The Spanish luxury liner, Cristobal Colon, was built for the Tras Atlantica Spanish Line by Soc Espanola de Const. Naval, El Ferrol in 1923. She was 499.4 feet long, had a 61 foot beam, displaced10,833 gross tons and was one of the most luxurious cruise ships of her time.
On October 25, 1936, the Cristobal Colon, under the command of Captain Crescencia Narvarro Delgado, ran high on a reef while steaming at 15 knots east of North Rock, eight miles north of Bermuda. At the time, she was travelling in ballast with no passengers, but with 160 crewmembers, from Cardiff, Wales, to Vera Cruz, Mexico.
Captain Crescencia Narvarro testified later that he came close to Bermuda to check his instruments by lights. According to the New York Times, “He sighted a fixed light, which he believed to be St. David’s, and later a close blinking light, which he believed to be the North Rock Beacon. He altered his course and said the wreck was caused because North Rock was not lighted, which fact the authorities here advertised months ago. “North Rock Light had been out since October 18th,repairs being prevented by bad weather.
Today the Cristobal Colon, the largest shipwreck in Bermuda, lies split in two with half of her wreck on one side of the reef and half on the other. Divers can still see an unexploded artillery shell on the wreck. Her eight massive coal burning boilers, two spare propellers and deck winches are easily recognizable. Depth at this site ranges from 15 feet in the bow to 60 feet in the stern; a depth of 80 feet can be reached in the sand off her stern.
