The Adolphe is the most visible shipwreck in Newcastle - a rusting steel bow jutting from the Stockton breakwall that thousands of people see from the foreshore every year. According to the Newcastle shipwreck register, she was a French four-masted steel barque of about 3,204 tons, 296.7 ft (90 m) long, built at Dunkirk in 1902. On 30 September 1904, arriving at Newcastle to load coal, she was being towed across the bar when the tow failed and she was driven onto the Oyster Bank.

Her crew were all rescued. Her remains were later incorporated into the breakwall. The register notes that two masts and the jib-boom were removed for safety reasons during the 1906 breakwater extension, and the hull came to lie alongside other wrecks already on the bank, including the Wendouree and Lindus.

Today the bow is a heritage landmark with a viewing platform, and the Adolphe is the best-known of the Stockton Breakwall wrecks. Underwater, the hull remains extend from the bow along the base of the wall in shallow water, mixed with boulders and other wreckage. Visibility is often poor because the Hunter River flows out beside the wall, and swell and current are regular complications.

Marine life includes luderick, bream, mullet, leatherjackets and blennies around the plates, with barnacles and weed on exposed metal. For most visitors the Adolphe is best appreciated from the breakwall walk, but on a calm high tide after dry weather, experienced divers can explore the hull at snorkel to 8 m depths. It is a protected historic shipwreck, and diving close to the shipping channel requires caution and local knowledge.

Cross to Stockton by ferry from Queens Wharf, Newcastle, or drive over the Stockton Bridge, then park at the southern end of Stockton near the base of the northern breakwall. A walking track and viewing area lead along the breakwall to where the Adolphe's rusting bow sits among the boulders. Divers must carry gear a long way along the wall and enter over large rocks; boat access from the Newcastle ramps is shorter but must avoid the shipping channel.

The Adolphe sits on the seaward side of the northern breakwall at the Hunter River mouth. Swell breaks over the Oyster Bank and against the wall, so only dive in small seas (under about 1 m). Visibility depends on the river: poor on the ebb and after rain, best at high tide after dry weather.

Tidal currents run strongly near the harbour entrance; plan for slack water.

Enter from the breakwall near the bow on a flat, high-tide day. Follow the hull remains along the base of the wall in shallow water, staying close to the rocks and well clear of the channel. Exit at the same point.

Protected historic shipwreck (NSW Heritage Act).

Grey Nurse Charters dives the Newcastle wrecks and reefs by arrangement from Newcastle Harbour and Swansea; Dive Newcastle and local clubs dive them from private boats. There is no fixed daily schedule - trips run on demand and conditions.