The Celtic Shipwreck
New York and New England's (Wreck Valley)
Historical and current New York and New England Shipwreck Information and images for scuba
divers and fisherman.
CELTIC
On November 17 1984,The tug boat Celtic was towing the 145 foot
barge Cape Race across the Long Island Sound from Bridgeport Ct to
Port Newark NJ. When the Celtic failed to answer radio calls and did
not arrive on schedule the Coast Guard was called. The Coast Guard
located the Celtic under an oil slick in 70 feet of water. She was
only one mile south of Sheffield Island. The bodies of her five
crewmembers were retrieved by police divers. It is speculated that
the Barge actually went down first. The sinking barge then pulled
the Celtic down with her.
Rick Schwarz and I explored this wreck in March of 1985. We found a
perfectly intact shipwreck with all her portholes and brass fittings
in place. Although, we really just did one quick bounce dive Rick
did remove a pad from her wheel house. The paper work contained her
Lubrication Chart which told us that she had a 1600 hp diesel
engine, retractable pilothouse, and two G.M 4-71 Generators
Today, the Celtic and the barge Cape Race lie on a rocky bottom. The
Celtic sits upright almost like a story book shipwreck. Her tow
cable still connects the two wrecks.
Remember
penetration into any shipwreck should only be done by those with
proper training, experience and
wreck diving equipment.
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On November 17 1984,The tug boat Celtic was towing the 145 foot
barge Cape Race across the Long Island Sound from Bridgeport Ct to
Port Newark NJ. When the Celtic failed to answer radio calls and did
not arrive on schedule the Coast Guard was called. The Coast Guard
located the Celtic under an oil slick in 70 feet of water. She was
only one mile south of Sheffield Island. The bodies of her five
crewmembers were retrieved by police divers. It is speculated that
the Barge actually went down first. The sinking barge then pulled
the Celtic down with her.