Shipwrecks on the Wexford Coast Archives

27/12/202327/12/2023

Christmas time sailing “before the mast”

Christmas is just another time of the year for seafarers. The oceans and seas of the world carry much of the goods that we consider essential but this desire never ceases. This was just as true in the days of sail and to give a sense of the struggles faced by sailors at the time, I want to describe the Christmas adventures of two sailing vessels in this golden era for sea travel. Neither vessel was unique, or in any way noteworthy but they both provide an insight into the struggles endured and the dangers faced at sea under sail. One is the tortuous slow progress of the Waterford vessel Glide. The other is the toil of the crew of the Hilda, coming into Waterford harbour. A related article on the Moresby tragedy at Dungarvan at Christmas 1895 is linked also.

However before this, here’s just one report from a newspaper at Christmas 1855 to set the scene on what was admittedly a wild and windy week.

During the past week we have had some severe storms… the brigantine Isabela, 200 tons burthen, which was lost an Tuesday night… on a rock called the St. Patrick’s Bridge (Kilmore Quay)…The crew, composed of six persons and the captain, got on the stern, the sea breaking over them terrifically. One of the men, named Leary, was washed overboard and drowned…Towards morning the stern of the vessel broke away, and the captain and remaining five men held by it. After some time they were washed ashore. They suffered considerably from cold and injuries received…The schooner John Bull, (of Youghal) 120 tons burthen, coal laden, bound from Newport to Youghal, was driven ashore at the bar of Dungarvan on Thursday night, and shortly after sank. There is no report of the crew…the schooner John Webb, laden with iron ore, drove ashore inside the bar of Dungarvan on Thursday night. It is feared she will become a total wreck. The brig Thistle, lying at Passage East, Waterford, was driven ashore on the Seedes bank on Wednesday.
Glasgow Courier – Thursday 27 December 1855; page 4

Image: Off the Coast in a Snow Storm – Taking a Pilot, published by Currier & Ives (undated). Accessed from https://classicsailor.com/2017/12/christmas-at-sea/

I wanted to include this as it gives a sense of how matter of fact the newspaper reportage was, and how common it was for seafarers to get to sea in all weathers and times of year. But now to the two vessels at hand, and firstly the Glide.

The brig Glide (1837) was a Waterford-owned vessel, over 80 feet long, and 20 wide, and her stated tonnage was 154 tons. Over Christmas 1867 the Glide departed the Waterford Quays with an undisclosed cargo for France. The Master was John Commins, of Ballyhack, and his crew were predominantly, if not completely local. On Friday, Dec 20th, 1867 the ship was loaded at Waterford City quays. The vessel departed on Sat 21st, sailing downriver on an ebb tide and coming to anchor at Passage East, where they waited on favourable winds. On Sunday 22nd they sailed, rounded the Hook, and ran into a strong SE wind. On Monday the weather was worsening, and when they eventually got a sighting of land, they had travelled backwards and were off the west Waterford coastline at Mine Head lighthouse. As the storm increased the crew struggled to make it back to the shelter, eventually arriving back to Passage East where they anchored at 5 pm that evening.

Captain and crew of the Glide spent Christmas 1867 at anchor. However, apart from the weather, the ship’s log records nothing of the holiday, any gifts, special meals, or religious observations. As Commins was a local, and some of the crew were from the Hook, it’s hard not to imagine that he went ashore to spend a bit of time with family, although a watch would have been required on the Glide. Hopefully, they enjoyed it, because as bad as the weather had been thus far for the crew, it was only going to get worse.

The weather finally settled and on Sat Dec 28th they again sailed from Passage East but it would be another 3 weeks before they finally arrived at their destination, the port of Boulogne in northern France. In the interim, they had endured storms, lost an anchor, damaged masts, rigging, and sails and worked without sleep for days on end manning pumps to keep their vessel afloat.

The Glide continued her noble calling until February 1874. Departing Cardiff laden with coal the ship had run into fog just after sunset. The fog was so dense nothing could be seen within a cable length of the vessel. At some point the vessel grounded close to Kilmore Quay and broke up on rocks, the crew getting away safely.

Another ship just a few years later got closer to Waterford but met a similar fate.

The Hilda was a small schooner, owned by Fredrick Leigh Hancock, of Hawarden, Flintshire in the UK. Registered in the port of Chester, the vessel was built at Connahs Quay in 1893 and registered at 91 tons. At some point over Christmas week in 1897, she sailed from Swansea with a cargo of coal. Her port of destination was New Ross, the cargo consigned to a Mr. Power. This was a familiar journey to the ship, the harbour of Waterford was seen as a haven after crossing the Irish Sea and the dangerous approaches along the Wexford shoreline.

Having departed, the weather turned foul, and rounding Hook Head on Monday 27^th December they must have hoped for better luck as they ran ahead of a SE gale and stinging sleet showers. As they headed up the harbour leaving the worst of the wind astern the vessel came close to Duncannon Fort but unfortunately, it was there that a combination of wind and tide drove the Hilda off course and onto the jagged rocks of the Fort.

No details were later recorded in local newspapers from the crew about their journey from Swansea. There would likely have been no fuss or bother made about a Christmas dinner or indeed an exchange of gifts! Such vessels were competing with much faster and more regular steamships for cargo and any break in the weather would have meant they would sail. Once at sea, the normal routine of watches would be in place, but in bad weather, all hands were required, often meaning there was no time for cooking, or sleeping.

Having rounded the Hook, normally a pilot would have boarded, but in such weather, it was common that the pilots, themselves in a small sailing pilot cutter, would have been sheltering up the harbour. The master of the Hilda may have thought he knew the area well enough to make it to Passage East for safe anchorage and later be piloted to Cheekpoint, and from there another pilot would take them on to New Ross when the weather and tides would suit.

Now, as their ship sank beneath them, the four-man crew took to the rigging, calling out to those ashore for salvation. Luckily the Coastguard unit was at hand, only a few miles upriver at Arthurstown and a rocket apparatus was brought to the scene post haste.

The rocket originated from the work of George Manby. At the time of the Hilda incident, a breeches buoy was in use which was part of a rope-based rescue device which was used to take sailors or passengers off wrecked vessels. The breeches buoy was probably deployed from around Duncannon Fort using a rocket system to shoot a line into the ship’s rigging. This line was used to haul stronger ropes to the ship and once these were secured to something solid like the ship’s mast, the system could be used to take people ashore one at a time in a chair-like device.

The apparatus as seen in Hook Head currently

Although the four-man crew were rescued they were now formally unemployed, owning only the clothes on their back, with no pay or place to call home. They were most likely cared for locally that night in Duncannon but probably left on the paddle steamer Vandeleur the next day on her daily run to Waterford, and from the city took the next available ship back to Wales to find another ship. Any pay due to them was only to cover the period up to when their vessel was lost. The master probably waited around to determine the fate of the vessel and his cargo.

Hilda sunk off Duncannon Fort. Photo courtesy of Jonathan Wigham

One of Waterford’s worst tragedies of the sailing era of course was witnessed in Dungarvan Bay on Christmas Eve 1895 when the Morseby was wrecked. It all played out in front of the town and had a deep impact. The ship had sailed from Cardiff on Dec 21st bound for Pisagua in South America and ran into a bad storm off the Waterford coast. Of the 25 aboard including the Captain’s wife and child, only 5 of the hardy sailor crew survived. The County Museum has retained the story for posterity both in display and in words. The Mary Sinclair was lost the day before at Balinacourty.

Although the modern seafarer has little of the challenges faced by sailors in the days “before the mast” it is still a time of family separation and loneliness. So this Christmas as you enjoy the festive spirit, spare a thought for the seafarers around the world. Their work may have become safer and easier, but the distances from home are still vast and the work no less essential in the modern era.

Below is a 19th C Christmas carol of which there are many versions:

I saw three ships come sailing in, On Christmas in the morning; Three goodly ships came sailing in, On Christmas in the morning; And what was in those ships all three? On Christmas in the morning; The holy babe and sweet Mary, On Christmas in the morning; I saw three ships come sailing in, On Christmas in the morning; Three goodly ships came sailing in, On Christmas in the morning; But whither sailed those ships all three, On Christmas in the morning; They sailed straight into Bethlehem, On Christmas in the morning; Now all the bells on earth did ring, On Christmas in the morning; For in the heavens the angles sing, On Christmas in the morning; And all the souls on earth shall sing, On Christmas in the morning; And all of us rejoice amain, On Christmas in the morning;
The Zigzag Series by Hezekiah Butterworth (1880)

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27/04/202307/09/2023

Long Lost Log of the Brig Glide

Occasionally a blog falls literally into my lap. So it was with this account when a partial and very faded 19th-century sailing ship log was handed to me recently. But what would the tattered pages of the document reveal? An incredible amount as it happens including the ship, the owner, the crew, an astonishing account of a storm-tossed journey, and ultimately the story of the destruction of the Waterford ship on the Wexford shore

Walter and Evelyn Byrne presented me with the document on a recent visit to their pub in Ballyhack, where I was presenting the story of the paddle steamer era. The ship’s log was found in the attic of their pub, and although only a few tattered pages remained, the very faded writing allowed me to at least identify the ship and master. The puzzle was under what circumstances did the log end up in the attic of the pub, why was it placed there, and by who, and what exactly could I find about this old sailing vessel from the 19^th Century. As it happens, a heck of a lot, thanks to the help of a number of friends.

Brig Glide

The brig Glide was a Waterford-owned vessel. According to Lloyds register of shipping in 1863[i] the ship was built of timber in Halifax Novia Scotia in 1837. The ship was just over 80 feet long, 20 wide, and 12 deep and her stated tonnage was 154 Tons. The ship was only listed in Lloyds in 1863 and 1864. Then under the command of Captain T Black, the owner was listed as an L Freeman and her port of registry is Waterford.

The Log

Interpreting the remaining pages of the log is a bigger challenge. A ship’s log is a record kept by a ship’s captain in which the vessel’s daily progress is recorded, the wind, weather, currents encountered, and anything of interest that occurs aboard during a voyage.[ii] Unfortunately the partial log is a very challenging read and I can only decipher parts of it due to the handwriting, the damage, and that it is written in very abridged writing to capture wind, weather, seas, and any incidents. Admittedly I am also curtailed by a lack of experience with reading these, this is my first. Reading historical fiction or biographies can’t quite compare.

On one page the following crew names are recorded; William Walsh, Thomas Riley, Thomas Deveraux, ? Bird, Charles Bird, Pat Furlong, Peter Regan, and John Colfer. There is also a Patrick Furlong, perhaps the already-mentioned Pat? A couple of other names were illegible. (see the end for post-publication information that confirms that some of the crew were from the Slade area of Hook)

Journey to St Andrews

We can make out two full journeys of the vessel and a few partial details of others and the crew. The first entry deals with a trip from Cardiff to St Andrew’s (I think this is Saint-Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada) under Captain Thomas Black (Thomas was born in Waterford in 1807). The log commences on July 13^th, 1866 when the weather is fair and the Light of Lundy has been sighted. The journey was uneventful finally arriving at their destination on Sept 1st. I can’t work out what the outgoing cargo was, but they had difficulties loading deals (timber boards) for the return trip, finally departing on Thurs 27th Sept. Again the trip home seems uneventful but on Mon October 29th, 1886 the Coningbeg lightship was spotted. This was rounded at noon and at 3.30 pm a pilot was picked up at Creaden Head, anchoring at Passage at 7 pm

Note a 30-day uneventful passage across the Atlantic, but look at the issue faced by the brig Form on more or less the same journey.

After this some pages are missing and the handwriting and style of the recording change and the name John Commins appears. There’s mention of a trip to Cardiff and Waterford, but the next full account is a trip from Waterford to Boulogne, France. This trip was anything but routine or uneventful.

A stormy passage

The Glide was fully loaded (again no mention of the cargo) and was prepared for sailing on Friday, Dec 20th, 1867. On Sat 21^st they departed downriver coming to an anchor at Passage East awaiting favourable winds. On Sunday 22nd they sailed, rounded the Hook, and ran into a strong SE wind. On Monday the weather was worsening, the Mine Head light was sighted, and they made the best of the wind to make it back to Passage East where they anchored at 5 pm that evening. Christmas was spent at anchor, but apart from the weather, the log records nothing of the holiday, any gifts, special meal, or religious observation. I hope they enjoyed it, cause the drama was only beginning.

On Sat Dec 28^th they again sailed from Passage East but thereafter the log is empty of any entries until January 6^th when they are sheltering off Falmouth and seem to be busy repairing their masts, rigging, and sails suggesting they have weathered a bad storm. They remain there until Sat 11^th Jan 1868 before getting underway, sighting the Eddystone Light. On Sunday the 12^th the Portland Light is sighted but the winds are increasing, the sail is taken in and there is mention of standing by the pumps if I am interpreting the writing correctly.

On Tuesday 14^th a strong gale is continuing and their second anchor is let go giving 60 fathoms of slack. The crew is employed at “Sundrey jobs”. No mention is made of the first anchor. I can’t work out if that suggests the first one was lost in the events between the 28th Dec and the 6th Jan or that they were deploying the second one to assist the first. On Wednesday 15th Jan 1868 they haul up the anchor and continued to the Downs where they again dropped anchor and remained until Monday 20th (They tried to move on 18th but had to drop anchor again. The log ends with a simple entry on Monday, January 20th, 1868 – “Light winds from eastward at 4 am, got up one anchor and got the other short and at 8 am got underway. At noon pilot came onboard” Presumably they had arrived at Boulogne…almost a month after first departing Waterford.

The end of the Glide

So what happened to the Brig Glide after the French trip? Well, I’m not sure, as there was only one record of her in local papers, sailing in ballast for Cardiff in Nov 1870. ( I found the following after publication which lists the journeys for the first few months of 1871 which included Waterford, Welsh ports, Boulogne and Gursnesy. Also a crew list in this link.) However, I can tell you for sure about her last journey…which ended in disaster on the SW Wexford coast – a familiar refrain here on the blog. The Waterford Chronicle of Wednesday 25^th Feb 1874 recorded that the ship had left Cardiff laden with coal the previous week and on Friday 20^th had run into fog just after sunset. The fog was so dense nothing could be seen within a cable length of the vessel. At some point the vessel grounded close to Kilmore Quay and broke up on rocks, the crew getting away safely. Another article states the location as Ballygrangans Bay to the east of Kilmore.

A small trading brig entering the Bristol Avon, painted by Joseph Walter. 1838. Royal Museums Greenwich. Public Domain. Wikipedia. I’m afraid I could find no depiction of the Glide, but hopefully, this might give a sense of the scale and sail plan of the vessel.

John Power records that the Glide had 141 tons of coal aboard and had left Cardiff on the 15^th Feb but put into Milford to shelter from a storm. She sailed again on the morning of the 20th, meeting the fog off the Wexford shoreline later that night. Having grounded, the stern post was damaged and the ship made water, rising to about three feet in the hold. The master tried to set more sail to run the ship ashore, but she remained fast and they eventually lowered the ship’s boat and rowed ashore. The piece which was drawn from a local newspaper report concludes that the master was at fault for not casting the lead, to determine the closeness to shore, a practice which would save many a ship in the area![iii]

As May approaches so does the annual May Day Mile fundraiser for the Dunmore East RNLI. This year my brother Robert and I plan to row from Carrick On Suir to Cheekpoint in a two-day adventure in the punt. We reckon it’s about 25 miles and if you would like to support us, you can donate to this worthy cause here. Watch out for lots of updates, photos, videos,and blogs to capture the month here on T&T

Loughlin Freeman

The owner of the vessel was Loughlin Freeman. He was a merchant and businessman who as early as 1845 had written to the Freemans Journal and described his operations as being extensive including shipping and carrying river freight along both the Suir as far as Clonmel and the Barrow to Dublin. At the time of the loss of the Glide, several reports mentioned that he was based in Barronstrand Street in Waterford and was also a Town Councillor. In other accounts, he was described as “an honest and upright liberal in the customs house ward”. In his obituary (1887) he was described as one of the longest-serving TC’s – over 32 years and had also served on the Harbour Board.

Keyzer St and sometimes spelled Keiser St now. Photo via Michael O’Sullivan on the WHG facebook page. Cian Manning previously wrote of the Viking origins of the name

However, Slaters Commercial Directory of 1870 has his business address as Keyzer St, Waterford where he is listed under several entries including an agent for Ale and Porter, a ginger beer and soda manufacturer and a corn merchant. No mention of shipping interests, timber imports or indeed coal. More about h

Orientating our readers from outside Waterford of the location of Keyzer St from the OSI Historic map series. Cian Manning has guest blogged on the street name for us previously.

Now for Freeman to lose one ship in 1874 must have been tragic, but worse was to come. For in August a sister vessel, the brigantine Alcedo, left Waterford for Cardiff, where she was impounded by inspectors as she was found to be rotten.

The reason was a politician named Samuel Plimsoll who first entered the House of Commons as a Liberal in 1868. In 1873 he published Our Seamen, which attacked old and decrepit vessels or “coffin ships,” unseaworthy and overloaded vessels, which were often heavily insured, in which owners risked their crews’ lives. Plimsoll initiated an investigation by a royal commission in 1873, and in 1876 the Merchant Shipping Act gave stringent powers of inspection to the Board of Trade and fixed the loading line (Plimsoll mark) for ships.

Alcedo incident

Unfortunately for Freeman, the Alcedo became a cause celebre and what followed was a series of court cases, newspaper reports, and even statements in the UK parliament where Plimsoll had helped to ensure that the matter of seafarers and their well-being was a topic of concern. And although the wheels of justice turned slowly, turn they did. In Waterford, in 1875 one of Freeman’s sons was escorted from the court after an outburst while his father was sentenced to prison for two months and fined £300. Paradoxically, Freeman failed to live up to his name.

The story of the Alcedo is an interesting one and probably deserves its own blog, perhaps in the future.

The present Byrnes of Ballyhack and an image from he early 20th C probably looking from off one of the paddle steamers fully laden on deck with sheep

Byrnes attic

And why was there a partial ships log in an attic in Byrnes of Ballyhack? My first thought was that it was left behind by some foreign ship’s master following a shipwreck or death. Then I wondered if it had been part of the wreck sale, found in an item purchased from the ship at the time, however unlikely that the captain would have left it behind. But when I shared the information with Walter Byrne, particularly the name of the ship’s master, John Commins, Walter was able to tell me that the family took over the pub in 1929 and that one of the previous owners was the Commins family.

Thanks to Maria Doyle nee White I now know that John, listed as a Master Mariner, died at his home in Ballyhack on January 26th 1894 aged 73. He died after an illness of five days of pneumonia. His death was witnessed by his son John. Most likely John Commins left the log behind as part of his personal possessions. That’s our working theory – perhaps someone can let us know more.

I’m indebted to Walter and Evelyn Byrne for the loan of the partial ships log for this piece and to the assistance of Cian Manning, marine artist Brian Cleare, Liam Ryan, Maria Doyle and Andy Kelly.

This story, and the research of it has brought me past the 200th ship I have found that was built or registered in Waterford. I also have a separate list of ships sunk in the harbour or coast of Waterford as well as Waterford ships lost elsewhere…the list now stands at 652.

Post Publication Gillian Finn supplied me with the following details and images on the Historical Wexford facebook page – Two of the crew Charles & brother Christopher Bird were from “Slade” Charles in particular sailed around globe. I work a Hook Peninsula Tree on Ancestry tracking all past inhabitants, I came across a crew record for the Glide.
I enclose it here, lists all the men who sailed on that voyage.

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[i] Accessed from https://archive.org/details/HECROS1864/page/n369/mode/2up?q=Glide

[ii] James A Dunnage. Shipping Terms and Phrases.(1925) Pitman Press, London. See p52

[iii] John Power. A Maritime History of County Wexford. (2011) Olinda Publications. Kilmore Quay. See p169-70

28/05/202128/05/2021

The Bannow Bay Ghost Ship

The Irish newspapers of Christmas 1831 were alight with speculation after a ship sailed onto the sand banks of Bannow, Co Wexford with no crew. Aboard was a full cargo, some blood-stained clothing, a box of silver dollars and a dog. The ship was the La Bonne Julie of France and here’s what I could find of her story.

The morning of Thursday 15^th December 1831 dawned dry and bright on the SW Wexford coast after a storm that blew the previous day had passed off. Off Baginbun the people of Bannow Bay observed a three-masted (barque from most accounts) sailing vessel, sails set and apparently on an eastern course. But there was something in the direction of the vessel that caused concern and as the morning wore on, the people onshore became increasingly worried. They waved clothing and raised their voices in warning, for it seemed the crew of the ship were unaware of their proximity to shore.

Bannow Bay, Co Wexford. From reading newspaper accounts it seems to me most likely it struck where the cursor in the photo is pointing or slightly to the east (right) of this

Speculation must have been rife. Was the crew asleep, drunk or was it something more sinister? As the day went on the ship came closer and yet no answer was given from the ship. Eventually, she grounded on soft sand on a bar at a location that is not exactly specified. Bannow Bay is mentioned in one report, Bannow Island in another. The map above may give a sense of the location, but I’m open to correction.

A crew of the local coastguard (I’m guessing her that it was Fethard as again it is not made clear) (Additional info post publication. Mick Byrne was of the opinion that it was most likely the “Bar O the Lough” coastguard unit at Cullenstown, they had a boathouse nearby) set out by boat to investigate the grounding, and boarding they were greeted with a mysterious scene. The only living thing aboard was a brown coloured pointer dog. The ship had a full cargo of fish and fish oil and it was speculated initially that it had sailed from Newfoundland, but the ship’s log later proved this to be incorrect. The ship was the La Bonne Julie (most newspapers called her Le Belle Julie) of Bordeaux. She had sailed from her home port some weeks previous en route to Dunkirk with a 13 man crew.

I’m part of Team Dunmore East working to raise sponsorship for the local Lifeboat. Details of our efforts and how to support are in the link

Of her crew there was now no sign. A box of dollars was discovered along with the ship’s log and papers. Some bloodstained clothing was found in a sailors bunk. But otherwise everything seemed as it should be aboard. News of the mystery spread and speculation was widespread. The fact that earlier reports stated the ship was in perfect order only added to the confusion.

However, later reports mentioned some damage to the vessel. One report had the following to say “the main sheet had been carried away, and was lying over her side in the water. The iron stay or traveller had snapt [sic], it is supposed, and she got a dreadful lurch so that a sea-washed the entire crew overboard…”[i] The conclusion about the crew was highly unlikely I would think.

The same report carried the news that the Coastguard had removed all clothing, bedding etc from the ship and had burned it on the beach, despite the “… entreaties of the many poor who came from all parts to get what they could…” The inference here was the tradition of locals taking what materials they found from shipwrecks as rightful salvage for their own use. The authority’s concern however seems to have been a fear of Cholera which was then rife.

A sense of how a barque is rigged, but I think this ship much bigger a vessel, the three masted barque Rona 1900. Accessed from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Three-masted_barque_RONA_under_sail_(8672996385).jpg

The report continues to describe how the cargo had been removed and put into bonded stores in Wexford. The Coastguard were doing this on the basis of The Crown and the Lord of the Soil, a rule of salvage giving the legal owners of the ships manifest a claim to their goods. If none came forward the salvors could claim, or the landlord of the land on which the ship had grounded. Although it would appear that such matters were never that simple.

As I mentioned at the outset theories into the ship and its missing crew were vividly described in the newspaper reportage of the time. Such Ghost Ships during the days of sail were a common enough occurrence, and in many circumstances a crew abandoned the ship, oftentimes in a hurry, leaving all their belongings behind. The weather had been bad the day and night before the ship was discovered. Perhaps her crew did abandon the ship and were in turn lost themselves? I found no reports of bodies being washed up at the time or in the subsequent weeks, however.

Cholera was also considered. Having left Bordeaux where the illness was then widespread, did some of the crew bring it aboard. Did they perish, one by one, to be buried at sea until no one remained? But who would have thrown the last man to die overboard? The illness was rapid and a feature was the weakened condition of the ill.

An attack was also speculated. Some wondered had the ship carried some treasure, like the locally fabled Earl of Sandwich when four of the crew turned pirate, murdered their shipmates, and left with a treasure. It’s a story featured in my latest book. One report, which was widely reprinted in numerous newspapers, told of an incident at a pub in the Faythe in Wexford Town. The “respectable and intelligent publican” noticed two foreign sailors entering his bar in the early hours and observed that one was armed with a bayonet, seemingly of French origin. Challenging the sailors, they hurriedly withdrew.[ii] If the sailors had turned on their crewmates, however, why would they have left the box of dollars behind?

A video that gives a great sense of the location

The wreck of the La Bonne Julie was later auctioned as a derelict, suggesting that she never moved from the sand bar in the shallow waters of Bannow Bay. A report in the Waterford Mail stated that “A survey has been held on the hull, which was found in such a bad state to be pronounced not seaworthy”[iii] This description is at variance to the following advert however.

Dublin Evening Packet and Correspondent Tuesday 30th January 1832. Page 2. BNA.

The cargo and value of the ship and what was sold all wound up in the Admiralty court. And over many weeks and months in the following year various hearings took place to decide on the vexatious matter of salvage rights and who was entitled to it. I can’t pretend to have followed it. There seems to have been some doubt into the legal owners of the ship in the court and these “alleged owners” were not willing to pay salvage over to the Coastguard men who had boarded the ship that day in Bannow. Two are mentioned in the reports I saw, Nobel and Doyle*. At issue was that the “alleged owners” felt that the Coastguard were paid for their work and as such this should preclude them from any claim. This was hotly contested. There was also mention of a merchant named George Beale who felt entitled to a share. In this situation, it was again argued that no payment be made. At court it was stated that “…owners must be satisfied of the name of every man engaged, the time employed, and the price per day paid…”[iv] There were some further pieces in the papers, but I could not find a conclusion.

I could find no further information as yet about the La Bonne Julie and as such I will have to leave it as just another one of those perplexing mysteries of the sea. My own opinion is that her crew abandoned ship and that their decision was the wrong one. It’s ironic that the crew in their haste left what was supposed to be man’s best friend behind. Ultimately the one living creature that stayed aboard had better luck. The pointer dog was taken in by the local landlord, Boyce. Hopefully he had a long and happy life thereafter.

Next Months blog brings me to Dunmore East, and a story of the Italian salvage operators from the 1930s.

The new book cover which includes the blending of two images, the building of Dunmore East pier and the city dredger, Portlairge from an original image by Jonathan Allen.

[i] Newry Telegraph – Tuesday 27 December 1831; page 4

[ii] Dublin Evening Packet and Correspondent – Saturday 31 December 1831; page 4

[iii] Waterford Mail – Wednesday 28 December 1831; page 4

[iv] Dublin Observer – Sunday 04 March 1832; page 3

*Olivia Murrey left me a note on facebook to sat that Edward Nobel was Chief Officer at the Bar of Lough coastguard unti from 1829-1835. However there was no Doyle on the station or any adjacent station

25/09/202028/10/2021

A Blighted Barque- Earl of Beaconsfield

When the owners of the four-masted iron hulled sailing barque Earl of Beaconsfield (1883) saw their new ship enter the River Clyde, they must have hoped for a handsome return on their investment. But although fate has a large role to play in anything to do with shipping, the owners could never have foreseen just how blighted, ill-fated if not damned this ship would be and that within the year she would be sunk after several major incidents at sea, and have never successfully made a single trip.

An example of a four masted barque rigged vessel of the era **SV Herzogin Cecilie** . By Allan C. Green 1878 – 1954 – State Library of Victoria. Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10540452

The Earl of Beaconsfield was launched by Russell & Co, Port Glasgow on the 5^th of December 1883 for the firm of A. McAllister & Co, West India Dock Rd, London. The vessel was 269’ 1″ long by ×40’2″×24’3″ and had a tonnage of 1960 GRT and 1893 NRT.[i]

Her maiden voyage started from Glasgow under Captain Kerr and a crew of 31 with freight of coal and general cargo. Her trip would take her down the Irish Sea to the Tuskar Rock along the southern Irish coast where the deep-sea pilot Captain Warden would depart, and then southwards through the Atlantic to Cape Horn and subsequently up the American coast to San Francisco.[ii]

Captain Warden departed the vessel as planned and the ship set her sails for the South Atlantic but the weather had other ideas and as the wind picked up and the seas rose, the crew of the Earl of Beaconsfield found themselves facing a serious test of their new ship. Despite their best efforts, the crew was unable to make any appreciable headway and ultimately they found themselves bearing down on Ballyteigue Bay, Co Wexford on Tuesday evening 12th February. Both anchors were dropped and as the winds continued unabated the ship’s cargo shifted causing a serious list to port which only added to the threat of the mountainous seas that crashed aboard.[iii]

Earl of Beaconsfield following salvage at Buttermilk Castle close to Cheekpoint. Poole. Andy Kelly Collection.

All through the night, the crew battled to stay alive. As the storm persisted the ship became increasingly damaged. The bow was stove in, spars snapped and rigging fell onto the deck. Rockets were shot from the ship into the night sky. Although seen, there was nothing those on shore could do to help except to raise the alarm. A message was sent to the lifeboat station at Duncannon which dispatched the lifeboat overland to Fethard arriving early on Wednesday morning.[iv]

Duncannon lifeboat station. Authors collection.

Duncannon’s lifeboat was a self-righting rowboat called the Richard and Anne. The station was founded in 1869 and served on station for 17 years until 1886. Duncannon was closed as two new stations were then operating at Dunmore East and Fethard on Sea.[v]

The GWRC steamer Waterford passed close by on Wednesday morning and attempted to get close to offer assistance, signals were exchanged but it was deemed too risky to get close. Meanwhile, the Duncannon lifeboat was rowing towards the scene, but because of the gale could not render any immediate assistance. They returned subsequently when the winds moderated and dropped the crew of 32 and a stowaway, to Fethard where they were cared for by locals and an agent for Lloyds.[vi] According to information supplied by Nick Leech author of The Lifeboat Service in Ireland, Station by Station the crew of the lifeboat didn’t get back to Duncannon until almost 9pm on the 14th, a 26 hr rescue. (Although this does not tally with the details I have, I’m also working to try piece together another rescue of the crew of the Stowell Brown. This may account for the discrepancy as this occurred at or around the same time). The crew of the Earl of Beaconsfield were subsequently transported to Waterford and then by the Clyde steamer Skerryvore directly to Glasgow.[vii]

*An oil painting of the Lynmouth lifeboat Louisa, by artist Mark Myers.©RNLI*. *A contemporary craft of the Richard and Anne*

A view of the scene from Fethard Dock recently. Authors collection.

Meanwhile, the Waterford Steam Navigation Co has dispatched the tug Dauntless (which a few years later would play such a courageous role in the failed attempt to save the crew of the Alfred D Snow) and the Duncannon steamer PS Tintern to salvage the wreck. A telegram summoned the tugs Stormcock and Cruiser of the Liverpool Salvage Association too. On arrival at the scene, the Waterford boats were met by a group of Kilmore fishermen who had rowed to the scene and carried out some work on the hatches to help maintain the ship. An agreement was reached between the parties. The anchor cables were so taut from the strain they had endured that extra expertise had to be brought from the Neptune Ironworks in Waterford to release the anchors and then the long tow to Waterford commenced. [viii]

The ship was towed to a safe anchorage at Buttermilk Castle. Having being unloaded and patched up, the Earl of Beaconsfield was subsequently brought back to the Clyde by the tug Stormcock, but this was not without incident. For at 4 am on the 6^th March both the tug and the barque each in turn collided with the schooner J M Stevens. The schooner subsequently sunk in the Firth of Clyde. The crew was saved having managed to scramble aboard the Earl of Beaconsfield.[ix]

Following repairs, the barque was again readied for San Francisco, and a report from the 12^th May 1884 stated that “…She is commanded as formerly by Captain Kerr…and the entire crew, 33 in number, were engaged at Greenock….[she]… carries to the outport about 2,700 tons cargo, principally coal. She is despatched by Messrs T. Skinner Co., Glasgow“[x]

Having negotiated the southern ocean and rounded the Horn, the Earl of Beaconsfield caught fire in the pacific just weeks away from finally reaching San Francisco. On the 13^th of August, the cargo of coal combusted. The vessel was subsequently destroyed by fire in the Pacific Ocean about 600 miles west of Santiago, Chile. The crew took to the lifeboat and were subsequently picked up by a passing vessel and landed at Valparaiso. Amazingly, in recording the demise of the ship, a local paper recorded two other incidents with the ship and bad weather before she ever reached Wexford in February at all. If ever there was a case of an unfortunate vessel, surely the Earl of Beaconsfield has earned the title.[xi]

Following publication of this blog, I got the following email from Kevin Brice:

I just wanted to thank you for your blog entry of the 25/09/20 concerning the barque Earl of Beaconsfield which I only came across recently.

Many years ago, sometime in the early 1970’s, my father brought home a very large book he had found in a skip on his way home from work (he always cycled to and from work so I guess it was always easy for him to see what was in the skips he passed). Anyhow the book, on closer inspection, turned out to be a ships log book written up by the Mate of the Earl of Beaconsfield. Even as a teenager I was fascinated by the beautiful writing and spent a lot of time trying to read the text and understand it.

Obviously this was a time way before the internet so it took a long time to find out any information about the ship. Eventually a query to the National Maritime Museum in London cast some light on her and her voyage, this being the second one in your story, taking coal from Greenock to San Francisco, catching fire off the coast of South America which resulted in the crew being rescued. This info, whilst being really helpful, didn’t really extinguish my desire to know more about the ship and her history.

I’ve kept this log book ever since and, over the years, have found out little snippets of information about the ship from the internet and every so often go back and make another trawl to see if anything extra has been added, so it was wonderful to come across your account of her short but undeniably fascinating life including a photo of her.

How this log book came to be in a skip in Worthing, Sussex some 90 years after the crew were brought safely to Valparaiso in Chile is anybodies guess but it has become one of my treasured belongings so thank you once again for adding another layer to her story.

The cover of the Log Book which was retrieved from a skip. It covers the last journey from Grennock to San Franscico unfortunately, from a local perspective it would have been interesting to have a first hand account of the incident

I would like to thank David Carroll for his help with the details of the Duncannon lifeboat Richard & Anne for this story. David is busy finalising his history of the Dunmore East Lifeboat station, further details here.

My new book of maritime yarns and history is due to be published in the coming weeks. Published by the History Press it will be available from all good bookshops and online. If you would like to receive a signed copy by post please email me at tidesntales@gmail.com. I can also post as a present for Christmas or other occasions with a specific dedication. The cost incl P&P is €17 to anywhere in the world – I will send an e-invoice via Pay Pal which can be paid with an account or with any credit card.

29/11/201908/12/2019

Mino – “As rotten a ship as ever put to Sea”

Whites & Penrose slipways, Waterford. Andy Kelly Collection

On Saturday morning, 30^th October 1875 the schooner Mino of Cheekpoint, Co Waterford was run ashore on the Wexford shore by her captain and crew. Aground on the sandy shoreline the first wave to break over her stern carried the timbers away and this was quickly followed by her afterdeck. As locals rushed to the scene, the crew who were huddled in the bow, were assisted ashore with the help of ropes and cared for in local homes. The crew of the Mino were fortunate to have survived, but was this a case of bad weather, poor seamanship or something more sinister?

*The strand at Ballyhealy – with thanks to Kev Somers. Erosion is a real problem in the area and we must assume that the **Mino** grounded further out from the present shoreline.*

Ballyhealy on the map, located between Kilmore Quay and Carnsore Point

The Mino, was a 180 ton, two masted schooner, built in Prince Edward Island in 1858. The schooner was advertised for sale in Liverpool in May of 1862 and was subsquently bought by Captain Thomas White of Cheekpoint, Co Waterford for £229. In an advert of the time the Mino was described as “…a most remarkable vessel; carries 140 tons, on 9 feet water; sails without ballast; takes the ground; is well found in stores, and quite ready for immediate employment. This vessel is admirably adapted for the coasting trade, and sold in consequence of being too small for present owner’s use. Dimensions: Length 73 feet, breadth 20 feet , depth 9 feet ”[1]

White became the vessels master and used the ship in the coastal trade that she was so suited to, carrying cargo such as wheat and pit props from Waterford and returning with such staples as coal. In 1872 it would appear that White stood down from his position and Captain Pat Brien of Wexford took command, followed by Captain Crotty, Captain Michael Barry of Cheekpoint and lastly, Whites brother in Law, Edward Kavanagh.[2]

Small promo here for Brian and Jacks new book. The launch will take place on Thursday Dec.12th at the Wexford Library at 7pm. The Book is a hardback cover 450+ pages with 300+ images,many in colour. A must for my Christmas stocking if anyone is looking for ideas!

According to Kavanagh the Mino departed Waterford (20^th September 1875) for Cardiff with pit props and then to Newport to take on a 125 tons of coal.[1] The departure was delayed for sometime due to weather and eventually they sailed on the 16^th October for their stated destination, Cheekpoint, Co Waterford. They put into Milford Haven on the 23^rd due to “stress of weather”. When they again set sail on the 29^th October they again ran into heavy weather off the Smalls. The Mino started to take water and although two pumps were manned, the water gained on them and the ship became unmanageable. At 5am on the morning of the 30^th October Kavanagh ran the Mino ashore on Ballyhealy strand. Thanks to local assistance, himself and his crew were saved.[2]

Later that morning the scene was visited by William Coughlan the Collector of Taxes and Reciever of Wrecks at Wexford. Members of the coastguard were also present and the condition of the wreck was immediately obvious to them. The Mino had practically fallen apart and it would seem that Coughlan was determined to get to the bottom of it. A shipwright from the Board of Trade was summoned and from the 6^th-7^th of November Robert Bell surveyed the wreck. He confirmed what most onlookers could determine for themselves, that many of the Mino’s timbers were in a rotten state.[3]

An advert from the front page of the Wexford People – Saturday 27th November 1875

The wreck was eventually auctioned off but I could find no reference to the cargo of coal which was destined originally for a Mr Davis of Waterford. If the schooners owner, Captain White, was feeling the loss of his ship and income, things were only going to go from bad to worse.

Just after Christmas 1875 Captain White was summoned to appear at a preliminary hearing at the Callaghane Petty Sessions to explain why he should not be prosecuted under a charge of sending men to sea in an unseaworthy ship. The shipowner faced stiff questioning before the presiding magistrates—Hon Dudley Fortescue, chairman ; Sir R J Paul, Bart: Capt Armstrong, Capt Coughlan, P Fitzgerald, Esq, and G I Goold, Esq, R.M [1]

I’m not aware of any photo of the Callaghane courthouse, but as we can see from this old OSI map, the building was located beside the RIC barracks after the present pub on the main Dunmore East – Waterford road.

It was decided that White had questions to answer and in March 1876 he appeared before Judge Barry in the Waterford Azzies where over two days he was tried by a jury of his peers. The evidence was overwhelmingly against the man. Both the coastguard and Receiver of Wrecks were clear as to the condition of the craft, his ex captain, Michael Barry explained how a Board of Trade official in Wales had cautioned of the ships unseaworthiness and that he had communicated this to White, prior to leaving the ship. The master of the Mino Edward Kavanagh deposed that he thought the ship was fine up to the storm in the Irish Sea, but his evidience was undermined when it was revealed that he was a brother in law to White. Two other crew, the mate Michael Power, and a sailor named John Milton, stated they were unaware of any issues as regards the craft. Their evidence was all the more strange because arguably the most convincing prosecution evidence shown in court was parts of the ships timbers.[2]

In his own defence White gave a good account of himself, stating that he had skippered the ship up to four years previously when ill health caused him to withdraw. He had regularly had the ship overhauled on the Penrose Graving Bank in Waterford and had spent large sums to maintain the ship. However, he could only provide three receipts for small repairs totalling £12 for the years 1873/4. And he could offer no witnesses to vouch for the claimed work, despite the fact that they were supposed to take place in the city. The judge, perhaps in frustration, asked White if he had a bad memory to which White replied “A very bad one”! Two local businessmen spoke up on Whites behalf; Shipping agent Downey and corn merchant Thomas Quigley![3]

The Graving Bank I am most familar with in the city was located where the present Bus Station is based. Basically this was a portion of the shoreline that dried out when the tide ebbed and allowed workmen to overhaul a ship. Photo courtesy of Damien McLellan.

A ship in the graving bank in Waterford, listing in and allowing access to the hull

The jury retired but quickly returned with a guilty verdict. Judge Barry sentenced Captain White to two months in jail and was reported to have stated that the Mino was as rotten a ship as ever put to sea!. The irony was that if Kavanagh had not managed to ground the ship and save his crew, White would probably have never been prosecuted. The Mino would be just another statistic of wrecks on the Wexford shore.

Postscript:

But that is not the end to my story. I grew up with stories of Captain White and his extended family who lived in Dobbyn’s House, Cheekpoint. The family had a strong connection with the sea, and as is often the case, were no strangers to tragedy. For example I was told that a son of the family died at Cheekpoint quay following a fall from a mast of their ship. I can’t say that this was Thomas Whites son, or that the fall was from the Mino. I have yet to find any proof. But I did find one very sad and curious event that might change the readers opinion of this account. For four years previously, a twenty year old sailor on the Mino was drowned in the Barrow following a boating accident. His name was John White and he was described as the Captain of the Mino’s son. [4] In the court case White stated that he had stood down as Captain four years before. Was this event the cause of his retirement as master? Ultimately was this the reason for his ill health? In the modern era such an event would be considered important as regards the Captains mental health, and would almost certainly be used in his defence as a contributory factor.

The Anderson/White/Hill family plot in Faithlegg

Thanks for dropping by and reading. If you have any observations, questions or extra information I would be delighted to recieve them, in the comments section below or by email to tidesntales@gmail.com. I publish a new story on the maritime heritage of Waterford harbour on the last Friday of each month. I also post daily updates on Facebook and Twitter. Andrew Doherty