STRANGERS TO THE SEA 3

 HANG THE HOUSE IN BLACK:

The Catastrophes

"On the re-assembling of parliament the case will no doubt undergo a searching investigation, and we would recommend to the assembled wisdom of the nation that in common respect for the feelings of the relatives of the dead in England, the House of Commons should during that investigation, be hung with black."

(From the Australia and New Zealand Gazette, TROVE, nla.news-article3715257, Aug 1853)

The Fever Ship TICONDEROGA ― 1852

'The Ticonderoga, from Liverpool, with 811 souls on board, entered Port Phillip Heads on November 4, 1852, after a voyage of 91 days. She reported 96 deaths from typhus fever. Nearly every person on board was sick. She anchored off the black buoy at Williamstown, but was sent back to the then newly established quarantine ground at Point Nepean, and during the six weeks of her quarantine 82 more deaths were incurred.'

(From the Melbourne Age, TROVE, nla.news-article205621967, Sat 13 May 1939)

The context of this tragedy can be found in the annual Report on Immigration for the year 1852, tabled by the Immigration Office at Melbourne on 9th June 1853:

       "... the particulars of the ships chartered by Her Majesty's Colonial Land and Emigration Commissioners for the conveyance of Immigrants to Victoria ...

        ... the impulse given by the gold discovery to assisted immigration has been very great, no less than forty-two ships, conveying in all 15,477 souls, having cast anchor in our waters in 1852. Of these immigrants 5007 were adult males, and 5345 adult females, the remaining 5125 being children.

       I regret to state that the number of deaths which occurred on the voyage amounted to 840, forming a large percentage of the whole. This result I attribute, in great measure, to the practice recently adopted of embarking large numbers of from six to eight hundred people on board two-decked ships, as it will be seen in only four ships, Bourneuf [83 dead], Marco Polo [53 dead], Wanata [39 dead] and Ticonderoga [178 dead], the united deaths amounted to no less than 356.

      It is gratifying to remark, however, that during the current year, and since Her Majesty's Colonial Land and Emigration Commissioners have abandoned this pernicious system, and refrained from sending out more than 350 souls in vessels of moderate size, the percentage of mortality has very much decreased ..."

(From the Melbourne Argus, TROVE, Wednesday 7 September 1853, p 5)

The available testimonies to the voyage and its aftermath are primarily from the passengers in old age, or their descendants. The decades-long lapse suggests that the trauma, or more likely, the prejudicial reactions of existing settlers to the fever ship, inhibited many from writing about their first-hand experiences. Perhaps it was only after many years silence (and the processing of their own grief for lost family members) that Ticonderoga-veterans felt able to publicly acknowledge a personal part in it all. The first wave of letters to the press came in 1909, then more in response to the 1922 and 1932 anniversaries. These first- and second-hand accounts are reproduced below, just as they were published at the time, including the inconsistencies that had accumulated over the years. 

The Argus (Melbourne)  Friday 15 January 1909  p 7

"Sir, ― Mr Donald Macdonald gave in The Argus on Friday some interesting facts about the emigrant ship Ticonderoga. There are, however, one or two inaccuracies in his short sketch. The Ticonderoga sailed, not from New York, but from Liverpool in 1852, and it was scarlet fever that wrought such havoc among the thousand emigrants on board. She arrived in Port Phillip towards the end of 1852 and lay in quarantine for about two months. She then proceeded to Hobson's Bay and disembarked most of her passengers just two or three days before Christmas. Just as the disembarkation was about to take place a flash of lightning struck one of the yard-arms and a panic set in among the passengers, who thought the vessel was on fire. The captain fastened down the hatches to keep the people below, but that caused additional fear and dread amongst those below. However, in a short time the panic ceased. There are still at least three survivors of that ill-fated ship, for my father and mother and my aunt are still hale and hearty. They were all young children at that time. There may be, of course, many other survivors also. I do not think that those mentioned in the article in The Argus are relatives of ours, though of the same name; but my father lost a brother and a sister on the voyage from the dreaded scarlet fever. ― Yours &c., J. M'RAE, Port Campbell, Jan 12."

The Argus (Melbourne)   Friday 29 January 1909  p 7

"Sir, ― I was very much interested in reading Mr. Donald Macdonald's article in The Argus of the 8th inst, also on the 15th, and further, a letter from Mr. J. M'Rae, concerning that ill-fated ship the Ticonderoga. There are some slight errors I would like to put right. The ship Ticonderoga sailed from Birkenhead (not Liverpool as Mr. M'Rae says) in July, 1852. Captain Boyle was in charge, and his brother, the purser, was buried at Point Nepean. All went well until we crossed the line. The first death was that of a child, and a few days after some of the passengers sickened and died, and others followed, until I saw more than once ten buried in one day. They were tied up in bedding and mattresses all together and thrown overboard, to float away, as there was nothing to weight the corpses with. If we had not got to land when we did I do not think there would have been many left to tell the tale. We could not get a pilot to come on board to pilot us through the Rip. They were afraid of the fever. The captain had never been in Melbourne, and he would not take the risk; but one of the sailors, who had been through several times, steered us through the Rip. After we sailed about a mile we cast anchor, and the passengers were landed as quickly as possible. There was very little canvas for tents, so they had to make bush mia-mias, like blackfellows, and camp in them. My father was a constable on board the ship. He had charge of the young ladies compartment, and the whole of his time was taken up in administering to the wants of the sick and dying, under the doctor's orders, both on board ship and at the quarantine grounds. We landed Point Nepean in October, and there were seven or eight weeks. The berths and all movables were taken out and the ship disinfected. Before we made a start for Melbourne many of the passengers' remains were buried at Point Nepean. The ship Lysander, afterwards turned into a hulk for the very worst prisoners, was sent down from Melbourne to be a hospital ship. The most serious cases were sent on board her, to be under the eye of the doctor, who had had experience of yellow fever, for that was the fever on the Ticonderoga, not scarlet fever, as Mr. M'Rae says. I myself was one of the worst cases. I lost my only sister at sea. I do not think there were three families who had not had a death in the family; in some cases father and mother were taken and children left.

When we reached Hobson's Bay we could not get a steamer to take us to land. They were afraid of the plague ship, as they termed her; so we were over a week in the bay. At last a steamer came and took the passengers off the Ticonderoga to land. We landed on New Year's Day, 1853, on the banks of the Yarra, and after all the sickness and deaths and heartrending scenes we got the credit of being the finest-looking lot of emigrants who had come to Melbourne. My brother and I are survivors and we are still hale and hearty.  

Yours, &c., JAMES DUNDAS Mansfield, January 25.

These two letters were written more than half a century after the trauma, but the experience is still raw. In noting the difficulties to get a pilot to come on board at the Rip ('They were afraid of the fever'), or getting a steamer to land the recovered passengers in the Bay ('They were afraid of the plague ship'), James Dundas suggests the taint that followed the survivors ―a sort of double-penalty for being emigrants on the fever ship, and possibly a reason for not coming forward publicly before 1909. 

The second pulse of letters to the editor (including one in obituary form) comes in or around 1922, the seventieth anniversary of the tragedy. These are brief, the survivors are now quite old (or dead), and seem to be about an urgency (at the end) to register the fact that they were on board the 'ill-fated Ticonderoga' too. They do not provide anything personal beyond naming themselves but sometimes remark that they remember the horrors all too well.  

The Argus (Melbourne)   Thursday 28 December 1922  p 9

"Sir, ― In reference to a recent paragraph about the ship Ticonderoga, I wish to say that I was a passenger by that ship, and distinctly remember being in quarantine. My brother died on the voyage. My mother was also affected with typhoid fever. ― Yours, &c., (Mrs) JANE TEMPLETON, 18 Grant street, North Fitzroy, December 26.

Bairnsdale Advertiser and Tambo and Omeo Chronicle   Saturday 30 December 1922  p 1

"The death of Mrs Mary Ann Hardware, which took place at Alfred Hospital, Melbourne, on December 10, recalls the story of the ill-fated immigrant ship Ticonderoga, generally known as the 'fever ship,' of which she was a passenger ...

It is believed that Messrs Joseph Bell of Richmond and John T Bell of Camberwell, who are brothers of the late Mrs Hardware, are now the only two surviving passengers of the Ticonderoga."

The Argus (Melbourne)   Monday 1 January 1923  p 9

"Sir, ― In regard to surviving passengers by the fever ship Ticonderoga, 1852, the writer, as a lad of fourteen, together with father and mother and other members of the family, was a passenger on that ill-fated voyage and carried a vivid collection of many harrowing scenes and incidents in connection therewith. I am aware of still another survivor apart from the Messrs Bell and M'Rae. ― Yours, &c., EWIN CAMERON, Inverlochy, Balranald, NSW, December 28.

The final selection is from around the eightieth anniversary. These letters are more expansive than the above. They tend to be from younger family members who are recalling stories from the original survivors, part of their family lore, familiar accounts from around the kitchen table or fireplace.

The Argus (Melbourne)   Saturday 5 March 1932   p 9

"D. Mackay (St Kilda) writes : ― 'I noticed in the Camera Supplement last week a letter from R.E.H. (Caulfield) referring to the Ticonderoga and stating that he thought his aunt, Mrs Ellen Bentley, was the last survivor of this ill-fated ship. A lady residing in Warrnambool is a survivor, and I am a survivor also. The interesting article which appeared in the Camera Supplement on February 8 stated that one hundred and thirty passengers died on the voyage. I think this number is underestimated, for I remember my mother mentioning to me that the loss was between 200 and 300, including children and infants. She also mentioned that one of her saddest memories of this terrible voyage was the death of a girl who had eloped with her father's footman. Repentance came early and she was seen daily in deep distress, until a leap overboard ended her suffering. A long article on the Ticonderoga appeared in The Argus some years ago and it stated that the survivors of the unfortunate ship were referred to by the Health authorities as particularly fine types of immigrants.'

M.R. (Sale) writes: ― 'I have been interested in the articles in the Camera Supplement about sailing ships, the Ticonderoga in particular. I had a very dear friend who was one of the passengers and I heard her speak many times about it. She was Mrs Templeton of Morwell, who died on November 12, 1931. She, as a little girl, with her parents and a baby brother, who died of fever, were in quarantine at, I think, Portsea, where a number of people died. A little cemetery there with some wooden headstones was burnt in a bushfire more than twenty years ago, and mention was made in the papers at the time about the fever ship.'"

The Argus (Melbourne)    Saturday 24 March 1932    p 8

"J. Cameron (Mortlake) writes : ― 'I note that R.E.H. (Caulfield) claims that his aunt, the late Mrs Ellen Bentley, was the last survivor of the fever ship Ticonderoga. My father, Duncan Cameron, of Mony Moss, Mortlake, who is more than 90 years old, and my aunt, Mrs Hennessy of Mortlake, came out on that ship and remember incidents of that long voyage.'"

The Argus (Melbourne)    Friday 24 August 1934   p 11

"WARRNAMBOOL, Thursday. ― 

Mrs Peter Flett, of Jamieson street, Warrnambool, was a passenger by the fever-stricken ship Ticonderoga to which reference was made in The Argus recently. Mrs Flett, who is aged 88 years, was then a child of five ― the daughter of Mr and Mrs Robert Young of Inverness, Scotland. She retains a clear recollection of the horrors of the voyage. The ship sailed from Liverpool in 1852 with about 900 passengers. 'Yellow Jack' fever and typhus broke out and by the time she she reached Australia 100 persons had died. All the members of the Young family suffered from the fever and the effects of eating bad food.

Another survivor of the plague ship is Mrs M. Cameron of Waarete, near Maryborough, who is now aged 93 years. She lost her father during the tragic voyage."

The Argus (Melbourne)     Saturday 25 August 1934   p 9

"... Mr H.J. McRae of Moonee Ponds wrote as follows ... 'Malcom McRae and his wife were my grandparents, and [John Andrew McIvor's recent] notes about them are the first I have read. Strange to say, during his lifetime my father did not mention anything about his people having been buried at Point Nepean or the circumstances which caused their death. It was sometime after he died that I read in The Argus some notes by Donald MacDonald regarding his having come across the grave of the MacRaes at Point Nepean. Then, after some inquiries, I learnt about them being our people. Now the survivors of Malcolm and Helen McRae have all died. My father, Finlay McRae, was the oldest of the family. He landed in Australia about 1849 and died in Shepparton in 1907, aged 76. Christopher McRae died at Maffra about three years ago, aged 96. Duncan McRae died at Donnybrook several years ago. Donald McRae also died at Donnybrook about three years ago. Today I was speaking to Mr George Kinnear, a saddler in Bourke street, whose father was a passenger on the Ticonderoga.'

Miss M.J. White of Richmond wrote ― 'I have a letter written by my grandfather, Mr John Mathers of Durness, dated July 7, 1852, stating that he had received his embarkation order to be at Birkenhead on July 28 to sail for Australia by the Ticonderoga. He (my grandfather) left with his wife and family of eight. The following is what our mother, the eldest daughter, told us of their arrival here. The fever raged and her father died as the ship reached the Heads. He was the first to be buried at Point Nepean. Her mother and the family were landed at the quarantine station, and the only shelter they had for several days and nights was blankets spread over tea-trees. My mother had to shake the frost off them at night. She was then aged 17 and she fell ill of fever while there and was taken to the Melbourne Hospital. The first time she became conscious was on Christmas Day. Her father died on November 5. Two of my mother's sisters are still living. My mother died 17 years ago.'"

The Age (Melbourne)    Saturday 15 September 1934   p 6

"Sir, ― Regarding the letter of Mr Kinnear, in reference to the Ticonderoga, my grandparents arrived in Australia in 1852 on the fever ship Ticonderoga. My aunt, the late Mrs Helen Bentley, who died in September 1931, aged 80 years, was born on the ship in Australian waters, and she often told us how our grandfather, Mr Thomas Hutchison, had spoken about the fever, a reminder of which he carried with him all his life. He received an injury to his leg when he had the fever, and it never healed. Their first residence in Australia was at Sandridge, where they used to live in tents. They were very old residents of Prahran, living in King street, opposite the Townhall. My aunt, Mrs Helen Bentley, lived in Carlisle-street, St Kilda, for more than forty years. ― Yours, &c., R.G. HUTCHISON, Garden Vale."

The Argus (Melbourne)    Saturday 15 September 1934   p 9

"The following letter, signed A.J. Ternes (Armadale), has been received by J.A. McIvor, who wrote the article on the fever ship Ticonderoga, which appeared in the issue of August 4:― 

'I have been greatly interested in your article in The Argus on the plague ship Ticonderoga. I used to go to Portsea for a month in the '80's, and I was invited by Dr. Brown, the medical officer in charge at quarantine to visit the station, where I read the account of the voyage out, written on about 30 sheets of foolscap. My grandparents and five children were passengers. Their name was Dochart; my mother was the youngest and had her 14th birthday on board. One son married only a few weeks before leaving Scotland and was buried at sea. Grandmother, who had been very ill with fever, did not know of his death until they were inside the Heads, and when hearing of it collapsed and died, so both she and another son were buried at quarantine. I have seen their graves. My mother, who died only a few years ago, contracted the fever after the death of her mother, was taken off the ship with a few others after the ship came up the bay in a small boat, and they were landed at Williamstown and put into tents along the shore; one of the victims being the late John Morgan of Morgan, Gunn, and Co., Williamstown. He told me himself of this incident one day when speaking to me, not knowing my mother was one of the victims.'"

DETAILS OF VOYAGE:

According to the Assisted Passenger List for the Ticonderoga at the Public Records Office Victoria, there are two categories of numbered names ― both living and deceased.

"Ticonderoga Sailed from Liverpool 4th August 1852 ... Ticonderoga arrived at Melbourne Victoria 22nd December 1852 ...[Page 103] ... Nominal and Disposal Lists Nos 1-646 = 646 Souls = 517 Statute Adults ... [Page 121] ... Ticonderoga List of Deaths Nos 1-100 and In Quarantine Nos 101-168 = 168 Souls = 113½ Statute Adults ... [Pages 124, 126]."

In summary, the official records show that 646 survivors eventually landed at Melbourne, 100 passengers died while at sea, and 68 passengers died in Quarantine after the ship reached Port Phillip Bay. This represents a total of 168 deaths from 814 embarked passengers. 

(Public Records Office Victoria, Assisted Passenger Lists 1839-1871, Record Series Number VPRS 14, Book No 7, 1 Oct 1852 - 31 Dec 1852, pp 103-126, Ticonderoga, North Melbourne, Online <prov.vic.gov.au/archive>)

The  CATARAQUI  Ship Wreck  ―  1844

"News of the wreck of this immigrant vessel will not merely reach London, but spread through every family in Bedfordshire, Staffordshire, Yorkshire, and Nottinghamshire, whence the emigrants were principally drawn. No emigrants need be expected from these counties for some time to come. Indeed we are afraid the stay-at-home English poor will generally be daunted by the fate of this vessel."

('The Wreck of the Cataraqui', Australian (Sydney NSW), Tues 30 Sept 1845, p 3)

The theme of this series of posts, trying to publish voices of steerage passengers (who were the greatest majority of emigrants in the mid-nineteenth century), becomes next to impossible in the face of this calamity. From the consignment of 369 assisted passengers on the Cataraqui, only one survived. Solomon Brown alone (married with four children, all lost) achieved his goal in the District of Port Phillip ― "engaged to serve Mr AD Birch of the Loddon as farm servant for the term of one year at the rate of £22 per annum with rations". 

Two official documents, prepared by Immigration Officer John Patterson for Superintendent Charles La Trobe, provide some important background to this disastrous voyage.

Copy of the Official Announcement of the Loss of the "Cataraqui„

     "The Emigrant ship "Cataraqui„ sailed from Liverpool for Port Phillip on the 20th April 1845 & had a very favourable passage until the middle of July when after passing St Paul's Island she met with continued heavy weather. As she approached the termination of her voyage several days passed without satisfactory observations being made, but on the night of the 3rd of August she was considered to be about 141-0-22 East longitude and 39-0-17 South latitude or about 100 miles from land according to the Ship's reckoning. She was nevertheless hove to until 3 oclock A.M. on the 4th when she hove steering East and by North & in an hour after ran upon the reefs near the South Western optimity [sic] of King's Island where she was totally wrecked.                                                   By order of His Honor the Superintendent

                                                                 John Patterson, Acting Immigration Agent."

(Public Record Office Victoria, Assisted Immigrants Lists, VPRS 14, Book No 2/3, 1 Feb 1842 - 31 Jul 1848, p 229, North Melbourne, Online <prov.vic.gov.au/archive>)

Alphabetical List of Emigrants embarked at Liverpool on board the Ship "Cataraqui„

"To His Honor CJ La Trobe Esq, .. .. .. Superintendent &c  &c  &c  Melbourne

Sir,                                                                        Melbourne, October 1st 1845.

We have the honour to furnish you with a list of the Emigrants which were lost in the wreck of the "Cataraqui„  This ill-fated vessel embarked 369 souls of all ages and sexes at Liverpool on the 20th of April for Port Phillip, and on her voyage up to the morning of the 4th of August last when she was totally wrecked on reefs to the South-west of Kings' Island Bass Straights [sic] when out of the number of Passengers stated only one Emigrant "Solomon Brown„ got on shore alive ______ The list has been completed from two bundles of Certificates of Character of the Emigrants which were picked up on shore and brought to town by Mr Guthrey the chief mate.

The crew consisted of 37 men and boys which with the Surgeon Mr Carpenter and his assistant amounted to 39 out of this number. Mr Guthrey the chief mate & seven seamen were saved, so that out of a total of 408 souls on board only nine were saved.

From enquiries made it appears the passengers on board had been very healthy during the passage & that six deaths among the children had occurred. There were five births _______ We learned from the sole surviving Immigrant that the people experienced the kindest treatment, the provisions were of good quality & abundant, & that all on board were perfectly satisfied.

It would be out of our province to alude to the probable causes which led to this most shocking Catastrophe; it only remains for us deeply to deplore the loss of so many valuable lives, & the impossible bereavement to the living relatives at home, & in the Colony, & indeed the loss the community at large has sustained by this calamitous count [sic].

                                                   We have the honor to be, Your very obedient servant,

                                                             John Patterson, P Cusson MD, Bunbury JP"

(As above, PROV, VPRS 14, Book 2/3, p 229)

There is the suggestion of an original comment by the survivor Solomon Brown in the second letter. However, it is framed in the sort of language that makes it a standard affirmation, the sort emigrants were required to make at the end of their passage, before the captain let them ashore. Similar signed testimonials containing 'rehearsed phrases' were quite common and were more about reducing the shipowner's future liability than being genuine statements of satisfaction. 

The key source for official and newspaper reports of the Cataraqui was "Thos Guthrey, Late Chief Mate of the Ship", the most senior, maritime witness. It is his voice that is heard by the District Superintendent Charles La Trobe (and New South Wales Governor Gipps). He is also acknowledged as the 'authority' informing the more dramatic articles in the colonial press.  

Testimony of Thomas Guthrey to Superintendent CJ La Trobe on 17th September 1845

"Sir,

The painful duty devolves on me of informing your Honor of the Total Wreck of the Emigrant Ship "Cataraqui" CH Finlay Master which sailed from Liverpool on the 20th last & bound for Port Phillip having on board 369 Emigrants of all Ages - exclusive of Mr C Carpenter Surgeon Superintendent and his Brother Doctor Edward Carpenter & crew of 49 - men & Boys.

Nothing particular occurred during the Voyage, until about a fortnight prior to the 4th August when we experienced boisterous weather & A Strong Gale of wind from the N.W to S.W. accompanied with heavy rain which continued without interruption until Tuesday the 5th August. The Ship's course being during this period from E. by S. & E. by N.  At 7 P.M. on Sunday evening the 3rd the ship was hove to under close reefed Main Topsail & Fore topmast staysail. The wind about this time N.W.  Midnight Gale wearing from the S.W. wore Ship with her head to the Southward & continued laying to until 3 A.M. on Monday the 4th.

I went on deck at 4 A.M to relieve the watch when I found her running free under 3 close reefed Topsails and reefed foresail. The captain was on deck at the time and gave me orders to continue the course east by north, to keep a good lookout, and let him know at daylight.

About half-past four o'clock a.m., the tempest still continuing, rain falling in torrents, and the darkness of the night such as not to allow any object to be seen within a few hundred yards of the vessel, the ship struck, going at the rate, I suppose, of about seven knots through the water. The man at the wheel was, from the violence of the concussion of the ship striking, knocked from it.

I went forward to look over the bows; the ship continued her course through the water for a space of about 15 minutes, when she struck the second time, after which she ran ahead for a few minutes and striking the third time, she stuck and fell over on her larboard side.

At this time the sea commenced breaking on board, the passengers at once rushing on deck, and crying for assistance. The whole of the crew were instantly on deck, and assisting to get the passengers from below, and I should say, to the best of my knowledge, about 300 were got on deck.

Seeing there was no possibility of saving the ship, the captain ordered the masts to be cut away, which was promptly done, with a view to righting the ship, as well as to form rafts for the people to get on shore. The sea at this time was breaking on deck, and sweeping everything away, with part of the passengers and crew. Nothing could be done from this till daybreak, when we hoped that by means of a raft of the spars leeward of the vessel, some of the people might be enabled to reach the shore.

At daybreak we observed the land ahead of the vessel, I should say about 150 yards, and could likewise see that the vessel was breaking up aft. The sea was breaking at this time over the vessel and washing away at every sea some of the passengers and crew. No possibility of reaching the shore was afforded at ten a.m., as the only remaining boat was launched and was instantly capsized.

No one reached the shore until about two a.m. on the fifth, when one of the passengers got on shore by clinging to a small part of the wreck.

At about five p.m. the ship parted by the fore rigging and left about 50 on the forecastle head. At daybreak she commenced breaking up altogether, when I was washed away from the spritsail yard, and do not remember scarcely anything until I found myself on the rock, where I had been washed up by the violence of the sea. I found two on shore at this time, and shortly afterwards we found six more that had been washed up from the bows when she finally broke up. On my looking round I could not see any part of the vessel above water. Out of all on board, nine only were saved."

(Public Record Office Victoria, Inward Registered Correspondence, Superintendent Port Phillip District, VPRS 19/p0000/10682, 45/1616 (17Sep1845), North Melbourne, Online <prov.vic.gov.au/search'Cataraqui'>)

Courier (Hobart Tas)    Saturday 20 September 1845   p 2

"It is our painful duty to lay before our readers the melancholy particulars of the total wreck of the emigrant ship Cataraqui, upon the west coast of King's Island. We gather the particulars from the Port Phillip Herald of the 13th September, which journal acknowledges the chief mate of the vessel, Mr Guthrie, as the author of the sad account.

     'The Cataraqui, Captain C.W. Finlay, sailed from Liverpool on the 20th of April, with 369 emigrants, and a crew including two doctors ... of forty-six souls ... Nothing particular occurred until a fortnight prior to the 4th of August, with the exception of the weather being boisterous, with a strong gale of wind from the north west to the south west, and incessant rain. On the night of Monday the 3rd of August, at seven in the evening, the ship was hove in and continued laying to until three o'clock on the morning of the 4th. At half past four, it being quite dark and raining hard, blowing a fearful gale, and the sea running mountains high, the ship struck on a reef situate on the west coast of King's Island, at the entrance of Bass' Straits.

     ...Immediately the ship struck, she was sounded, and four feet water was in her hold ... when the shrieks of men, women, and children from below were terrific ... the crew ... were constantly employed in handing up the passengers. Up to the time the vessel began breaking up ... between three and four hundred were got on deck. At this time the sea was breaking over the ship on the larboard side, sweeping the decks, every sea taking away more or less of the passengers. About five a.m., the ship careened right on her larboard side, washing away boats, bulwarks, spars, a part of her cuddy, and literally swept the decks.

     ...As the day broke we found the stern washed in, and numerous dead bodies floating around the ship―some banging on the rocks. Several of the passengers and crew (about two hundred altogether) were still holding on to the vessel―the sea breaking over and every wave washing some of them away ... those who were able continued to cling to the wreck until about four in the afternoon, when she parted amidships, at the fore part of the main rigging, when immediately some seventy or a hundred were launched into the tumultuous and remorseless waves.

    ...The remains of the upper deck now began to break up and wash away ... The fury of the waves continuing unabated, about five o'clock the wreck parted by the fore rigging, and so many souls were submerged in the wide waters that only seventy souls were left crowded on the forecastle ... rope was then hauled on board to rig lifelines and lash the survivors who were then clinging to the wreck ... the sea breaking over them, the winds raging, and the rain continuing heavy all night ... Numbers died and fell overboard or sank and were drowned in the places they were lashed. As the day broke the following morning it discovered only about 30 left alive ... the survivors mostly dead through exhaustion and hanging where they were lashed.

     ...As the morning rose the sea was making a clean breach into the forecastle, the deck of which was rapidly breaking up ... The lashings of the survivors were now undone in order to give them the best chance of life. Mr Thomas Guthrie, the chief mate ... was washed out to the bowsprit ... with about 15 or 20 only left alive amidst a host of dead bodies on the fragment of the wreck ... seized a piece of plank under his arm, and leaping into the water was carried over the reef and onto the shore ... He found a passenger who had got ashore during the night, and one of the crew who got ashore in the evening ... partly swimming and partly driven ... [six] other seamen followed, and got ashore dreadfully exhausted.

      Almost immediately afterwards the vessel totally disappeared ..."

(TROVE newspapers online, <http://nla.news-article2947368>)

Postscript : Oxford Chronicle and Reading Gazette 28 February 1846

"On 20 April 1845 the Cataraqui ship left Liverpool with emigrants bound for Melbourne. A quarter of the 369 passengers were from Oxfordshire, including 42 from Tackley ― the most from any village ...

It was only in the spring of 1846 that news of the wreck reached the UK from Australia. It was first reported in London in a short account in the Shipping and Mercantile Gazette on 31 January. Within days the same paper had published a much fuller account which was the basis for all later newspaper reports. By the middle of February the news had reached all parts of the country including Oxford. On 7 February both the Oxford Chronicle and Reading Gazette and Jackson's Oxford Journal published brief reports ... followed with longer articles on 14 February ... and two weeks later ... further details on the Tackley victims.

     'LOSS OF THE CATARAQUI: The wreck this ill-fated vessel, on its way to Australia (the particulars of which we gave three weeks since) has occasioned much grief in the quiet village of Tackley, in this county, as the following persons belonging to that place were among the unfortunate sufferers ...'"

(Tackley Local History Group <tackleyhistory.org.uk/cataraqui>)