The Florida Keys are the site of many mysterious wrecks. It is difficult, if not impossible, to say where some of these wrecks came from, and how they came to lie in the warm blue waters off the shores of Florida. Astonishingly, there is a good amount of information on one ancient wreck – and, this wreck is a dive site that anyone can make, when conditions are good.
The Story of HMS Looe
Her Majesty’s Ship Looe was a 46 gun, 5th rate British Frigate, built by Lime House Ship Builders on the Thames, before the middle of the 1700’s. British records show that HMS Looe was launched December 29th of 1741, and fitted out at Deftord. She was commissioned soon thereafter: In January of the next year, Lord Northesk took command of the ship for a short period of time. In 1743, while Spain and Britain were at war, HMS Looe was placed under the command of Captain Ashby Utting. His orders were to sail the Looe to the British Colonies on the North American continent, and there, to protect the southernmost colonies from a Spanish invasion.
The captain and crew of HMS Looe lived to tell the tale of their demise. The ship had captured another ship, which was flying a French flag, and which was determined to be under Spanish command. The second ship was taken into tow, with the intent of tying her up in Charleston. At 1:30, on the morning of February 5, 1744, HMS Looe’s crew spotted a reef dead ahead. Although they tried to avoid it, they smashed, rudder first, into the reef, which is now named in the ship’s honor.
HMS Looe was hard aground on the reef, and not about to sink yet. Some of her crew managed to jump into boats, leaving the rest behind to guard the valuable provisions still on board. They chased down and captured a Spanish sloop, brought it to the site of HMS Looe, salvaged the Looe, and left her to the mercy of the reef. Her entire crew escaped on board the unnamed Spanish sloop.
What happened to the ship HMS Looe was towing that night? No one knows for sure. Some say that it, too, hit the reef and sank in the area. Others surmise that her crew was able to free her and escape. A third story has the British crew of the Looe setting fire to both ships and leaving with their prisoners in what would have been a very crowded sloop, along with the smaller boats from the Looe. Either way, the story is both exciting and compelling.
Diving HMS Looe
Today, the wreck of the HMS Looe lies in just twenty five feet of clear, warm water, on the east edge of Looe reef. When she was afloat, her gun deck was more than 124 feet long, her keel was just over 101 feet, and her beam was almost 36 feet. Her hold was nearly fifteen feet deep, and she was 685 tons.
Divers often see angelfish, large jewfish, sharks, and rays as they explore the wreck, which was first discovered in 1950, yielded plenty of artifacts, including an anchor, cannons and cannonballs, muskets with fixed bayonets, china and pewter, and personal items such as clay pipes. Although you may see artifacts, such as the stair stepped casting iron which is located at mooring buoy 15, remember that harvesting any artifacts from this protected wreck site is illegal – however, you can explore to your heart’s content.