'' Mersey '' was a ship launched at

Chittagong Chittagong ( /ˈtʃɪt əˌɡɒŋ/ ''chit-uh-gong''; ctg, চিটাং; bn, চিটাগং), officially Chattogram ( bn, চট্টগ্রাম), is the second-largest city in Bangladesh after Dhaka and third largest city in B ...

in 1801 and wrecked in the

Torres Strait The Torres Strait (), also known as Zenadh Kes, is a strait between Australia and the Melanesian island of New Guinea. It is wide at its narrowest extent. To the south is Cape York Peninsula, the northernmost extremity of the Australian ma ...

, Australia, about mid-June 1804. She was the first merchantman lost in the Strait. ''Mersey'' was built in Chittagong in 1801 and registered at Fort William,

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

. At the time of her loss her captain and owner was James Wilson. ''Mersey'', Captain Wilson, arrived at Sydney on 10 April 1804 with a cargo chiefly consisting of sugar, port and Madeira wine, cordage, and some piece goods. An advertisement on 22 April announced the sale on Monday 23 April of ''Mersey''s cargo. The advertisement provided a rich, detailed listing of the cargo.

Philip Gidley King Captain Philip Gidley King (23 April 1758 – 3 September 1808) was a British politician who was the third Governor of New South Wales. When the First Fleet arrived in January 1788, King was detailed to colonise Norfolk Island for defence an ...

, governor of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, on 15 May 1804 announced that ''Mersey'' would return to India via an "hithertoo unfrequented passage to Torres Strait in the track of Captain Flinders." King had chartered ''Mersey'' to purchase 250 cows from

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

and deliver them to Hobart,

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

. ''Mersey'' left Port Jackson on 24 May 1804 for Bengal with a cargo of 1632 feet of timber. While passing through the Torres Strait, ''Mersey'' was totally wrecked. The whaler brought the news on 17 November 1804 from Timor. Only 17 crew and the captain were saved by sailing in a longboat to

Timor Timor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, in the north of the Timor Sea. The island is divided between the sovereign states of East Timor on the eastern part and Indonesia on the western part. The Indonesian part, al ...

; 56 others had perished. After refitting the longboat at Dili the survivors reached Bencoolen from where they sailed to Madras on an

Aceh Aceh ( ), officially the Aceh Province ( ace, Nanggroë Acèh; id, Provinsi Aceh) is the westernmost province of Indonesia. It is located on the northernmost of Sumatra island, with Banda Aceh being its capital and largest city. Granted a s ...

en vessel. Captain Wilson arrived in Calcutta 20 September 1804 on board ''Margaret'', from Madras.''National Shipwrecks database''

Citations

References

* * * * Maritime history of Australia Shipwrecks in the Pacific Ocean History of New South Wales Maritime incidents in 1804 1801 ships British ships built in India {{ship-stub

See also

Citations

References