Eyemouth memorial to the fishing disaster of 1881

The Eyemouth disaster was a severe

European windstorm European windstorms are powerful extratropical cyclones which form as cyclonic windstorms associated with areas of low atmospheric pressure. They can occur throughout the year, but are most frequent between October and March, with peak intensit ...

that struck the south-eastern coast of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

on 14 October 1881. One hundred and eighty-nine fishermen, most of whom were from

Eyemouth Eyemouth ( sco, Heymooth) is a small town and civil parish in Berwickshire, in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. It is east of the main north–south A1 road and north of Berwick-upon-Tweed. The town's name comes from its location at the ...

, were drowned. Many citizens of Eyemouth call the day Black Friday.

Disaster

Following a period of poor weather, the morning of 14 October was calm. Though the storm was predicted (as the barometric pressure was very low), the fishing fleets put to sea through economic necessity. Many of the fishing boats were either capsized, or wrecked against the coastline.

Casualties

- 129 *

Burnmouth Burnmouth is a small fishing village located adjacent to the A1 road on the east coast of Scotland. It is the first village in Scotland on the A1, after crossing the border with England. Burnmouth is located in the Parish of Ayton, in the S ...

- 24 * Newhaven - 17 *

Cove A cove is a small type of bay or coastal inlet. Coves usually have narrow, restricted entrances, are often circular or oval, and are often situated within a larger bay. Small, narrow, sheltered bays, inlets, creeks, or recesses in a coast are o ...

- 11 *

Fisherrow Fisherrow is a harbour and former fishing village at Musselburgh, East Lothian, Scotland, to the east of Portobello and Joppa, and west of the River Esk. History There has been fishing at Fisherrow and Musselburgh since Roman times, and the p ...

- 7 * Coldingham Shore - 3 Some boats that had not capsized were wrecked on the

Hurkar Rocks The Hurkar Rocks are a group of rocks outside the harbour of Eyemouth in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. The rocks become exposed during low tide. The placenames vary from Hurkur, Hurker, Hurkar, Harkar, and Buss Craig Rock. During the Ey ...

. Many houses were also destroyed. Two days later, the ''Ariel Gazelle'' turned up in Eyemouth, having braved the storm instead of fleeing.

Aftermath

donation A donation is a gift for charity, humanitarian aid, or to benefit a cause. A donation may take various forms, including money, alms, services, or goods such as clothing, toys, food, or vehicles. A donation may satisfy medical needs such as blo ...

-led relief fund was established to provide financial security to families who had lost members to the storm. The response was significant, bringing in over £50,000 (£ in 2015).New Research Paper 2005 template
The disaster was the subject of a contemporary oil on canvas painting by Scottish artist J. Michael Brown

Notes

References

*Peter Aitchison. ''Children of the Sea: The Story of the People of Eyemouth''. Tuckwell Press Ltd, 2001.

External links

The Eyemouth Disaster - Black FridayThe Eyemouth Disaster of 1881When the seas swallowed Scotland's fishermenThe 1881 disaster memorials
{{1881 shipwrecks Fishing in Scotland Natural disasters in Scotland 1881 natural disasters 1881 in Scotland European windstorms Fishing disasters Maritime incidents in 1881 October 1881 events Eyemouth 1881 disasters in the United Kingdom