Maritime record MWX2076 - Hardy

Built: 1857 Where Built: Quebec Owner: Ewing and Co. Master: McKenzie Crew: 17 Passengers: 3 Official No: 33,164 Date of Loss Qualifier: A `Vessel abandoned in thick fog, her crew and passengers all saved. The vessel is full of water and in a dangerous condition. Steamships are being used to save the cargo. The passengers were a Portuguese gentleman, his wife and child, who were in the state cabin. The captain had never previously navigated the English Channel, and the mate only once. Having passed the Needles and Durlstone Head, the fog came in thick and the vessel steered NW till 8am on the day she was lost, and was in the act of going about when she struck amidships on one of the Freshwater Ledges. Her rudder became unshipped and the stern post started, and soon filled to a depth of seven feet. The weather was so thick they could not see where they were, and having no gun aboard were unable to signal distress. All took to the boats which lost sight of the ship in the fog, and all became lost, getting into the race of St Albans Head. The fog cleared at noon when the coastguards saw the wreck. (1)(2)

`… is on the Kimmeridge Ledge, abandoned: nothing known of the crew; v. little hope of saving the vessel. [Mem: the HARDY, Fenwick, from London to Demerara, sailed from the Downs 17th Jan.] (3)

`… she struck yesterday morning; crew and passengers landed here [Southampton]. (4)

`… is full of water and is in a very dangerous position; every exertion is being made to save the cargo by the aid of steamers. (5)

20-JAN-1861, HARDY, London to Demerara, stranded at St Albans Head.(6)

Inquiry ordered before Nathaniel Bond and Olivier W. Farrer Esq. two of her majesty's Justices of the Peace for the County of Dorset and Captain Harris as Nautical Assessor. The HARDY sailed from London bound to Demerera on the 13th January 1860 with a crew of 17 people and a general cargo with 3 passengers. At 6pm on the 19th, the Needle's bearing NE and Durleston Head NW she tacked southward and eastward, the wind being SW, and so continued until midnight, making on average 5 knots. The master accounts for the disaster by stating that he must either have overrated his distance on the foreshore, or underrated it on the inshore tack that he was unaware that the ebb tide set in so strongly The court were of the opinion that the master correct sounding led to the loss of the ship. Mr James Mackenzie (Masters certificate suspended for 6 months) (7)

net tonnage

<1> Larn, Richard, 1992, United Kingdom shipwreck index, Extracted 23 November 1992 (Index). SWX5030.

<2> Larn, R, and Larn, B, 1995, Shipwreck index of the British Isles, volume 1 : Isles of Scilly, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset Section 6, Dorset (AJ) Vol 1 (Monograph). SWX4541.

<3> 1745 onwards, Lloyds list, p2, 4. 21-JAN-1861, No.1460 (Serial). SWX8434.

<4> 1745 onwards, Lloyds list, p4. 21-JAN-1861, No.14601 (Serial). SWX8434.

<5> 1745 onwards, Lloyds list, 22-JAN-1861, No.14602 (Serial). SWX8434.

<6> Board of Trade, 1874, Parliamentary papers Board of Trade Casualty Returns 1874., pgs 628/629 (Monograph). SWX6452.

<7> Board of Trade, Parliamentary papers Board of Trade Special Inquiry., p 79 (931) (Monograph). SWX6453.

<8> Le Pard, G, 1995-2003, Dorset Coast Forum Maritime Archaeological Database, Shipwreck 666 (Digital archive). SWX8707.

<9> National Record of the Historic Environment, 901082 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Apr 4 2024 4:52PM