''Greyhound'' was a coastal trading vessel launched in
Whitby in 1747 or possibly before that was wrecked in a storm off the coast of
County Sligo on 12 December 1770.
''
Lloyd's List
''Lloyd's List'' is one of the world's oldest continuously running journals, having provided weekly shipping news in London as early as 1734. It was published daily until 2013 (when the final print issue, number 60,850, was published), and is ...
'' reported on 1 January 1771 that ''Greyhound'', Douthard, master, had been lost at Sligo while on the way from Galway to Whitby.
The wreck has been known locally as The butter boat.
[
]
Vessel
''Greyhound'' was owned by a Mrs Alley in 1747 and was a transport in 1748.
Wreck
''Greyhound'' had been caught in a storm off the coast of County Mayo
County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the Taxus baccata, yew trees") is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Conn ...
.[ The crew could not get shelter in Broadhaven Bay and were forced to anchor near ]Erris Head
Erris Head (Irish: ''Ceann Iorrais'') is a promontory at the northernmost tip of the Mullet Peninsula, located in the barony of Erris in northwest County Mayo, Ireland. It is a well known and recognised landmark used by mariners and weather fore ...
.[ The crew abandoned ship, then realised they had forgotten the cabin boy.][ Some of the crew, along with volunteers and crew of a passing ship ''Mary'', from Galway, returned to rescue him and managed to get aboard ''Greyhound''.][ The storm was so bad that the vessel was driven ashore at Streedagh Ppoint, where 20 of the 21 on board drowned.][ The sole survivor had stayed on board and when the vessel settled on the beach he alerted people, but the others had already been lost.][
]
Speculation on identity
Over time, the identity of the wreck had been lost, leading to speculation that it might have been part of The Spanish Armada, or a tourist boat.[
]
Identification
Oak timbers from the wreck were dated to some time after 1712 in the first half of the 18th century by dendrochronologist Dr. Aoife Daly.[ This was cross-referenced to a database of over a hundred shipwrecks off the Sligo coast in the 18th and 19th centuries, the ]Irish Folklore Commission
The Irish Folklore Commission (''Coimisiún Béaloideasa Éireann'' in Irish) was set up in 1935 by the Irish Government to study and collect information on the folklore and traditions of Ireland.
History
Séamus Ó Duilearga (James Hamilton Dela ...
, and newspaper accounts, leading to the vessel being identified.[
]
See also
* Streedagh Armada wrecksite - a nearby wrecksite
Citations
References
*
External links
A Shipwreck at Streedagh Bay, Co. Sligo
duchas.ie
{{coord missing, Ireland
Maritime incidents in 1770
1770 in Ireland
Shipwrecks of Ireland
1770 disasters
1747 ships