 1876 to 1967 are listed below. Several more vessels have met their demise in this same region since 1967, including a recent stranding of the fishing vessel LADY CHRISTINE in 1997.

Vessel Casualties in the Western Region of San Miguel Island
Vessel	Rig	Built	Lost	Where
Leader	Sealing Sloop	1866	1876	Northwest Region
G.W. Prescott	2-masted Schooner	1874	1879	Point Bennett
J.M. Colman**	3-masted Schooner	1888	1905	Point Bennett
Anubis*	Freighter	1898	1908	Castle Rock
Comet**	3-masted Schooner	1886	1911	Wilson Rock/ Simonton
Pectan*	Tanker	1902	1914	Adams Cove
Watson A. West	4-masted Schooner	1901	1923	Point Bennett
Cuba**	Passenter/Cargor	1897	1923	Point Bennett
WT Co No 3	Movie Barge	1922	1935	Point Bennett
Legend	Racing Yacht	1951	1967	Point Bennett
* Refloated **Vessel Located