in february 1701, hms "roebuck", commanded by william dampier, sank in the common anchoring spot in clarence bay to the northwest of the island. sixty men survived for two months until they were rescued. almost certainly, after a few days they found the strong water spring in the high interior of the island, in what is now called breakneck valley (there is a much smaller water source, lower on the mountain, which was named dampier's drip by people who probably misinterpreted dampier's story).