List of shipwrecks in 1939

The list of shipwrecks in 1939 includes ships sunk, foundered, grounded, or otherwise lost during 1939.

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

table of contents

←  1938 1939 1940  →
Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr
May	Jun	Jul	Aug
Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Unknown date
References

January

Main article: List of shipwrecks in January 1939

February

Main article: List of shipwrecks in February 1939

March

Main article: List of shipwrecks in March 1939

April

Main article: List of shipwrecks in April 1939

May

Main article: List of shipwrecks in May 1939

June

Main article: List of shipwrecks in June 1939

July

Main article: List of shipwrecks in July 1939

August

Main article: List of shipwrecks in August 1939

September

Main article: List of shipwrecks in September 1939

October

Main article: List of shipwrecks in October 1939

November

Main article: List of shipwrecks in November 1939

December

Main article: List of shipwrecks in December 1939

Unknown date

List of shipwrecks: Unknown date 1939

Ship	State	Description
Alfonso XIII	Spain	The passenger ship was damaged by fire at Bilbao after 26 June. She was repaired and returned to service. [1]
Aurea	United Kingdom	World War II: The fishing trawler was bombed by Luftwaffe aircraft and sunk in the North Sea 150 nautical miles (280 km) east by north of the Isle of May, Fife. [2]
Blatchford	United States	The ship, part of the floating Powell River Breakwater, sank sometime in 1939. [3]
C 2	Spanish Republican Navy	Spanish Civil War: The C 1-class motor launch was lost in February or March.
C 5	Spanish Republican Navy	Spanish Civil War: The C 1-class motor launch was lost in February or March.
Comitas	Italy	Comitas The cargo ship was driven ashore and broke in two.
Gambhira	United Kingdom	World War II: The Admiralty requisitioned cargo ship was scuttled as a blockship in Kirk Sound, Scapa Flow Orkney Islands sometime in 1939. Raised in 1943 and re-sunk in Liverpool Bay for use as sonar target on 15 October 1943. [4]
Giuseppe	Italy	The collier foundered in the North Sea off Withernsea, Yorkshire, United Kingdom. [5]
Governor Stone	United States	The schooner sank at Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. She was refloated, repaired, and returned to service. [6]
Habana	Spain	The passenger ship was damaged by fire at Bilbao. She was rebuilt as a cargo ship in 1940–41. [7]
Hornet	United States	With no one on board, the motor boat sank near Unga, Territory of Alaska. [8]
Kinsol	United Kingdom	The cargo ship sank off Sanda Island, Argyllshire. [9]
Oduno	United States	The fishing vessel was lost off Noyes Island in the Alexander Archipelago, Territory of Alaska with the loss of all twelve crew. [10]
Rubaan	United Kingdom	The collier ran aground on The Lizard, Cornwall and was wrecked. [11]
Sans Peur	United Kingdom	The yacht, owned by George Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, 5th Duke of Sutherland, ran aground off Espiritu Santo Island in the Gulf of California. The vessel's captain managed to refloat Sans Peur and anchor it, but a hole had been opened in the bottom and the ship lay partly flooded. With the aid of the tugboat Retriever, the vessel was made sound and the ship resumed its journey. [12]

References

1. Jordan, Roger (1999). The World's Merchant Ships 1939. London: Chatham House. p. 359. ISBN   1-86176-023-X.
2. "FV Aurea (FD300) (+1939)". Wrecksite. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
3. "The WWII McCloskey & Co. Concrete Ships of Tampa, FL - Part 7". thecretefleet.com. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
4. "SS Ghambria cargo ship (1919-1943)". Wrecksite. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
5. "SS Giuseppe (+1939)". Wrecksite. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
6. Delgado, James P. (31 October 1990). "Maritime Heritage of the United States NHL Themes Study Large Vessels / Governor Stone (schooner)" (pdf). National Park Service . Retrieved 2019-03-05.
7. Jordan, Roger (1999). The World's Merchant Fleets, 1939. London: Chatham publishing. p. 571. ISBN   1-86176-023-X.
8. alaskashipwreck.com Alaska Shipwrecks (H)
9. "SS Kinsol (+1939)". Wrecksite. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
10. alaskashipwreck.com Alaska Shipwrecks (O)
11. "SS Ruban (+1939)". Wrecksite. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
12. "Ambulance for Crippled Ships". Popular Mechanics. Vol. 72, no. 6. Chicago, Illinois: Popular Mechanics Co. December 1939. pp. 850–852. OCLC   506031407.