DROWNING FATALITIES AT HAYLE
By John Higgans
Many lives were lost by drowning in the Hayle estuary and the treacherous waters of St. Ives Bay in the 18th and 19th centuries. Most of the fatalities happened when the victims were out sailing or bathing. Among them were:
|
William & Charles MILLWOOD |
|
Jan 1786 |
|
James Blight RUSSELL, age 33 |
|
2 Apr 1786 |
|
William PERKINS |
|
Apr 1792 |
|
Christopher CLEMENCE |
|
Apr 1795 |
|
Charles MILLWOOD, age 27 |
|
Jun 1815 |
|
Elizabeth MARTIN, age 25 |
) |
Jun 1815 |
|
Loveday MARTIN, age 16 |
) sisters |
Jun 1815 (see note) |
|
Margaret MARTIN, age 13 |
) |
Jun 1815 |
|
Joseph MITCHELL, age 24 |
] |
Jun 1815 |
|
Sampson MITCHELL, age 17 |
] brothers |
Jun 1815 |
|
Thomas WHITFORD, age 35 of Crowan |
|
Aug 1822 |
|
John HAWKE, age 32 |
|
Aug 1824 |
|
Catherine VINCENT, age 15 |
|
Jun 1828 |
|
John BRIANT, age 38 |
|
Feb 1833 |
|
George GILBERT |
|
Jul 1848 |
|
John BRYANT |
|
Jul 1848 |
|
Elizabeth HARRY & Martha LUKE of St Ives |
|
Jul 1866 |
|
[Unknown] GREGORY |
|
Jul 1870 |
|
John BURGESS |
|
Sep 1873 |
|
William ARTHUR of Truro |
|
Sep 1873 |
|
William GEORGE, age 41 and two others |
|
Nov 1880 |
(Note: Elizabeth and Loveday MARTIN were buried at Phillack on 6 Jun 1815; Margaret MARTIN was buried at Phillack on 11 Jun 1815; Joseph and Sampson MITCHELL were buried at Phillack on 7 Jun 1815. JS - OPC Phillack & Hayle)
The sea also claimed the lives of a number of crew and passengers of Hayle ships. Among them were:
John KING, master of the ‘John Adams’ and crew, lost off Land’s End in October 1823.
Richard BANFIELD, master of the ‘Mary Ann’ lost off St Ives with all hands in January 1829.
John SPRAY, master of the ‘Fame’ lost off Portreath on 6 Mar 1848. Also lost were the mate, Francis IVEY and the ship’s boy, Thomas BASTIAN of Gwinear. Passengers drowned were Jane CURNOW, nee SEMMENS, and her children William 6, John 5 and Richard 19 months.
James GOODMAN, mate of the ‘Thistle’ drowned at Londonderry on 14 July1850.
Anthony HARRIS fell overboard and drowned at Palermo (Spain) in February 1850.
Thomas TRENERRY, master of the ‘Pencalenick’ and his brother, William, the mate lost off north-west Ireland in March 1867.
John GRENFELL, master of the ‘Electric Flash’ and crew lost off Padstow in August 1868.
Samuel SPRAY, master of the ‘Western Wave’ lost off Santander (Spain) on 2 April 1874.
John SPRAY, chief engineer of the SS 'Trewarvas' (of St Ives), lost on a voyage from Cardiff (Wales) to Jamaica in 1892.
In addition to the deaths listed by John Higgans, the Phillack Burials Registers reveal further deaths by drowning:
|
Aranias JAMES, carrier of Helston |
Jan 1757 |
|
John SCORE, Captain of Clovelly |
Mar 1764 |
|
William FRANCIS of Clovelly |
Mar 1766 |
|
Thomas HOPKINS, mariner of Swansea |
Nov 1779 |
|
Peter BROKES of Ilfracombe |
Feb 1799 |
|
William ATKINS, mariner of Swansea |
Mar 1800 |
|
Jamey SEYMER, mariner |
Dec 1801 |
|
David JAMES of Fishguard Wales |
Dec 1820 |
|
William TRETHOWAN of Camborne |
Sep 1858 |
|
John FOUND, seaman of Barnstaple |
Oct 1859 |
|
James CARTER of Hayle |
Oct 1863 |
|
Thomas CARTHEW of Hayle |
Feb 1870 |
As well as those named in the Phillack Burials Registers, there are a number of burials of unknown mariners whose bodies were washed up on the beaches of Phillack or Hayle.