Dead Reckoning: The Sinking of the SS Valencia

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Thursday, February 14th, 2019
7:30 PM to 9:00 PM

There are literally thousands of shipwrecks in the Graveyard of the Pacific between Tillamook Oregon and Cape Scott. Nearly 500 of these wrecks lie on the south and west sides of Vancouver Island alone.

The sinking of the SS Valencia may be the most tragic disaster. Lost January 22, 1906, the 252', 1598-ton iron steamship was inbound from San Francisco for Seattle with 108 passengers and a crew of 65. Owing to a navigational miscalculation unbeknownst to the captain the ship overshot the entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

Without any shore-based navigational aids and markers the Valencia mistakenly turned towards the rocks of Cape Beale, about 11 miles south of Bamfield. She grounded at midnight, just 150 feet from shoreline cliffs, at high tide in thick weather and with heavy seas running.

Stuck fast and pounded by waves the Valencia broke up and settled over the next couple of days while while nearby ships could only stand safely back in deeper water and watch. A few of Valencias' passengers and crew successfully made it to shore and the rescue ships in liferafts, but subsequent confusion and unfortunate happenstance agonizingly thwarted chances of rescuing any more from the ship.

Unapproachable from both land and sea, ultimately the remaining paseengers and crew on board were swept away as the ship finally settled below the waves.

The death toll numbered 136, with no women or children surviving.

Public outcry led to the construction of the Dominion Lifesaving Trail built during 1907-10. Cabins were also erected along the trail at 5 mile intervals where shipwrecked mariners could find shelter, supplies, and a telegraph key.

In 1970, the trail became part of Pacific Rim National Park and was renamed The West Coast Trail.

About our speaker:

Tyler Hooper is a writer and journalist who resides in Victoria BC. He has a master's degree in history from the University of Waterloo and a passion for historical storytelling. He hopes to publish a book on the sinking of the SS Valencia and its importance in establishing the life-saving measures along the west coast of Vancouver Island.

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The Nanaimo Historical Society is a non-profit organization. Founded in 1953, the Society's mission is to preserve, promote, and celebrate the history of Nanaimo and Vancouver Island.

https://www.facebook.com/NanaimoHistory/