The Wreck of SMS Cormoran – Two Wrecks Together

SMS Cormoran. This ship is far less famous than her later counterpart, Kormoran with a 'K'. Despite the fact that Cormoran was directly responsible for the first American shots of the Great War.

If this ship is known for anything, it's for her shipwreck. And even then, that's only because of the *other* wreck that landed on top of her. Tokai Maru, a Japanese freighter from the Second World War.

Making Cormoran, and Tokai Maru, the rare case of two shipwrecks touching. And even more than that, a wreck from each World War.

In today's video, we'll be looking at Cormoran's wreck.

Cormoran Video:

Pictures:

[RISTRAW]

While my family was living on Guam in 1967, a high school friend of mine was told that there was a WWI "German Battle Ship" sunk in Apra Harbor and roughly where it was. He and I sailed his Sunfish sailboat out from the public marina on the harbor with our snorkeling gear. We were surprised when we did not find a Dreadnought type battle ship like we expected. But two ships and no guns. We snorkeled around on the surface and the visibility was good enough to see that they were both on their side but otherwise mostly intact. We had no idea about the whole story but later found a section of a cemetery in Agaña where the remains of some of the sailors from the Cormoran were buried. Some had died during the scuttling while most had died due to natural causes during the time that the ship was impounded before the United States entered the war.

[richardernsberger]

Dove the Cormoran/Tokai Maru for my final qualifying dive for Open Water 1 certification in 1988. Around that time a couple of divers got lost inside the Tokai Maru and amazingly were rescued several hours later by the Coast Guard. They found an air pocket inside the hull. They were not certified for wreck diving and nearly paid the price.

[BCaldwell]

Deep Sea Detectives is a show that I also miss a lot... John Chatterton and Richie Kohler are absolute legends. Awesome video as always and thanks for being a part of my Sunday morning routine. Merry Christmas as well 🎄

[eddrohan]

I was stationed in Guam from 87 to 91 and dove these wrecks many times. Fascinating dive!

[codmakesmeswear]

I was stationed on the USS Haleakala AE-25 which was home ported in Guam in '93. One of the first things you hear about when arriving at Naval Station Guam is about the two ships sitting keel to keel in the Harbor. My division GM1 was a certified dive instructor and talked about this wreck. I was going to get certified but didn't due to an injury and it was right after that that 3 divers died on the wreck, I know 2 were Air force and I think the third was navy but I don't really remember. This is an interesting video brings back some memories.

[mikereinhardt]

Interesting for sure. Thanks for taking us along and Merry Christmas!...

[BrockRuby]

Another great vid. Please keep them coming!!! You do a great job on your vids !

[kennethhanks]

The propellor hub at 8:50 seems to show the attachment studs for a blade still intact rather than broken off with the blade possibly indicating a salvage removal.

[Ccccccccccsssssssssss]

We lived on Guam years ago and dove on the Cormoran and the Tokai many times. There's a great book on the Cormaran called "The Flight of the Cormoran" by Herbert Ward, who rediscovered the wreck in the 1960's. After escaping from Tsingtao, Cormoran briefly sailed with Von Spee and the German East Asian Squadron

[joenewstead]

I remember deep sea detectives. I absolutely LOVED that show. Wanted it to continue forever

[seaboardsystemproductions]

Wow that was very interesting keep em coming have a good day!!

[MarkMayfield-dk]

When I was stationed on Guam back in 91-93, I got to dive Cormoran. Big ship. Where I was, by the bottom of the forward hull, I couldn't see the Tokai Maru very well. It was a bit dark down there. We could only stay down for 7 minutes because of the depth.

[AlexVanEks]

Oh man I loved deep sea detectives! That's a trip down memory lane. I always got so excited when I caught an episode on TV! Honestly it's probably on YouTube somewhere, or hidden in the depths of a streaming service.

[davidbarnsley]

Thank you for all your great videos this year and I am looking forward to more next year
Merry Christmas and happy new year 👍👍🇦🇺

[halevans]

Both were fun dives, high on my list to take new troops when stationed there. That harbor was always murky. The anchor was the Tokai Maru per the local dive shops.

[iamrichrocker]

what are the odds? incredible..thx for the content...

[aliens]

I had never heard of deep sea detectives, but now I want to watch it now

[S_A_N_D]

My dad dove on these wrecks when he lived in Guam. He told me he put one foot on the Comoran and the other on the Tokai Maru. Interesting shipwrecks!

[raychmielowski]

I dove both of those ships several times. We used to bury ourselves in the mud under the cormoran and locate the open portholes. I have alot of stuff out of that ship.

[hillbillytrucker]

I've read about the Cormoran in a National Geographic article covering WW II. I don't remember when the article was written but it talks about the Tokai Maru and how they overlap each other. It's still interesting to hear about.