Oak Island’s Visible Historic Shipwreck
The Civil War Blockade Runner “Bendigo” can be seen at low tide off of Oak island’s “The Point” which is the Westernmost edge of the island. The Bendigo rests in the shallows, off shore, just East of the main channel of the Lockwoods Folly Inlet. The Bendigo ran aground on the sandbar in the early hours of January 3, 1864. Much of the 176 foot long hull is easily visible at low tides as the Bendigo sits dangerously just below the water which is a constant hazard to boaters. At low tide the water depth can be as shallow as three feet and people have waded out to the wreck but the combination of strong currents, tidal activity, and rusted hull sections make approaching the Bendigo extremely dangerous. Many articles have misidentified the Bendigo as the “Iron Age” or the “Elizabeth,” two other Civil War shipwrecks in the vicinity, so positive identification was made by utilizing the GPS coordinates provided by the Army Corps of Engineers and photographing the Bendigo at low tide.
A great source of information on Cape Fear area shipwrecks can be found here.