The Ocean is Scarier Than You Think
Some shipwreck stories end with a discovery. Others end with a salvaged bell or a confirmed resting place. But some are far more unsettling—the vessel simply vanishes from the record. Before you think about your next fishing trip, come with us as we look into which ships left ports, only for the ocean to keep them.
Photograph was taken by the New York Navy Yard. on Wikimedia
1. USS Cyclops
The USS Cyclops disappeared in March 1918 after leaving Barbados on a voyage from Brazil toward Baltimore. Records show that the collier vanished with all hands; its wreck has never been found, and even to this day, the cause remains unknown. With more than 300 people aboard, it became one of America’s most enduring mysteries.
2. SS Waratah
The SS Waratah was a passenger and cargo steamship that disappeared off South Africa in July 1909. It had left Durban for Cape Town with a whopping 211 passengers and crew, but no confirmed wreckage was ever discovered. Its sudden loss was so dramatic, in fact, that the ship later picked up the nickname “Australia’s Titanic.”
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3. HMS Atalanta
HMS Atalanta sailed from Bermuda in January 1880 and never reached England. The British training ship carried a large crew, including a lot of young naval trainees, which made the disappearance especially grim when news hit the shore. A later inquiry couldn’t provide a reliable cause, and the wreck has never been located.
4. SS Poet
The SS Poet left Philadelphia on October 24, 1980, carrying thousands of tons of corn bound for Port Said, Egypt. The cargo ship had a modest crew of 34, but it also never arrived. It, too, was never heard from again—despite happening in more modern times.
5. USS Porpoise
The USS Porpoise was a U.S. brig that disappeared in 1854 while operating in Asian waters. According to reports, it parted with other vessels between Formosa and China on September 21 and was never heard from again. At the time, officials suspected a typhoon, but the ship itself never returned.
