''Antonio López'' was a merchant

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

that was built in Scotland in 1882 for the Spanish

Compañía Transatlántica Española Compañía Transatlántica Española, S.A. (''Transatlantic Company of Spain'', abbreviated CTE), also known as the Spanish Line in English, was a passenger ocean line that has largely ceased operations although it still exists as a company. It i ...

(CTE). A

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

auxiliary cruiser An armed merchantman is a merchant ship equipped with guns, usually for defensive purposes, either by design or after the fact. In the days of sail, piracy and privateers, many merchantmen would be routinely armed, especially those engaging in lo ...

sank her in the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (clock ...

when she was trying to run the US blockade to supply materiél to the Spanish garrison on

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

. She is now the only known Spanish shipwreck in US waters from the war. Her wreck site, in of water off

Dorado, Puerto Rico Dorado () is a town and municipality in the northern coast of Puerto Rico, west of San Juan and is located in the northern region of the island, bordering the Atlantic Ocean, north of Toa Alta, east of Vega Alta, and west of Toa Baja. Dorado ...

, was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1997.

Building

William Denny and Brothers William Denny and Brothers Limited, often referred to simply as Denny, was a Scottish shipbuilding company. History The shipbuilding interests of the Denny family date back to William Denny (born 1779), for whom ships are recorded being built ...

built ''Antonio López'' in

Dumbarton Dumbarton (; also sco, Dumbairton; ) is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. In 2006, it had an estimated population of 19,990. Dumbarton was the ca ...

, Scotland, launching her on November 8, 1881 and completing her in 1882. Her registered length was , her beam was , her depth was and her

tonnage Tonnage is a measure of the cargo-carrying capacity of a ship, and is commonly used to assess fees on commercial shipping. The term derives from the taxation paid on ''tuns'' or casks of wine. In modern maritime usage, "tonnage" specifically ref ...

s were and . She had a single

screw A screw and a bolt (see '' Differentiation between bolt and screw'' below) are similar types of fastener typically made of metal and characterized by a helical ridge, called a ''male thread'' (external thread). Screws and bolts are used to fa ...

, driven by a two-cylinder

compound steam engine A compound steam engine unit is a type of steam engine where steam is expanded in two or more stages. A typical arrangement for a compound engine is that the steam is first expanded in a high-pressure ''(HP)'' cylinder, then having given up he ...

that was rated at 634

NHP Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are the ...

. CTE named her after its founder

Antonio López y López Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language-speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular male ...

, and registered her at

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

Loss

In June 1898 ''Antonio Lopez'' was bound for

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan (, , ; Spanish for "Saint John") is the capital city and most populous municipality in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2020 census, it is the 57th-largest city under the jur ...

from

Cádiz Cádiz (, , ) is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the Province of Cádiz, one of eight that make up the autonomous community of Andalusia. Cádiz, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western Europe, ...

. On June 28 two US cruisers fought a squadron of Spanish ships comprising one cruiser, two gunboats and ''Antonio López'', which had a cargo of military supplies. pursued and shelled ''Antonio Lopez'', which ran aground at Ensenada Honda.Berta Pensado, ''El Marqués de Comillas'' (1954)

Claudio López Bru Claudio is an Italian and Spanish first name. In Portuguese it is accented Cláudio. In Catalan and Occitan it is Claudi, while in Romanian it is Claudiu. Origin and history Claudius was the name of an eminent Roman gens, the most important m ...

(1853–1925), Antonio López y López' son, then owner and president of the company, sent a telegram to the ship's captain saying: ''Es preciso que haga usted llegar el cargamento a Puerto Rico aunque se pierda el barco.'' (You must get your cargo to Puerto Rico, even if the ship were lost.) Captain

Ramón Acha Caamaño Ramón Acha Caamaño (April 24, 1861 – November 26, 1930) was a brigadier general in the Spanish Army. As Captain in charge of the Spanish Artillery in San Juan, he defended Puerto Rico against U.S. attack during the Spanish–American War. ...

was given charge of salvaging the ship's cargo. His men quickly salved nearly all of it. Only some minor articles and one cannon that had fallen overboard during salvage work were lost.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Antonio Lopez (shipwreck) 1882 ships National Register of Historic Places in Dorado, Puerto Rico National Historic Landmarks in Puerto Rico Ships built on the River Clyde Shipwrecks on the National Register of Historic Places Steamships of Spain Telegraphy Spanish–American War ships of Spain Shipwrecks of the Puerto Rico coast 1898 in Puerto Rico Maritime incidents in 1898

Building

Loss

See also

References

External links