''Ellen Southard'' was an American
full-rigged
A full-rigged ship or fully rigged ship is a sailing ship, sailing vessel's sail plan with three or more mast (sailing), masts, all of them square rig, square-rigged. A full-rigged ship is said to have a ship rig or be ship-rigged. Such vessels ...
merchant ship from
Bath, Maine
Bath is a city in Sagadahoc County, Maine, in the United States. The population was 8,766 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Sagadahoc County, which includes one city and 10 towns. The city is popular with tourists, many drawn by its ...
that was built in 1863 by prominent shipbuilder
T.J. Southard. She plied international trade routes for twelve years, calling at ports as far away as
Sydney.
On 27 September 1875, the ship
wrecked in the mouth of the
Mersey River at
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
during a
hurricane-strength storm. Shore-based lifeboats crewed mainly by volunteers set out from several
lifeboat station
A rescue lifeboat is a boat rescue craft which is used to attend a vessel in distress, or its survivors, to rescue crew and passengers. It can be hand pulled, sail powered or powered by an engine. Lifeboats may be rigid, inflatable or rigid-inf ...
s to the aid of the distressed ship after it foundered on a sandbank. One of the lifeboats capsized in heavy seas after picking up the ship's crew, resulting in nine people from the ship as well as three rescuers losing their lives.
Following the advice of the US consul at Liverpool, the
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...
recognised the acts of bravery by issuing 27 Gold
Lifesaving Medal
The Gold Lifesaving Medal and Silver Lifesaving Medal are U.S. decorations issued by the United States Coast Guard. The awards were established by Act of Congress, 20 June 1874; later authorized by . These decorations are two of the oldest med ...
s to the lifeboat men who attempted to save her crew, after a two-year delay during which US law first had to be changed to allow the newly instituted medals to be awarded to non-US citizens. Debate about lifeboat designs continued for many years until a self-righting design was eventually adopted.
Description
''Ellen Southard'' was built in 1863 in
Richmond, Maine
Richmond is a town in Sagadahoc County, Maine, United States. The population was 3,522 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Portland– South Portland– Biddeford, Maine metropolitan statistical area, situated at the head of Merrymeet ...
, by prominent local shipbuilder
T. J. Southard
Thomas Jefferson Southard (June 18, 1808 – September 20, 1896) was an American shipbuilding, shipbuilder, ship owner, entrepreneur, politician and philanthropist, who is considered one of the founding fathers of Richmond, Maine. Southard rose fr ...
. She was named after the builder's daughter, Ellen, to whom he also gave a one-sixteenth share of the vessel. The ship was classified "A1" in the
Lloyds Register
Lloyd's Register Group Limited (LR) is a technical and professional services organisation and a maritime classification society, wholly owned by the Lloyd’s Register Foundation, a UK charity dedicated to research and education in science and ...
, meaning that her hull and fittings were of the highest grade.
''Ellen Southard'' plied international trade routes from her homeport in
Bath, Maine
Bath is a city in Sagadahoc County, Maine, in the United States. The population was 8,766 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Sagadahoc County, which includes one city and 10 towns. The city is popular with tourists, many drawn by its ...
, with visits documented in ports as far away as
Sydney, Australia. In 1864, she recorded the longest duration voyage of any ship transporting railway locomotives from the east to the west coast of the United States. The ship took 205 days to complete the passage after she was delayed for 48 days by unfavourable winds off
Cape Horn
Cape Horn ( es, Cabo de Hornos, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which are the Diego Ramí ...
.
![Ellen Southard Arrival in Sydney 1865](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2e/Ellen_Southard_Arrival_in_Sydney_1865.png)
In June 1867, shortly after departing
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
for California with 360 Chinese passengers, ''Ellen Southards master, Captain Howe, died at sea. His wife took charge of the ship, but the passengers and crew became mutinous when the water supply dwindled; she resorted to using a revolver to keep them at bay until a passing ship encountered ''Ellen Southard'' adrift from
Santa Cruz, California
Santa Cruz ( Spanish for "Holy Cross") is the county seat and largest city of Santa Cruz County, in Northern California. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 62,956. Situated on the northern edge of Monterey Bay, Santa Cruz is a po ...
. The captain raised the alarm upon reaching port, whereupon the went to the assistance of the distressed ship.
Loss
On 12 August 1875, ''Ellen Southard'' set sail for Liverpool in England from
Saint John, New Brunswick
Saint John is a seaport city of the Atlantic Ocean located on the Bay of Fundy in the province of New Brunswick, Canada. Saint John is the oldest incorporated city in Canada, established by royal charter on May 18, 1785, during the reign of K ...
, under the command of Captain Henry Woodworth with a load of tropical
deal
A deal, or deals may refer to:
Places United States
* Deal, New Jersey, a borough
* Deal, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community
* Deal Lake, New Jersey
Elsewhere
* Deal Island (Tasmania), Australia
* Deal, Kent, a town in England
* Deal, ...
, a type of
softwood. The captain's wife and fifteen crew members were on board. She was approaching the
River Mersey
The River Mersey () is in North West England. Its name derives from Old English and means "boundary river", possibly referring to its having been a border between the ancient kingdoms of Mercia and Northumbria. For centuries it has formed par ...
on 26 September 1875 when the most violent storm to hit the region in 36 years struck. It began at 9 pm, increasing rapidly in intensity to
hurricane
A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...
strength by midnight; the storm remained at this level until 2 am. Buildings were damaged ashore, with two people killed by falling masonry, while on the river, vessels were blown from their moorings and damaged by colliding with one another or with the quays.
''Ellen Southard'' had rounded the northern tip of
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
, passing
Point Lynas
Point Lynas Lighthouse ( cy, Goleudy Trwyn y Balog) is located on a headland in Llaneilian Community, on the north-east corner of Anglesey in North Wales (at ). A pilot station was established on the point in 1766, to guide ships entering and l ...
at 1 pm on the day of the storm. After receiving the pilot on board, she was taken in tow by the steamtug ''United Kingdom'' under the command of Captain Griffiths for the final leg of her journey into the port of Liverpool. By 9 pm, conditions had become very stormy, and her sails were taken down; by the time she reached
Formby
Formby is a town and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England, which had a population of 22,419 at the 2011 Census.
Historically in Lancashire, three manors are recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 under "Fo ...
, the ship could no longer be steered, and the tow line was also lost. ''Ellen Southard'' dropped her anchors, but they did not hold in the ever-strengthening storm. Finding that it was unable to offer further assistance, the tug set off for Liverpool with the purpose of returning with a
lifeboat
Lifeboat may refer to:
Rescue vessels
* Lifeboat (shipboard), a small craft aboard a ship to allow for emergency escape
* Lifeboat (rescue), a boat designed for sea rescues
* Airborne lifeboat, an air-dropped boat used to save downed airmen
...
, but was soon grounded, thereby leaving the stricken American ship to fend for herself. By midnight when the storm reached its peak, ''Ellen Southard'' was dismasted and grounded on Jordan Flats about a mile from
Crosby Crosby may refer to:
Places
;Canada
*Crosby, Ontario, part of the township of Rideau Lakes, Ontario
*Crosby, Ontario, a neighbourhood in the city of Markham, Ontario
;England
*Crosby, Cumbria
*Crosby, Lincolnshire
*Crosby, Merseyside
** Crosby (U ...
lighthouse. The waves crashed heavily on her, and she started to break up as she thumped on the sandbank. The crew were unable to signal for assistance until first light as the vessel did not carry any signal
flares – in the interim, they lashed themselves to what remained of the ship to prevent being swept away by the heavy sea.
Lifeboat disaster
At just after 5 am, the
Mersey Docks and Harbour Board's lifeboat station received a telegram stating that a ship was in distress. Nine minutes later, the three-year-old tubular lifeboat set out with fourteen volunteers under the command of Captain James Martin. The
steam tug ''Rattler'' initially took the Liverpool boat in tow, as the properties that made it suitable as a lifeboat also made it very heavy to row. At approximately the same time that the Liverpool lifeboat was departing Mersey Docks, the
New Brighton, Formby and
Hoylake
Hoylake is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. It is at the north west of the Wirral Peninsula, near West Kirby and where the River Dee meets the Irish Sea. Historically part of Cheshire, the Domesday ...
boats also got underway, with the New Brighton
RNLI boat in tow behind ''Sprindrift''. The hurricane had abated somewhat, but the sea was still heavy, which made the rowers' work very difficult in shallower water where the tugs could no longer assist them.
![Formby lifeboat and crew](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/Formby_lifeboat_and_crew.jpg)
When the Liverpool lifeboat came alongside the wreck, some of those aboard were able to jump directly into the lifeboat, but others had to be roped in. The steward, who was the last person on the doomed ship, decided to go back to recover his bag; minutes passed while the people in the lifeboat waited anxiously until he eventually re-appeared and joined them. Seventeen people including the pilot were taken onto the lifeboat. Finally, the lifeboat was able to get clear of the wreck and navigate its way through the floating debris to start its return journey to the dock. The New Brighton lifeboat was still about away when the Liverpool boat left the wreck, and thus
coxswain
The coxswain ( , or ) is the person in charge of a boat, particularly its navigation and steering. The etymology of the word gives a literal meaning of "boat servant" since it comes from ''cock'', referring to the cockboat, a type of ship's boa ...
Richard Thomas turned her around once it became apparent that everyone had already been taken off the ship successfully.
![1863 New Brighton Lifeboat](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/1863_New_Brighton_Lifeboat.jpg)
The wind, tide and sea made it impossible for the Liverpool lifeboat to link up with the waiting tug for another tow, so the men were forced to start rowing home. About twenty minutes later, as the boat reached the relatively safer waters of the channel, the master elected to raise the foresail to help steady the vessel. People in the lifeboat were still congratulating themselves on their lucky escape, when Captain Martin noticed a huge wave "like a high wall" approaching. He instructed everyone to hold on, fearing that someone might be washed overboard. However rather than breaking over the boat, the wave lifted it and flipped it over. The boat was not self-righting, so the remaining survivors were left clinging desperately to the upturned boat. ''Rattler''s master witnessed the incident and signalled to the New Brighton lifeboat, ''Willie and Arthur'', which promptly turned around to come to the rescue. The men who were on the capsized boat directed the New Brighton lifeboat to first assist three others who were in more danger clinging to bits of wood in the sea. After picking up the survivors and one casualty, the New Brighton lifeboat was taken in tow by ''Rattler'', which brought her back to New Brighton. Six of ''Ellen Southard''s crew, the captain and his wife, as well as the pilot and three lifeboat men from Mersey Docks drowned or died of exposure (12 fatalities in total).
Labourers were employed to salvage the valuable wood that washed up on Crosby Beach; among the items found were a hat belonging to the captain's wife and a
concertina
A concertina is a free-reed musical instrument, like the various accordions and the harmonica. It consists of expanding and contracting bellows, with buttons (or keys) usually on both ends, unlike accordion buttons, which are on the front.
The ...
belonging to one of the crew. Two bodies were also seen in the water.
![Northumberland prize lifeboat](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/Northumberland_prize_lifeboat.JPG)
A court of enquiry was held the following month in Liverpool by the
Board of Trade, and focused particularly on the roles of the captains in the tragedy as well as the design of the Liverpool lifeboat. The court found that no-one was to blame for the loss of either ''Ellen Southard'' or the Liverpool lifeboat. Captain James Martin and his crew were praised for their gallantry in getting everyone off the ship, and absolved of any blame with respect to the capsizing of the lifeboat. The lifeboat was furthermore found to be of sound design and suitably adapted to her role, but debate continued for many years about the merits of the tubular design vs the self-righting one, as well as the requirement for lifeboats to be powered. After twelve years of deliberation, a decision was finally made to adopt self-righting lifeboats.
Lifesaving medals
![Lucius Fairchild Crop](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/Lucius_Fairchild_Crop.jpg)
General
Lucius Fairchild
Lucius Fairchild (December 27, 1831May 23, 1896) was an American politician, soldier, and diplomat. He served as the tenth Governor of Wisconsin and represented the United States as Minister to Spain under presidents Rutherford B. Hayes and Ja ...
, the United States consul at Liverpool, wrote to his government recommending that the gallantry of the Englishmen who were involved in the rescue effort be recognised. The
Secretary of State supported his recommendation and the
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...
moved to award the newly instituted
Lifesaving Medal
The Gold Lifesaving Medal and Silver Lifesaving Medal are U.S. decorations issued by the United States Coast Guard. The awards were established by Act of Congress, 20 June 1874; later authorized by . These decorations are two of the oldest med ...
to the lifeboat men. A delay of 17 months followed during which legislation was enacted to allow the medals to be issued to non-US nationals. Finally, in 1877, the United States government awarded first-class Gold Lifesaving Medals to the twenty-seven men of the Mersey Docks and New Brighton RNLI lifeboat station who survived the incident, while the families of the three deceased lifeboat men were awarded a sum of $200.00 in gold in lieu of a medal. Starting in 1877, the medal was reduced in size from to , and its gold content reduced to . The medals were conferred in a public ceremony in
Liverpool Town Hall
Liverpool Town Hall stands in High Street at its junction with Dale Street, Castle Street, and Water Street in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed build ...
on 27 February 1877 that was attended by the US Consul and the masters of most of the US ships that were in port at the time. The coins were incorrectly engraved with the ship’s date of departure from New Brunswick (12 August) instead of the date of the tragedy (26 September).
See also
*
Southport and St Anne's lifeboats disaster
The Southport and St Anne's lifeboats disaster, commonly known as the Mexico disaster, occurred on the evening of the 9th December 1886. In all, 27 lifeboat men lost their lives trying to save the crew of the German barque called the Mexico.
1 ...
*
Penlee lifeboat disaster Penlee may refer to
* Penlee House - a house and art gallery in Penzance in the UK
* Penlee Point, Mousehole - a promentary near Penzance in the UK
* Penlee Point, Rame - a promentary near Plymouth in the UK
* the Penlee Quarry railway in Newlyn in ...
Notes
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References
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External links
Photgraphic Print of Life-Saving Medal presented by the United States Government to the Men of the Royal National Lifeboat InstitutionThe American Ship Ellen SouthardMore on the Gold Lifesaving Medal of the First Class
{{good article
Maritime incidents in September 1875
Shipwrecks of England
Shipwrecks in the Irish Sea
Full-rigged ships
Age of Sail merchant ships of the United States
1863 ships
United Kingdom–United States relations
Disasters in Merseyside
Royal National Lifeboat Institution
1875 in England
Ships built in Bath, Maine