CosbySweater
Contributor
I was introduced to a new-to-me wreck site located in the Jupiter area. It's the remains of the GulfLand Wreck. It's commonly referred to as the Gregory Norman Wreck or Norman's wreck due to its proximity to pro golfer Greg Noman's estate on Jupiter Island.
The site is about 5 miles North of the Jupiter inlet, 0.5 miles off the beach, adjacent to Hobe Sound. She sits in 30-35 feet of water on a sandy bottom, oriented with her bow pointed NNW. A careful eye can spot the wreckage on google maps. While difficult to discern underwater due to poor visibility, the wreckage is about 150 feet long and 40-50 feet wide with several debris piles adjacent to the main wreckage. The wreckage itself it interesting and includes many swim throughs and holes for critters and divers alike to explore and some substantial vertical relief. When I dove it, it was covered in silversides and pilchards. I spotted a juvenile goliath grouper, a mature goliath inside the wreck, and a green moray. Many blennies, scorpion fish, and hawk fish were littered throughout. Also spotted were schools of snook, spadefish, and mangrove snapper. A macro photographer may find this site interesting as there is lots of natural sunlight and small critters to spot and identify.
Even more interesting is the history of the wreck. The wreckage as it sits today is the bow section of the GulfLand tanker, built in 1918 by the New York Ship Corporation of Camden, New Jersey. She was 391 feet long, had a 51 foot beam and displaced 5,277 gross tons. She met her fate on October 21, 1943.
The GulfLand caught fire after it collided with the GulfBelle on October 21, 1943 off Lake worth Inlet. At the time she was one route to from Beaumont Texas to Jacksonville, FL with a cargo of aviation fuel. Both vessels has been running without lights to avoid German submarines (in accordance with the wartime blackout). The bow of the GulfBelle had sliced into the port bow of the GulfLand and both ships caught fire as did the water around them."
The two ship eventually separated and the GulfLand drifted north and grounded on the wreck of the SS Republic which had been torpedoed several months prior. After several days she freed herself from the Republic and drifted aground near Hobe Sound. She burned for 53 days off Hobe Sound. 37 men from the GulfLand perished in the incident. What remains of the GulfLand is about 150 feet of bow section which broke apart during the salvage operation.
Below are a handful of pictures I discovered during my research. Hopefully some other local divers can add color to my observations and research!
Sources:
The site is about 5 miles North of the Jupiter inlet, 0.5 miles off the beach, adjacent to Hobe Sound. She sits in 30-35 feet of water on a sandy bottom, oriented with her bow pointed NNW. A careful eye can spot the wreckage on google maps. While difficult to discern underwater due to poor visibility, the wreckage is about 150 feet long and 40-50 feet wide with several debris piles adjacent to the main wreckage. The wreckage itself it interesting and includes many swim throughs and holes for critters and divers alike to explore and some substantial vertical relief. When I dove it, it was covered in silversides and pilchards. I spotted a juvenile goliath grouper, a mature goliath inside the wreck, and a green moray. Many blennies, scorpion fish, and hawk fish were littered throughout. Also spotted were schools of snook, spadefish, and mangrove snapper. A macro photographer may find this site interesting as there is lots of natural sunlight and small critters to spot and identify.
Even more interesting is the history of the wreck. The wreckage as it sits today is the bow section of the GulfLand tanker, built in 1918 by the New York Ship Corporation of Camden, New Jersey. She was 391 feet long, had a 51 foot beam and displaced 5,277 gross tons. She met her fate on October 21, 1943.
The GulfLand caught fire after it collided with the GulfBelle on October 21, 1943 off Lake worth Inlet. At the time she was one route to from Beaumont Texas to Jacksonville, FL with a cargo of aviation fuel. Both vessels has been running without lights to avoid German submarines (in accordance with the wartime blackout). The bow of the GulfBelle had sliced into the port bow of the GulfLand and both ships caught fire as did the water around them."
The two ship eventually separated and the GulfLand drifted north and grounded on the wreck of the SS Republic which had been torpedoed several months prior. After several days she freed herself from the Republic and drifted aground near Hobe Sound. She burned for 53 days off Hobe Sound. 37 men from the GulfLand perished in the incident. What remains of the GulfLand is about 150 feet of bow section which broke apart during the salvage operation.
Below are a handful of pictures I discovered during my research. Hopefully some other local divers can add color to my observations and research!
Sources:
- The United States Navy Memorial
- Deadliest American Disasters and Large Loss of Life Events (website)
- Florida Memory (website)
