Shipwreck Database

Aggi

Aggi was built under her christened name Aspice in 1894. Her keel was laid down at the shipyard of Mackie & Thomson of Glasgow, Scotland for her owners R. J. Swyny. The 3-masted, full-rigged ship was assigned hull number 77 and officially registered with number 102136 under British flag, making Liverpool her home port. Her registered dimensions in feet were as follows; length: 265.0, beam: 39.1, depth of hold: 23.3. When built she had a gross tonnage of 1909 and net tonnage of 1809 which changed over the years with her final tonnage being, gross 1898, and net 1757. Her hull was built of steel with 2 tiers of beams, 1 deck and she had a bar keel of 9 1/2 inches. Other dimensional features included a poop deck of 48 feet and forecastle of 29 feet.

Still carrying the name Aspice, she was sold to Thomas Law & Co. of Glasgow around 1896/97. In 1900, she was sold to Italian owners Navigazione General who changed her name to Sant' Erasmo and registered her home port in Genoa, Italy. Five years later German owners Theodor & F. Eimbcke bought her once again changing her name, this time to Seerose and she was given a new home port at Hamburg, Germany. Finally in 1909, she was listed under Norwegian ownership, Akties Aggi with B. A. Olsen & Son as managers, making her home port in Lyngor, Norway. Her Norwegian owners gave her a new and final name Aggi, little did they know that 1997 would be "the year of the Aggi."

CMAR divers Robert Schwemmer and Mark Norder map one of Aggi's masts.
Courtesy: Patrick Smith

The Aggi loaded with a cargo of 2,500 tons of barley and 600 tons of beans destined for Malmo, Sweden, was taken under tow by the steamer Edgar H. Vance. Leaving San Francisco on 29 April 1915, she was to be towed to the Panama Canal, pass through and sail onto Sweden. Encountering a storm the following day the hawser parted between the two vessels causing the Aggi to drift. Edgar H. Vance in distressed condition headed north for San Francisco. The steamer did not arrived until 5 May, even with her makeshift rudder she required further assistance from the steamers Navigator, Rover and Dauntless. As the storm worsened, Aggi's cargo shifted submerging her lee rails and flooding the forecastle. The crew attempted to maneuver the sailing ship on a heading for the city of Santa Barbara. By 3 May the crew still unsuccessful in taking control of the ship were witness to the final moments of this twenty-one year windjammer when she became spiked on Talcott Shoal, 1 mile northwest of Santa Rosa Island.

From the publication Channel Islands National Park and Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary, Submerged Cultural Resources Assessment by Don. P. Morris and James Lima they report the following, in-part.

"Articles in the Los Angeles Times provide follow-up details of the crew's efforts to reach Santa Barbara after establishing a temporary camp on Santa Rosa Island. Salvage of at least two large and five small anchors from the vessel is mentioned (Fouts 1989:7). Although only a small amount of cargo was retrieved, many fittings and other small portable items were saved.

The vessel played its final role as a movie set for the Universal Film Company. The earliest film crew, from Flying-A Moving Picture Studios, attempted to film the wreck less than three weeks after it happened, on May 24, 1915 (Fouts 1989:6). Grandiose plans to utilize the wreck as a centerpiece in several other films came to nothing, although a company of six Universal Film stars actually visited the wreckage. Only a small amount of film was exposed, due to stormy conditions (Fouts 1989:8). Fouts states that the company, which included silent stars Grace Cunard and Francis Ford, camped out on Santa Rosa Island at a spot 6 miles distant from the Aggi. Although it seems more reasonable that the company would have stayed in Cuyler Harbor on San Miguel Island, Smuggler's Island, starring Cunard and Ford and produced by Universal, may contain footage from the location of the Aggi. A 1915 Universal newsreel may also have the Aggi footage. Attempts to located film exposed on the wreck have been unsuccessful. Glenn Miller, a dive boat operator, discovered the wreck for scuba divers during the 1960s. He removed one of the anchors, donating it to the Santa Barbara Historical Society in 1967 (SBNP, December 17, 1967), where it remains on display today."