STORM AND COMPANY

STORM AND COMPANY

BRIG ELIZABETH JANE

LATEST NEWS - EXTRACT FROM http://www.lostbrig.net

23rd January 2009 Information provided by Shipwrecks UK

8 July 1854 - Elizabeth & Jane, of Ipswich. 133-ton brig, Sunderland to Ipswich with coals, in fine conditions wind NNE Force 5, was abandoned at sea in a leaky condition; she drifted on shore at Robin Hood's Bay as a derelict, crew saved by the 'Samuel'.

This loss was reported in Lloyd's List and Coastguard Records and recorded in the Admiralty Wreck Return for 1854 page 60/61.

FURTHER NEWS - Since 2005 Steven has conducted a lot more research and his updated site at:
http://www.lostbrig.net
keeps the reader in touch with developments. Of particular interest is the account of the final owner, William Read, and the fact that the remains of Elizabeth Jane are now in the records of English Heritage. These can be found at

http://www.lostbrig.net/nmr_complete_monument_report.html

In 2005 Stephen and Victoria Gavin gave a PRESS RELEASE IN CANADA as follows;

"Elizabeth JaneNameboard from Canadian Brig Elizabeth Jane 'Lost 9th July 1854 off the Coast of Yorkshire'
- found in cottage Robin Hood's Bay, Yorkshire UK July 2003

Stephen and Victoria Gavin from York are hoping to discover the fate of a ship called 'Elizabeth Jane' which was lost off the coast of Yorkshire in 1854. 'We don't know exactly what happened to the ship or her crew', said Stephen, 'but some wood from the ship was used to build our house in Robin Hood's Bay.'

While working on their house the couple found two oak ceiling joists: one carved with the words 'Elizabeth Jan…' and the other 'Ipswich'. Recently the couple went to Ipswich in Suffolk to research their find.

'We had to wait two years before we had a chance to go to Ipswich. The staff at Suffolk Records Office were really helpful', said Victoria, 'and soon found ship registration documents from the early Nineteenth Century.'

In four huge ledgers, Stephen and Victoria found two references to an Elizabeth Jane. 'At first we thought they might be different ships, but then we realised the entries showed changes of ownership and master for the same ship,' said Stephen, 'but nothing linked it to our house.'

The third ledger however gave them the information they were looking for. In sepia ink were written the words: 'Lost 9th July 1854 off the coast of Yorkshire'. 'It was an extraordinary moment,' said Victoria. 'Our house was built soon after this date, so it seems likely we have discovered where the carvings, and probably the rest of the wood in the house, came from'.

Elizabeth Jane was built in Guysborough Nova Scotia in 1817 and changed hands several times, once being sold in Hamburg in Germany. It was registered at Hull, before being finally registered at Ipswich. She was 74 feet long, had two masts, and was square rigged. Her owners in 1830 at Ipswich were Samuel Finch, Enos Page (younger and elder) and William Barfield. Francis Hammond a Stay Maker of Leicester Square owned an eighth share. In 1846, a William Read of Ipswich was a subscribing owner.

Many other timbers in the house are from the ship.

Her masters over the years included John Norman, Henry Durrant, Walter Hadgraft, Jeremiah Allen, William Beaumont, and George Archer who was the last registered master.

Elizabeth Jane is recorded as carrying a 'Mr Butterworth and 6 settlers' from Liverpool to Quebec in 1822.

Stephen and Victoria would be pleased to hear from anyone who might have information about this ship, the people involved with her and any background information about this period. "

Back to Home Histories