''Orion'' was a

G & J Burns G, or g, is the seventh Letter (alphabet), letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the English alphabet, modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western Languages of Europe, European languages, and others worldwide. Its name in Englis ...

paddle steamer A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine driving paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, whereby the first uses were wh ...

, built by

Caird & Co Caird & Company was a Scottish shipbuilding and engineering firm based in Greenock. The company was established in 1828 by John Caird when he received an order to re-engine Clyde paddle-tugs. John's relative James Tennant Caird joined the compa ...

in 1847, which struck a submerged rock and sank off Portpatrick Lighthouse,

Wigtownshire Wigtownshire or the County of Wigtown (, ) is one of the Counties of Scotland, historic counties of Scotland, covering an area in the south-west of the country. Until 1975, Wigtownshire was an counties of Scotland, administrative county used for ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, on 18 June 1850 on her way from

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

, with the loss of 41 of the 200 passengers on board. The eminent surgeon

John Burns John Elliot Burns (20 October 1858 – 24 January 1943) was an English trade unionist and politician, particularly associated with London politics and Battersea. He was a socialist and then a Liberal Member of Parliament and Minister. He was ...

was one of the passengers killed in the accident. Among the survivors were John McNeill, who would go on to reach the rank of Major General serving the British Army in India, also winning the Victoria Cross, and his brother Alexander, a future Independent Member of Parliament - though both their parents and two sister perished in the wreck. Some of the survivors were rescued by the

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

vessel ''Fenella'', others by boats from Portpatrick. Her

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

was found guilty of the "culpable bereavement of the lives of the passengers" and was imprisoned for 18 months. Her

second mate A second mate (2nd mate) or second officer (2/O) is a licensed member of the deck department of a merchant ship holding a Second Mates Certificate of Competence, by an authorised governing state of the International Maritime Organization (IMO). ...

was

transported ''Transported'' is an Australian convict melodrama film directed by W. J. Lincoln. It is considered a lost film. Plot In England, Jessie Grey is about to marry Leonard Lincoln but the evil Harold Hawk tries to force her to marry him and she ...

. The incident was described in the 1851 book ''The wreck of the Orion, a Tribute of Gratitude'' by Reverend Joseph Clarke, who was one of the survivors. Reverend Edward Lyon Berthon was inspired to invent the collapsible Berthon Boat in the years after in order to allow ships like ''Orion'' to carry more lifeboats. https://www.berthoninternational.com/about-berthon-international/berthon-publications/berthon-magazine/the-reverend-berthon-and-his-collapsible-lifeboat/

References

Ships built on the River Clyde Paddle steamers of the United Kingdom High Court of Justiciary cases Shipwrecks of Scotland History of Dumfries and Galloway Maritime incidents in June 1850 19th century in Scotland History of Liverpool History of Glasgow 1847 ships {{Transport-accident-stub