''Loch Sloy'' was a Scottish sailing

barque A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel with three or more mast (sailing), masts having the fore- and mainmasts Square rig, rigged square and only the mizzen (the aftmost mast) Fore-and-aft rig, rigged fore and aft. Som ...

that operated between

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

from the late 19th century until 1899. Her name was drawn from

Loch Sloy ''Loch Sloy'' was a Scottish sailing barque that operated between Great Britain and Australia from the late 19th century until 1899. Her name was drawn from Loch Sloy, a freshwater loch which lies to the north of the Burgh of Helensburgh, in ...

, a

freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the term specifically excludes seawater and brackish water, it does include ...

loch which lies to the north of the

Burgh A burgh is an autonomous municipal corporation in Scotland and Northern England, usually a city, town, or toun in Scots. This type of administrative division existed from the 12th century, when King David I created the first royal burghs. Burg ...

Helensburgh Helensburgh (; gd, Baile Eilidh) is an affluent coastal town on the north side of the Firth of Clyde in Scotland, situated at the mouth of the Gareloch. Historically in Dunbartonshire, it became part of Argyll and Bute following local governm ...

, in the region of

Argyll and Bute Argyll and Bute ( sco, Argyll an Buit; gd, Earra-Ghàidheal agus Bòd, ) is one of 32 unitary authority council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy area. The current lord-lieutenant for Argyll and Bute is Jane Margaret MacLeod (14 July 2020) ...

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 ...

. Ships Captains: 1877 - 1885 James Horne, 1885 – 1890 John McLean, 1890 – 1895 Charles Lehman, 1895 – 1896 James R. George, 1896 – 1899 William J. Wade, 1899 Peter Nicol. In the early hours of 24 April 1899, ''Loch Sloy'' overran her distance when trying to pick up the light at

Cape Borda Cape Borda is a headland in the Australian state of South Australia located in the gazetted locality of Cape Borda on the north west tip of Kangaroo Island about west of the municipal seat of Kingscote. It was named after Jean-Charles de ...

and was wrecked on Brothers Rocks, about 300 metres from shore off

Maupertuis Bay Maupertuis Bay (french: Baie Maupertuis) is a bay in the Australian state of South Australia located on the south-west coastline of Kangaroo Island. It faces to the south-west and extends for a distance of about from an unnamed headland in th ...

Kangaroo Island Kangaroo Island, also known as Karta Pintingga (literally 'Island of the Dead' in the language of the Kaurna people), is Australia's third-largest island, after Tasmania and Melville Island. It lies in the state of South Australia, southwest ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

. Of the 34 passengers and crew on board, there were only four survivors, one who died from injuries and exposure shortly afterwards.Hocking, Charles (1969)
''Dictionary of disasters at sea during the age of steam''
Lloyd's Register of Shipping, London. .Kangaroo Island Shipwreck Trail (2008)
''Wreck of the Loch Sloy''
. Retrieved on 6 August 2008.

History and description

''Loch Sloy'' was built in 1877 by

D. and W. Henderson and Company David & William Henderson and Company was a Scottish marine engineering and shipbuilding company, based on Clydeside. It was founded in 1872 and traded until 1936. Its shipyard was on the north bank of the River Clyde at its confluence with the R ...

, Glasgow, Yard No 178 for the Glasgow Shipping Company, more commonly known as the

Loch Line The Loch Line of Glasgow, Scotland, was a group of colonial clippers managed by Messrs William Aitken and James Lilburn. They plied between the United Kingdom and Australia from 1867 to 1911.Fayle, Charles (2006)''A Short History of the World's S ...

. Under the command of Captain Peter Nicol, ''Loch Sloy'' was on passage from

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

and

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

with a load of general cargo and seven passengers, including 2 women; David Kilpatrick, a cook from Glasgow (25), George Lamb, a clerk from Edinburgh, (30), Robert Logan, a piano tuner from Inverness, (40), Alexander McDonald, an engineer from Aberdeen (34), Captain Osmond Leicester (30) and Mrs Leicester (real name Blanche Sophia Meyer-Edmunds, 26, but listed as 30; Osmond's real wife Fermina had been abandoned) of Liverpool, and Rosalind Cartlidge (25). In the early hours of 24 April 1899, she met with disaster on the coast of Kangaroo Island at the mouth of the

Investigator Strait Investigator Strait is a body of water in South Australia lying between the Yorke Peninsula, on the Australian mainland, and Kangaroo Island. It was named by Matthew Flinders after his ship, HMS ''Investigator'', on his voyage of 1801–1802. ...

, South Australia. The ship overran her distance when trying to pick up the light at

. She was too close inshore and the light was hidden by the cliffs between Cape Bedout and Cape Couedie. In the darkness of the morning she ran full on to a reef 300 yards from shore to the north of the Casuarina Islets in Maurpetuis Bay. Lubbock, Basil (2005)
''The Colonial Clippers''
Published by Kessinger Publishing. .New York Times (1911)

Retrieved on 6 August 2008. The crew and passengers took refuge in the rigging, but one by one the masts broke and went over the side and the men were hurled into the breakers. There was little opportunity for her crew to save themselves. The ship had struck well off shore and only four men reached it - a passenger, two able seamen and an apprentice. None of the survivors remembered how they actually got ashore; they heard the crash of the masts, and then felt the wreckage bumping them about in the surf.

Crew of the final voyage

Ship's Officers * Captain: Peter Nicol, 38, Peterhead, Aberdeenshire. * First Officer: John MacMillan, 25, Fortrose, Inverness-shire. * Second Officer: Geoffrey J. Twidale, 24, Glentham, Lincoln, England. * Third Officer: Thomas Allan Cleland, 21, Blythswood, Glasgow, Lanarkshire. Ship's Specialists * Carpenter: Hugh McBride 25, Greenock, Renfrewshire. * Sailmaker: Robert Birnie, 22, Amoy, China. * Chief Steward: William M. Hardinge, 48, Gloucestershire, England. * Second Steward: John A. Browne, 26, Liverpool. * Cook: John Chisholm, 34, Inverness. Five Apprentices * William ‘Willie’ John Simpson 19, Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire. * George W. Youden, 19, Dover, Kent, England. * Thomas H. Leach, 18, Hull, Yorkshire, England. * Robert Milligan, 16, Portobello, Midlothian. * Frederick William Lyons, 20, Baymount, Sligo. Able Seamen * Peter Cleland AB, 24, Bothwell, Lanarkshire. * John Buchanan AB, 35, Uig, Ross-shire. * John Finlayson AB, 29, Inverness. * Johan ‘John’ Olsson AB, 35, Gothenburg, Sweden. * Paul Blasznowski AB, 38, Danzic, Westpreußen, Germany. * John Terry AB, 38, Ramsgate, Kent, England. * William Mitchell AB, 47, Caldewgate, Carlisle. * Duncan McMillan AB, 22, Dundee, Forfar. * George Caclard AB, 38, Rouen, France. * Bernard Sterne AB, 25, Poland, Germany. Ordinary Seamen * Archibald 'Archie' Martin OS, 19, Govan, Lanarkshire. * Robert John Haddow Smith OS, 27, Haddington, East Lothian. * William ‘Paddy’ Cummings OS ‘Deckboy’, Ireland.

References

External links

Loch Line Company FlagThe History of the Loch SloyThe Last Voyage of the Loch SloyOfficers and Crew of the Loch SloyCaptains of the Loch Sloy
{{1899 shipwrecks Sailing ships Victorian-era merchant ships of the United Kingdom Maritime incidents in 1899 Merchant ships of Australia Shipwrecks of South Australia Ships built on the River Clyde 1877 ships 1877 in Scotland Ships of Scotland Sailing in Scotland Kangaroo Island

History and description

Crew of the final voyage

See also

References

External links