Lady Elizabeth (1879) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Lady Elizabeth was an iron

Iron

Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...

barque

Barque

A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing vessel with three or more masts.- History of the term :The word barque appears to have come from the Greek word baris, a term for an Egyptian boat. This entered Latin as barca, which gave rise to the Italian barca, Spanish barco, and the French barge and...

of 1,155 tons launched on 4 June 1879 and built by Robert Thompson Jr. of Southwick

Southwick

-Places:India* Southwick, Ooty, a suburb of Ooty town in the state of Tamil Nadu.England* Southwick, Hampshire , a village in the county of Hampshire* Southwick, Northamptonshire, a small village* Southwick, Somerset, a small village...

, Sunderland. Robert Thompson Jr. was one of the sons of Robert Thompson Sr. who owned and operated the family ran shipyard J. L. Thompson & Sons. Thompson Jr. eventually left the family business in 1854 to start his own shipbuilding business in Southwick

Southwick

, Sunderland. The ship was built for John Wilson as a replacement for the 658-ton, 1869-built barque Lady Elizabeth

Lady Elizabeth (1869)

The Lady Elizabeth was a British ship built in 1869 by Robert Thompson Jr. of Sunderland. Robert Thompson Jr. was one of the sons of Robert Thompson Sr. who owned and operated the family ran shipyard J. L. Thompson & Sons. Thompson Jr. eventually left the family business in 1854 to start his own...

which sank off Rottnest Island

Rottnest Island

Rottnest Island is located off the coast of Western Australia, near Fremantle. It is called Wadjemup by the Noongar people, meaning "place across the water". The island is long, and at its widest point with a total land area of . It is classified as an A Class Reserve and is managed by the...

, Western Australia

Western Australia

Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...

in 1878.

History

The builders of the second Lady Elizabeth had also built the first ship. The ship had three-masts and was also just under average size compared to barque

Barque

s built by Robert Thompson. However, the later Lady Elizabeth was still the 7th largest ship the firm built. John Wilson remained owner of the Lady Elizabeth and was captained by Alexander Findley from Montrose until 15 March 1884 when he took out a number of loans from G. Oliver and also with the bank. Eventually John Wilson declared bankruptcy and all of his ships, including the Lady Elizabeth were sold off. The new owner was George Christian Karran who purchased the ship a few months later. Karrans' family owned a number of ships but this was George Christian Karrans' first ship. George Christian Karran also captained the ship for a few years. After owning the ship for a few years, George's elder brother Robert Gick Karran died leading George to command the Manx King. G.C. Karran took command of the Manx King. However, he remained owner of Lady Elizabeth until 1906. In 1906 the Lady Elizabeth was purchased by the Norwegian company "Skibasaktieselskabet," for £3,250 . The company was managed by L. Lyndersen and the Lady Elizabeth was captained by Peter Julius Hoigh.

Events

On 23 February 1884, The Lady Elizabeth suffered substantial damage from a hurricane. She sustained damage to the front of the poop deck after it was stoved in. Many of her sails were lost or severely damaged. Despite the damage, the ship was able to make it to port in Sydney, Australia where six crew members jumped ship. Another death occurred on the voyage when William Leach fell from aloft and later died from his injuries. This was the third voyage under the command of Captain Karran.

On 10 May 1890, Captain George Christian Karran stepped down as captain after six voyages and Captain H. C. Lever took command as the new captain of the Lady Elizabeth.

In January 1906, The Lady Elizabeth was sold to the Norwegian company "Skibasaktieselskabet" of Sundet, Boroen.

Mystery of lost sailors

During Captain Julius Hoigh’s command of the ship, two crew members went missing after suffering from malarial fever. The Lady Elizabeth left Callao

Callao

Callao is the largest and most important port in Peru. The city is coterminous with the Constitutional Province of Callao, the only province of the Callao Region. Callao is located west of Lima, the country's capital, and is part of the Lima Metropolitan Area, a large metropolis that holds almost...

, Peru

Peru

Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....

with a crew that included several Finns on 26 September (year unknown, but between 1906 and 1913). Just after leaving port, one of the Finns named Granquiss became ill, which Captain Hoigh diagnosed as malarial fever. A few days later, another crewmember who was also a Finn named Haparanta also became ill with malarial fever. Another crew member also complained of feeling ill but not as severe. The captain prescribed some remedies to help the ill crew members and they were allowed to walk the deck for the fresh air. A short time later, around afternoon, Granquiss went missing and the crew were unable to locate him on the ship. Captain Hoigh came to the conclusion that the ill crew member must have deliberately jumped overboard, taking his own life and was not lost overboard due to the fine weather that day. Around 7:00 pm, Captain Hoigh discovered the other sick Finn crewmember was missing. A search turned up no evidence of him. It was concluded that the malaria

Malaria

Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...

had caused both men to become delirious and jump overboard. Captain Hoigh ordered the crew to keep close watch on the last man with the less severe fever. Captain Hoigh reported that there had not been any previous trouble with the other men. The Lady Elizabeth eventually arrived at its destination Newcastle

Newcastle, New South Wales

The Newcastle metropolitan area is the second most populated area in the Australian state of New South Wales and includes most of the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie Local Government Areas...

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

and filed a report with authorities. A consul from Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

named H. C. Langwill held an official inquiry.

Final years

On 4 December 1912, The Lady Elizabeth left Vancouver

Vancouver

Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...

bound for Delagoa Bay Mozambique

Mozambique

Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...

, with a shipment of lumber. The ship encountered severe weather halfway through the voyage and was damaged just off Cape Horn

Cape Horn

Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...

. Four crew members were lost overboard, along with the ships two boats and part of her deck cargo. She also sustained damage to the deck fittings, wheel, moorings, and other parts of the ship. Captain Hoigh ordered the ship to the nearest port for repairs. The Lady Elizabeth altered course for Stanley, Falkland Islands

Stanley, Falkland Islands

Stanley is the capital and only true cityin the Falkland Islands. It is located on the isle of East Falkland, on a north-facing slope in one of the wettest parts of the islands. At the 2006 census, the city had a population of 2,115...

. Fifteen miles outside Port Stanley, the Lady Elizabeth struck Uraine Rock just off Volunteer Point and suffered a six-foot break in the hull and keel along with a foot long hole. The ship began to sink but was able to get to Port Stanley for repairs. After the ship was examined, the Lady Elizabeth was condemned (declared unseaworthy) because of the damage.

In June 1913, she was condemned and converted into a coal hulk. She was sold to Crown Receiver of Wrecks, Falkland Islands

Falkland Islands

The Falkland Islands are an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, located about from the coast of mainland South America. The archipelago consists of East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 lesser islands. The capital, Stanley, is on East Falkland...

for £1,000. The Lady Elizabeth remained stationed there until 17 February 1936 when in her mooring lines broke during a storm and she drifted to where she now lies in Whale Bone Cove in Stanley Harbour

Stanley Harbour

Stanley Harbour is a large inlet on the east coast of East Falkland island. A strait called "the Narrows" leads into Port William.It serves the town of the same name - Stanley - as a harbour. Stanley has sprawled along the south shore of the harbour, to gain shelter from the low hill of Stanley...

Current status

The Lady Elizabeth is still intact and partially beached on Whale Bone Cove. The ship has been reported to rock back and forth during high tides from the pounding waves. Many of the ships accessories are still attached to the Lady Elizabeth including the main crank for the anchor, the davits that would hold the two lifeboats, part of the crow's nest

Crow's nest

A crow's nest is a structure in the upper part of the mainmast of a ship or structure, that is used as a lookout point.This position ensured the best view of the approaching hazards, other ships or land. It was the best device for this purpose until the invention of radar.In early ships it was...

, part of the spiral staircase, and most of her wooden decking. However, most of the ship is suffering severe rust

Rust

Rust is a general term for a series of iron oxides. In colloquial usage, the term is applied to red oxides, formed by the reaction of iron and oxygen in the presence of water or air moisture...

and the keel of the Lady Elizabeth has started to rust away leaving large holes. During high tide, the bottom of the ship is flooded. There are still sections of paint on the inside of the ship. Some of the iron rivets have rusted away causing the starboard bulkhead to spring out.
In June 1984, the owner assessed the damage of the Lady Elizabeth. Using original reports from the assessment made on the damage in 1913, they found the foot-long hole in the keel and reported that this was indeed the reason the ship would not stay afloat. However, if the Lady Elizabeth was towed for repairs in dry-dock, she could possibly sail again. Unfortunately, there was no dry dock in Port Stanley in 1984.
Since coming to rest in Whale Bone Cove, the poop deck quarters have been removed of all wood and vandalized. The rudder of the ship is still intact but showing severe corrosion and is turned to port with the steering gears still intact but also corroded. The ships wheel is missing. The original anchor has not been located, however, it is believed to be buried where the Lady Elizabeth was used as a coal hulk. Plans were being made to salvage the Lady Elizabeth by the Crown Receiver of Wrecks and convert her into floating museum. Due to lack of funding however, the project was never completed.

In the winter of 2008, the ship’s bowsprit

Bowsprit

The bowsprit of a sailing vessel is a pole extending forward from the vessel's prow. It provides an anchor point for the forestay, allowing the fore-mast to be stepped farther forward on the hull.-Origin:...