USS Milwaukee C-21 Memorial and Wreck - Eureka, CA
Posted by: 
DougK
N 40° 48.684 W 124° 11.790
10T E 399085 N 4518509
Off the outer coast of Eureka lies the remains of the cruiser USS Milwaukee C-21. Next to the road access to the beach is a small and simple memorial site marking the location offshore where the ship was stranded in 1917.
Waymark Code: WMHHV1
Location: California, United States
Date Posted: 07/13/2013
Views: 3
Wikipedia tells us:
The USS Milwaukee sailed on January 5, 1917 for Eureka, California, to assist in salvaging U.S. submarine H-3 which had run aground off Humboldt Bay on December 14, 1916. On January 13, 1917, while attempting to float the submarine disregarding the recommendations of local mariners, the cruiser stranded in the first line of breakers at Samoa, California off Eureka. Four hundred twenty-one enlisted and 17 officers were rescued safely by the Humboldt Bay Life-Saving Station and local volunteers but attempts to salvage the ship were unsuccessful. The H-3 was ultimately salvaged and returned to service.
The story as reported by the North Coast Journal describes a series of mistakes by the inexperienced command that led to the cruiser getting stuck in the breakers of the beach. The naval military history website shows a series of pictures of the stranding and rescue of all aboard. The location website below tells the life history of the USS Milwaukee through pictures.
There not a lot to see here. The wreckage was not visible in the surf to me during my visit. The memorial is very simple and marked by an adjacent fin-shaped rock. The memorial can be seen in Google Street View.
Samoa Beach
New Navy Base Road at Lp Drive
Eureka, CA