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Greyhound (1747 ship)

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History
Great Britain
NameGreyhound
NamesakeGreyhound
OwnerMrs. Alley
BuilderWhitby
Launched1747[1]
FateWrecked 12 December 1770

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.[2] Lloyd's List reported on 1 January 1771 that Greyhound, Douthard, master, had been lost at Sligo while on the way from Galway to Whitby.[3]

The wreck has been known locally as The butter boat.[2]

Vessel

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Greyhound was owned by a Mrs Alley in 1747 and was a transport in 1748.[1][4][5][6]

Wreck

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Greyhound had been caught in a storm off the coast of County Mayo.[2] The crew could not get shelter in Broadhaven Bay and were forced to anchor near Erris Head.[2] The crew abandoned ship, then realised they had forgotten the cabin boy.[2] 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.[2] The storm was so bad that the vessel was driven ashore at Streedagh Ppoint, where 20 of the 21 on board drowned.[2] 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.[2]

Speculation on identity

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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.[2]

Identification

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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.[2][7] The National Monuments Service said that the timber was probably sourced from the English midlands or Yorkshire.[7] 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, and newspaper accounts, leading to the vessel being identified.[2]

See also

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Citations

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  1. ^ a b Weatherill (1908), p. 54.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Magnier, Eileen (16 December 2020). "True identity of Streedagh beach 'Butter Boat' uncovered". RTÉ News. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  3. ^ "The Marine List". Lloyd's List. No. 185. 1 January 1771. hdl:2027/uc1.c3049056. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  4. ^ "Sligo shipwreck revealed to be Whitby Greyhound boat". BBC News. 17 December 2020. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  5. ^ O'Riordan, Ellen (17 December 2020). "Mystery of Sligo shipwreck solved 250 years after it sank". The Irish Times. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  6. ^ "Shipwreck mystery solved – 250 years to the week it sank". gov.ie. 17 December 2020. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  7. ^ a b Siggins, Lorna (17 December 2020). "Sligo Shipwreck Mystery Solved – 250 Years After it Sank". afloat.ie. Retrieved 17 December 2020.

References

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  • Weatherill, Richard (1908). The ancient port of Whitby and its shipping. Whitby: Horne and Son.
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