Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
A view of Brașov’s Old Town.
Romania • 12 days, 11 nights
Legends of Romania: Castles, Ruins & Culinary Delights
from
Balkans road trip
Bosnia and Herzegovina • 9 days, 8 nights
Balkans Road Trip: Serbia, Croatia & Bosnia and Herzegovina
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
The Sea Water Distilling Plant.
Sea Water Distilling Plant
Contemplative paths.
Ayo Rock Formations
Parking Lot Shoeprints
Dewey Square Pylon & Bent 38
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
The pavlova comes crowned with jewel-like fruit.
Central Park Boathouse
The Village Tavern of Long Grove - exterior.
The Village Tavern
Hunter House Hamburgers
L’Escamoteur
Names on the bartop.
The Dive
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Alresford Spy Toilet
This Public Bathroom in a Sleepy English Village Was an Epicenter for Cold War Espionage
2 days ago
Manhattan Well
The Manhattan Well: How Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton United to Solve a Murder Mystery
3 days ago
Beneath downtown Minneapolis, Schieks Cave has surprisingly warm groundwater, evidence of a subterranean heat island.
Schieks Cave Below Minneapolis Contains a Lake of Warm Sewage
4 days ago
Athenaeus described various kinds of Greek drinking vessels, like the deep, rounded skyphos and wide, flat kylix.
The Ancient Greek Guide to Succeeding at Dinner Parties
5 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the Pitcairn Islands Adamstown Wreck of HMS Bounty
AO Edited

Wreck of HMS Bounty

The watery grave of Captain Bligh's famous ship.

Adamstown, Pitcairn Islands

Added By
Annetta Black
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

No Approved Photos Yet

Add your photo to inspire and guide future explorers!

Add Photos

About

“I am now unhappily to relate one of the most atrocious acts of Piracy ever committed... Christian... then said—‘Come captain Bligh, your officers and men are now in the boat, and you must go with them; if you attempt to make the least resistance you will instantly be put to death:’ and without any further ceremony, holding me by the cord that tied my hands, with a tribe of armed ruffians about me, I was forced over the side... A few pieces of pork were now thrown to us, and some cloaths, also... cutlasses... We were at length cast adrift in the open ocean.”

-Captain William Bligh

In April of 1789, Captain William Bligh lost control of his ship in one of the most famous mutinies in history. The men of HMS Bounty, sent from England in search of breadfruit two years earlier, were tired, they were sick of Bligh's tough command style, and mostly, they really, really wanted to go back to Tahiti.

18 men overpowered the captain, threatened his life, and set him adrift on a small boat with 18 loyal men. There began one of the most extraordinary stories of seafaring endurance and survival, in which Bligh and his men, powered perhaps by a desire for righteous revenge, navigated 3,618 nautical miles over 47 days and arrived in Timor to report the mutiny. Only one man did not make it - a sailor by the name of John Norton was stoned to death by natives during an unsuccessful attempt to make landfall for provisions on the remote Tofua Island.

Meanwhile, the mutineers set out to establish their life of ease on Tubuai, Tahiti, and Pitcairn Islands with their new native wives. In fear of detection, after settling on Pitcairn Island,  the mutineers burned the Bounty in the water, effectively trapping themselves in their new island paradise.

What followed was anything but an idyllic life. The men fought and squabbled and succumbed to disease, they committed suicide, and they killed each other in cold blood. Eighteen years later, when Pitcairn and the mutineers were discovered by the ship Topaz, only one of the men was still alive.

In 1957, photographer and explorer Luis Marden made the extraordinary discovery of the remains of the Bounty, still visible in shallow water off the shores of Pitcairn, more or less undisturbed for a century and a half. Although some artifacts from the wreck were removed, there are still remains that can be seen by divers willing to risk the dangerous swells of the bay. Other artifacts are on display at the community hall on Pitcairn.

Elsewhere, you can pay your respects to Captain Bligh in London, where his tomb is topped with a carving of breadfruit.

Related Tags

Islands Ships Shipwrecks Water Ruins

Community Contributors

Added By

Annetta Black

Edited By

hrnick, xanedro

  • hrnick
  • xanedro

Published

July 10, 2013

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/1957/12/pitcairn-island/marden-text
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pitcairn_Islands
  • http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/1957/12/pitcairn-island/marden-photography
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luis_Marden
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutiny_on_the_Bounty
  • https://tools.wmflabs.org/geohack/geohack.php?pagename=HMS_Bounty&params=25_4_7.26_S_130_5_42.52_W_
  • https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/captain-blighs-grave
Wreck of HMS Bounty
Adamstown
Pitcairn Islands
-25.068666, -130.095118

Nearby Places

Christian's Cafe

Adamstown, Pitcairn Islands

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Adamstown

Adamstown

Pitcairn Islands

Places 2

Nearby Places

Christian's Cafe

Adamstown, Pitcairn Islands

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Adamstown

Adamstown

Pitcairn Islands

Places 2

Related Places

  • Micronesia

    Ghost Fleet of Truk Lagoon

    Tropical paradise strewn with hundreds of World War II wrecks.

  • The Wreck of the Sub Marine Explorer

    Balboa District, Panama

    Wreck of the Sub Marine Explorer

    The rusting hulk of a hand-powered, nearly 160-year-old submarine abandoned in 1869 due to the ravages of decompression sickness.

  • Staten Island, New York

    Tugboat Graveyard

    Final resting place of two dozen New York City harbor ships.

  • Kastellholmen wreck in 2013

    Stockholm, Sweden

    Shipwreck of Kastellholmen

    At low tide, you can see the remains of a 17th-century ship just off a Stockholm island.

  • The wreck lies in shallow water.

    Harbor Beach, Michigan

    The Wreck of the Dorcas Pendell

    An easy-to-reach, century-old shipwreck in shallow and crystal clear waters.

  • Roche Caiman, Seychelles

    Isle of Farquhar

    A schooner, nicknamed "The Unsinkable," with a long history of survival in the Indian Ocean.

  • Wreckage of the SS Francisco Morazan in winter.

    Leland, Michigan

    Wreck of the Francisco Morazan

    The rusted remains of an ill-fated freighter lie just off the coast of South Manitou Island in Lake Michigan.

  • A part of the SS Good News.

    Mpulungu, Zambia

    Hulk of the SS Good News

    The forgotten remains of the first steamship that launched on Lake Tanganyika.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.