Norma

A four-masted steel barque built in 1893 by Barclay, Curle & Co., Glasgow. Dimensions: 84,73×12,54×7,33 meters [278'0"×41'2"×24'1"] and tonnage 2122 GRT and 1999 NRT. Rigged in jubilee fashion, i.e. with nothing above double top and topgallant sails.

1893 May: Launched at the shipyard of Barclay, Curle & Co., Glasgow, for M.J. Begg, Cardiff. The first master was Captain D. McDonnell who previously had commanded the County of Antrim and the fourmasted barque Moreton in the Colonial trade.
1893: Took a cargo of 3500 tons of coal to Rio de Janeiro on her maiden voyage. While the coal cargo was being discharged a revolution and Captain McDonnell had to take the ship in ballast to Melbourne.
1903: Tried to sail into the harbour of Newcastle, NSW, during a severe storm without the assistance of a tug, but had to anchor with two anchors when she could not weather the reefs at the entrance. None of the local tugs could tow her away from the dangerous position and she had to wait until the coast's most powerful tug arrived from Sydney.
1907 April 20: Was run into and sunk by Crawford & Rowat's fullrigged ship Ardencraig at the Semaphore anchorage, Melbourne. The submerged wreck of the Norma claimed another victim when the steamer Jessie Darling collided with it and sank in minutes.

Updated 1997-01-26 by Lars Bruzelius.

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