Pomona (ship)

History
 USUS
Name: Pomona
Owner: Howland & Frothington
Port of registry: Boston
Route: Liverpool to Port of New York
Builder: George and Thomas Boole
Launched: September 1856
Completed: 1856
Out of service: April 1859
General characteristics
Type: Clipper
Tons burthen: 1181 tons
Decks: 2
Boats & landing
craft carried:		 7
Crew: 44

Build and Service

The Pomona was built by ship builders George and Thomas Boole of East Boston in September 1856. The ship was owned by Howland and Frothingham. She was named for the Roman goddess of fruit and fruit trees and she had a full figurehead of the goddess.[1]

The Pomona offered transport for emigrants and cargo from Liverpool to New York through the Tapscott's line.[2] The ship's tonnage seems to have been inflated in advertisements from its 1181 tons burthen, perhaps to make it appear safer to prospective passengers.[3]

Pomona was captained by Captain Charles Merrihew for her whole service. She arrived in New York for the first time 29 September 1856.[4] She cleared New York to Liverpool for her first voyage on 20 October 1856 [5] and arrived 17 November 1856.[6]

Like many emigrant ships of the day, Pomona was considered a fast packet, clipper ship. She carried both passengers and cargo.[3] For example, on her arrival in New York on 9 July 1857 she carried 482 passengers and merchandise with a journey time of 32 days.[7] She carried 328 passengers and merchandise on her arrival in New York on 12 November 1857,[8] but only 30 passengers on arrival 21 March 1857 after a journey with "light winds and pleasant weather".[9]

Samuel Walters, an English maritime artist painted the Pomona in 1858.[10]

Final voyage and loss
Nautical chart of the east coast of Ireland from Wexford to Wicklow, 1873. Blackwater bank is shown north of Wexford Harbour.

The Pomona sailed from Liverpool on the 27 April 1859 at 5am with 448 souls on board. There was a crew of 44 men and boys, 7 cabin passengers and 393 intermediate passengers. Four were found to have been smuggled on board.[11] Weather conditions were initially favourable and survivors talked of music and dancing on board.[12]

The wind became stronger through the evening. Around midnight, a light was seen that the Captain incorrectly thought was the Tuskar Rock light and he veered the ship N.N.E. This light was in fact the lightship at the north end of the Blackwater bank. It had been put in place only two years earlier as an additional warning for mariners (the lightship was replaced by a buoy in 1968).[3] The Captain's navigation error caused the ship to sail directly towards the Irish coast. Pomona struck the Blackwater Bank, near the beaches of Ballyconigar, Blackwater, at 4am. The force was enough to bring passengers and crew onto the deck.[12]

She remained stuck fast in the strong winds. Attempts were made to launch the two lifeboats to allow the crew and passengers to reach land, but the boats were quickly swamped by the stormy sea. All but one of the sailors trying to launch were lost overboard.[13]

Between 1pm and 2pm the Pomona slipped off the bank back into deeper water. The Captain ordered the anchor cast, perhaps to pull the ship back onto the sandbank, but this was unsuccessful. The ship rapidly gained water despite the efforts of the both crew and some passengers working the pumps.[13]

The long-boat was then launched but damaged in the attempt. Six crewman were on board, but four were washed overboard before they made land. This may have been an attempt to reach land to find assistance rather than abandoning the ship.[3] The final boat available was the whale boat. This was launched into the heavy seas and managed to reach land safely. There were 22 men on board, three of the ship's passengers and 19 crewmen including the third mate and passengers' cook.[11]

Attempts to reach the Pomona were hampered by the poor weather conditions. The steam tug Erin was based at Wexford and was prepared to tow the lifeboat to the wreck. It was unable to make the 10 mile journey until the weather cleared.[3] The tides prevented the larger steam ships within Wexford Harbour from offering assistance.[11]

After coming free of the bank, the Pomona sunk in less than an hour. All still on board died, including the Captain.[12] The official loss of life according to the Board of Trade Inquiry was 424 people. 24 were saved.[11]

Aftermath

The coast-guards from Wexford reached the wreck on 29 April. They were able to take the colours from the mizzen mast, the only part of the ship visible above the water.[13] A full list of the passengers and crew was printed in the Wexford Constitution on 4 May 1859.[12]

Many bodies came ashore in the following days and months, some still in their nightclothes. There were reports of looting from the bodies of the victims, although the items taken from the bodies did not always include valuables.[3] The Captain's body was found on 1 June 1859. He was identified by the ship's papers found on his person, including the ship's register.[14] His body was interred locally, before being exhumed and transported to New York at the request of his family and friends.[15] Bodies continued to wash ashore in to December as the ship slowly broke apart.[16]

The Board of Trade Inquiry was held on 7 and 9 May 1859, overseen by nautical assessor Captain Harris. Its report was published on 28 May. He bemoaned the quality of the evidence of 'from the most part illiterate seamen' and relied upon other evidence. The inquiry's conclusion was 'that the ship was lost by default of the master'. Particular mention was made of the lack of soundings taken to verify the ship's position when the light that was presumed to be Tuskar Rock was sighted. Rumours of drunkenness and disorder were disproved.[11]

The hull was put up to for auction 9 August 1859, but there were no bids as the prospect of raising her did not attract sufficient interest.[17] The wreck of the ship can still be found in the same area as she sank.[3]

Memorials

A memorial stone was unveiled at the bridge in the centre of Blackwater village on 31 May 2009 to mark the 150 anniversary of the sinking.[18] It reads "On 27th April 1859 a 1400 ton ship called the Pomona left Liverpool bound for New York with 404 passengers and a crew of 44 under Captain Charles Merrihew. Three hundred and sixteen of these passengers were Irish heading for a new life in America. The following day the ship, which was off course, sank in stormy seas northeast of Ballyconnigar on the Blackwater Bank. Only 24 survived, 19 of these were crew members."

The ballad 'The Pomona' was collected by Joseph Ranson C.C. in 1937 in Songs of the Wexford Coast.[3] The modern ballad The Wreck of the Pomona was written and performed by Patrick Karnahan and Black Irish Band.[19]

References
  1. Crothers, William (2013). American-Built Packets and Freighters of the 1850s: An Illustrated Study of Their Characteristics and Construction. North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 9780786470068.
  2. "Tapscotts American Packet Offices". Liverpool Mail. 7 November 1857. p. 8. Retrieved 28 August 2019 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  3. Stokes, Roy (2015). Between the Tides: Shipwrecks of the Irish Coast. Gloucestershire: Amberly Publishing. ISBN 9781445653341.
  4. "Maritime Intelligence". New York Herald. 30 September 1856. p. 10. Retrieved 28 August 2019 – via Library of Congress.
  5. "Maritime Intelligence". New York Herald. 21 October 1856. p. 5. Retrieved 28 August 2019 – via Library of Congress.
  6. "Liverpool". Lloyd's List. 20 November 1856. p. 8. Retrieved 30 August 2019 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  7. "Maritime Intelligence". New York Herald. 10 July 1857. p. 8. Retrieved 30 August 2019 – via Library of Congress.
  8. "Marine Journal". New York Daily Tribune. 13 November 1857. p. 8. Retrieved 30 August 2019 – via Library of Congress.
  9. "Maritime Intelligence". New York Herald. 22 March 1858. p. 8. Retrieved 30 August 2019 – via Library of Congress.
  10. Walters, Samuel (1858). "The Ship "Pomona"". Boston Athenaeum. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  11. "The Wreck of the Pomona". Wexford Independent. 28 May 1859. p. 1. Retrieved 1 May 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  12. "The late Fearful Wreck off Blackwater". Wexford Constitution. 4 May 1859. p. 4. Retrieved 30 April 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  13. "Appalling Catastrophe". Wexford Constitution. 30 April 1859. p. 3. Retrieved 30 April 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  14. "The Loss of the Pomona". Freeman's Journal. 6 June 1859. p. 4. Retrieved 1 May 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  15. "The Pomona and her Captain". Wexford Constitution. 13 July 1859. p. 2. Retrieved 1 May 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  16. "The Wrecks at Blackwater Bank". Wexford Constitution. 17 December 1859. p. 3. Retrieved 1 May 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  17. "The Pomona". Wexford Constitution. 13 August 1859. p. 2. Retrieved 28 August 2019 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  18. "Loss of Emigrant Ship Pomona 1859". Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  19. Patrick Karnahan (video). Retrieved 30 April 2020.
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