- Ellan Vannin (ship)
following her conversion to a
propeller driven ship. She was capable of carrying 300 passengers and normally had a crew of 14. She was owned by the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company, and primarily operated out of the port of Ramsey on theIsle of Man . By 1909 she was the smallest and oldest ship in the Steam Packet fleet. She sank with the loss of all 36 aboard, in a storm inLiverpool Bay on3 December 1909 whilst bound forLiverpool from Ramsey.Loss
She had left her home port of Ramsey at 01.13 am, under the command of Captain James Teare, who had some 18 years of experience. She was carrying 15 passengers and 21 crew as well as mail and 60 tonnes of cargo. The weather on departure was moderate, and though the
barometric pressure was falling, the captain did not expect a significant deterioration in the weather. However the weather rapidly worsened and by 06.35 am when the ship arrived at the Mersey bar light ship, the wind had risen togale force 11 and waves were reported to be exceeding 20 feet in height. The ship foundered, (anautical term for filling with water and sinking), between the bar light ship and the Q1 buoy in the Mersey approach channel. It is believed she wasbroach ed by a large wave, which overwhelmed the ship. She sank by the stern with the loss of all passengers and crew.Aftermath
The
Board of Trade inquiry found that the captain was not to blame for the disaster and the cause was extreme weather. Soon after the disaster the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board destroyed the wreck using explosives as it was causing a hazard to shipping in the channel. In January 1910, Captain Teare's body was found washed ashore onAinsdale beach inSouthport , it was subsequently returned to theIsle of Man for burial. A disaster fund was established for those who were dependents of the deceased, the Steam Packet contributed £1,000 to this fund.Though the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company has a tradition of reusing old ship names, they have never reused the name _gv. "Ellan Vannin".
A song written by Hugh E. Jones of the The Spinners commemorates the disaster. (Also see external links)
External links
* [http://www.isle-of-man.com/manxnotebook/famhist/genealgy/disaster.htm Isle of Man disasters]
* [http://www.feegan.co.uk/flloss.htm "The loss of the _gv. "Ellan Vannin""]
* [http://www.manxman.ch/indexdata/ellanvannin/ellanvannin.htm "MP3 version of the song by an Isle of Man Folk Group"]
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