Most northerly shipwreck

The most northerly documented shipwreck is the HMS Breadalbane, a British three-masted merchant supply ship that became trapped in ice, was crushed and sank within 15 minutes after being punctured by an ice floe in the Barrow Strait off Devon Island in the Canadian Arctic on 21 August 1853. The wreck lies at 74.68° N, 91.83° W.

She was wrecked during a search for Captain John Franklin’s expedition which had set out in 1845 to find the Northwest Passage but had vanished.

The Breadalbane's crew of 21 abandoned the vessel and were rescued.

The wreck was discovered in 1980 by Joseph B MacInnis after two unsuccessful searches in 1978 and 1979. The boat is located at a depth of 100 m (330 ft), preserved in immaculate condition, including two of the three masts still standing.