Wreck of the Peter Iredale

Explore this old shipwreck in northwestern Oregon.

Peter Iredale was a four-masted cargo ship built in England in 1890 owned by the Iredale and Porter shipping firm. She was on her way to Portland to pick up a shipment of wheat for the United Kingdom and had managed to reach the mouth of the Columbia River on the morning of October 25th, 1906. Later that day, the ship encountered fog, a sudden wind, and a strong current which caused it to run aground on Clatsop Beach, hitting so hard that three of the masts snapped on impact.

The Captain gave the order to abandon the ship as they fired signal rockets for help. A rescue team from nearby Point Adams quickly responded, and the crew and the two stowaways aboard were safely brought to land. Once ashore, Captain Lawrence stood stiffly at attention, saluted his ship, and said, “May God bless you and may your bones bleach in these sands.” He then turned to address his crew with a bottle of whisky in hand and said, “Boys, have a drink.”

There were plans to restore the ship and send her out to sea again, but before they could be carried out, Peter Iredale had listed dramatically to the port side and became so embedded in the sand that the project was abandoned. Now, over 100 years later, the steel bones of Peter Iredale still haunt Clatsop Beach. The wreckage can be reached and explored on foot at low tide and makes for great photo opportunities.