Two years ago I wrote about the mysterious disappearance of Flight 19 in 1945 near the Bermuda Triangle. This month’s Mystery Monday post takes us back to the Atlantic for another strange occurrence.
In March 1918, the biggest ship in the United States Navy vanished without a trace. The collier USS Cyclops was on a voyage between the West Indies and Baltimore with Lieutenant Commander George Worley serving as the ship’s captain.
The last known message from the ship said, “Weather fair, All well.” But sometime after March 4, 1918, the ship vanished without even an SOS. The deaths of the 306 crew and passengers remains the largest single loss of lives in the history of the United States Navy that didn’t involve combat. Here’s what we do know.
- At the time of her disappearance, the 550-foot-long vessel carried 11,000 tons of manganese ore. She was reportedly overweight as her capacity was only 8000 tons.
- The ship left Rio de Janeiro on February 16, 1918, with a stop in Salvador two days later. She left for Baltimore with no additional stops scheduled.
- Before leaving port, Commander Worley submitted a report the starboard engine had a cracked cylinder and wasn’t operative. This report confirmed by a survey board which recommended the ship return to the United States.
- The ship made an unscheduled stop in Barbados because the water was over the Plimsoll line, indicated it was overloaded. Investigations in Rio proved the ship had been loaded and properly secured.
- After setting sail for Baltimore on March 4, the ship was rumored to have been sighted by a molasses tanker, the Amoico near Virginia. This was denied by the Amoico’s captain. Because the Cyclops wasn’t due in Baltimore until March 13, it was unlikely to have been near Virginia on the 9th as that would have put her only one day from making port.
- On March 10, the day after the purported sighting, a violent storm swept through the Virginia Capes area.
Some suggested the combination of the storm, overload, and engine failure caused the ship to sink. An extensive Naval investigation concluded, “Many theories have been advanced, but none that satisfactorily account for her disappearance.”
That summation was written before two of Cyclops‘s sister ships, Proteus and Nereus, vanished at sea during World War II. Both ships were transporting heavy loads of metallic ore similar to that which was loaded on Cyclops during her fatal voyage. In both cases, their loss was theorized to have been the result of catastrophic structural failure. A more outlandish theory attributes all three vessels’ disappearances to the Bermuda Triangle.
Some believe an enemy submarine was responsible for the sinking of the Cyclops, but German authorities denied any knowledge of the vessel.
Others suggest Captain Worley, who was born Johan Frederick Wichmann in Sandstedt, Hanover, Germany conspired with the enemy to hand the ship over. After the end of WWI, German records were checked to ascertain the fate of the ship, but nothing was found.
Near the time the search was called off a telegram received by the State Department from Charles Livingston, the United States consul in Barbados.
Department’s 15th. Confidential. Master CYCLOPS stated that required six hundred tons coal having sufficient on board to reach Bermuda. Engines very poor condition. Not sufficient funds and therefore requested payment by me. Unusually reticent. I have ascertained he took here ton fresh meat, ton flour, thousand pounds vegetables, paying therefore 775 dollars. From different sources gather the following: he had plenty of coal, alleged inferior, took coal to mix, probably had more than fifteen hundred tons. Master alluded to by others as damned Dutchman, apparently disliked by other officers. Rumored disturbances en route hither, men confined and one executed; also had some prisoners from the fleet in Brazilian waters, one life sentence. United States Consul-General Gottschalk passenger, 231 crew exclusive of officers and passengers. Have names of crew but not of all the officers and passengers. Many Germanic names appear. Number telegraphic or wireless messages addressed to master or in care of ship were delivered at this port. All telegrams for Barbados on file head office St. Thomas. I have to suggest scrutiny there. While not having any definite grounds I fear fate worse than sinking though possibly based on instinctive dislike felt towards master.
On June 1, 1918, assistant Secretary of the Navy Franklin D. Roosevelt declared Cyclops officially lost and all hands deceased. One hundred four years later, the fate of the ship and her crew is still unknown.
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37 Responses
That sure is a mystery, Joan. I wonder if we’ll ever learn what happened. Great post. Thanks for sharing 💕🙂
Who knows? I remember when some never thought the Titanic would be found. Then again, MH370 (flight from Malaysia) still hasn’t been found. You’d think with today’s technology, a jumbo jet would be easily spotted.
Thanks for stopping by, Harmony!
It’s hard to believe that the Cyclops and both of her sister ships were lost. Like the designer or builder (or owner?) was cursed. How tragic for all those people and their loved ones!
it is strange about all three ships, Priscilla. Maybe a design flaw?
I hadn’t heard of this before. I wonder if Cyclops will ever be found, or if anyone is even looking for it.
I doubt anyone is looking at this point, Liz. But who knows? The wreckage could turn up someday.
Never say never, I suppose.
Maybe they’ll find the wreck some day. Strange story.
Very strange story, Craig.
All three sister ships sank or were lost at sea? That seems fishy. (No pun intended.) I hope we learn the truth someday.
I agree, Staci. It does seem fishy. Maybe someday the truth will be known.
I’ve never heard of the Cyclops, Joan. What a befuddling mystery, especially given both of her sister ships were lost at sea! Very strange, indeed. One can only hope the wreckage will be found sometime in the future, and will offer up clues as to what happened. Great Mystery Monday!
I can’t remember where I first learned of this. Maybe while researching the Bermuda Triangle. This is a befuddling mystery.
What a brew of possibilities! Wonder if the sister ships had lots of Germans running them, too. I never thought about transporting prisoners on freight ships. A great mystery!
That does seem unusual, Judi. I guess in war time (in those days, anyway) they made do with what they had.
What a story, Joan. Gives one the chills.
It does at that, John!
😁
Oh wow! So many theories. For a ship the size of the Cyclops to just disappear is chilling. If any of their theories were right, it would have eventually been located somewhere. This is definitely a mystery! Thanks for sharing!
You would think it could be located, Jan. It’s a strange thing for sure.
Fantastic story, Joan! A ship so large to completely vanish with no trace. It’s enough to give you chills! Thanks so much for sharing!
Exactly, Mar. At least the location is known of most ships that sink.
You would think at some point the wreakage would be found. That telegram sure added to the mystery as well as its sister ships also going down.
It is strange about the sister ships, Denise. As far as finding the wreckage, modern technology hasn’t been able to find the wreckage of MH 370. Now that’s strange!
My brief knowledge of this event Joan extends from one or two tv shows I’ve seen. But from what I can recall the Cyclops and that model of vessel had a flat bottom. Great for large loads, but poor handling characteristics in turbulent sees. So much so that one theory is that the keel was split in two by large rogue waves. Anyway, it is a mystery for sure. Btw. Just an fyi, your lead in to the blog indicates 2018 & not 1918 which is what I believe you meant to wright.
Thanks for that information. I didn’t know about the ship having a flat bottom or the theory about the keel.
And thanks for pointing out my typo. It’s fixed now. I’d love to blame it on auto-correct, but I’m afraid it was user error. 🙂
No. Stick with the auto-correct theory. If you can’t blame the technology than what good is it?
🙂
This is the first I’ve heard of this, Joan. Amazing story! I would hope that someday the wreckage might be found. Thank you for sharing.
Finding the wreckage would mostly likely provide some answers, Gwen. Sad thing about the loss of lives.
That’s incredibly sad, all those lives lost. I question why a Navy frigate was carrying ore though? Was that a normal procedure?
Not sure, Jaquie, but that’s a good question. Things were different in those days, I guess.
I’m voting for alien abduction, Joan. How could the ship still be lost otherwise? Our technology can map the ocean floor and surely it would find this big ship. Thanks for the mystery. These are fun to read and learn about.
Now there’s a possibility! Interesting the same week I posted this, Shackleford’s ship was found off the coast of Antarctica. Maybe there’s hope of finding the Cyclops.
Oh. That’s interesting… maybe.
This is a new one for me. How strange that nothing ever turned up. I might be with Diana’s alien theory on this.
Makes as. Much sense as anything. Strange that so many disappeared without a trace.