The Chadwick was built by Swan Hunter of Newcastle in 1882, she was 250 feet long and had a beam of 35 feet. The Chadwick's last journey started in the Clyde, she was heading for St Peterburg with a cargo of coal. After leaving the Clyde the Chadwick turned north, she kept clear of Islay and Tiree and headed for the Minch but it was on her approach to the north west coast of Skye that things when wrong. A tired crew coupled with thick cloud meant that they could not see the shoreline, the Chadwick ran onto the rocks at the foot of the tiny headland of An Ceannaich. She was stuck fast and a tug was hired to pull her off but by the time the tug arrived it was to late, the Chadwick had slipped off the headland and into 30 metres of water.

The wreck today :The Chadwick is not particularly intact but there is enough substance to the wreck to see that it once was a ship. The least depth over the Chadwick is 10 metres but the majority of the wreckage lies on the seabed at about 22 metres. There is loads to sea on this wreck including the boilers, anchor chains, the masts, the engines and the propeller and with the visibility usually at about 20 metres there is no excuse for not seeing them. The marine life is also very impressive with loads of soft corals covering the hull. It is also a great dive if you are interested in underwater photography due to the good visability.

Diagram and photos are reproduced with the kind permission of John Liddiard and Diver magazine.