''Shipley'' was launched in 1805 at Whitby. A

privateer A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...

captured ''Shipley'' in 1806 on what was probably her maiden voyage, but the British

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

recaptured her. Between 1817 and 1823, she made four voyages

transporting Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land (rail and road), water, cable, pipeline, and ...

convicts A convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison". Convicts are often also known as "prisoners" or "inmates" or by the slang term "con", while a common label for former convict ...

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 ...

. The ship was wrecked in 1826.

Career

Captain John Wilson received a letter of marque for ''Shipley'' on 26 October 1805."Register of Letters of Marque against France 1793-1815"; p.86
''Shipley'' entered the British ''Register of Shipping'' in 1806 with Wilson, master, Shipley & Co., owners, and trade Liverpool-Dominica. ''

Lloyd's List ''Lloyd's List'' is one of the world's oldest continuously running journals, having provided weekly shipping news in London as early as 1734. It was published daily until 2013 (when the final print issue, number 60,850, was published), and is ...

'' of 18 April 1806 reported that a 14-gun

had captured ''Shipley'', but that ''Shipley'' had been recaptured and had arrived at Barbados. In February ''Shipley'' had encountered a French three-masted schooner privateer, the former . Wilson and ''Shipley'' resisted for an hour and three-quarters until after he was severely wounded, as were the mate and the steward, and she had had four men killed. (The French had lost six men killed, including her second captain, and many men wounded.) The French plundered ''Shipley'' of her cargo. It was that recaptured ''Shipley''. On 25 July Shipley Williams & Co., ''Shipley''s owners, presented Wilson with a silver cup as a token of appreciation. The cup's inscription names the French privateer as ''Hebe''. Captain Edward Folder (or Holder) received a letter of marque on 14 June 1808. In 1810, ''Shipley'' was still sailing between Liverpool and Dominica.''Register of Shipping'' (1810), Seq. №335.
/ref> In 1812 ''Shipley'' had a new owner, Lyall, and was now a transport ship based out of London. Her master was J. Hall.''Register of Shipping'' (1812), Seq. №S436.
/ref> In 1816, Captain Lewis W. Moncrief assumed command of ''Shipley''. He would remain her captain for her four voyages transporting convicts to

. On 18 December 1816, ''Shipley'' left Portsmouth bound for

Port Jackson Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is the ria or natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman Sea (p ...

. Almost a week earlier she had run into the transport ''Ocean'', which had put into Portsmouth for repairs. ''Shipley'' was not much damaged. ''Shipley'' arrived at Port Jackson on 24 April 1817. She carried 125 convicts, none of whom died on the voyage. Thirty one officers and other ranks of the

46th Regiment of Foot The 46th (South Devonshire) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1741. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 32nd (Cornwall) Regiment of Foot to form the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry in 1881, ...

provided the guard. ''Shipley'' left on 8 June, bound for Batavia. ''Shipley'' left England on 19 July 1818 on her second voyage transporting convicts. She arrived at Port Jackson on 18 November. She had embarked 150 male convicts, three of whom died en route. ''Shipley'' left for England in March 1819. She carried 226 officers and men from several regiments, as well as 23 women and 34 children. For her third voyage transporting convicts, ''Shipley'' left the Downs on 5 June 1820. She arrived at Port Jackson on 26 September. She embarked 150 male convicts, four of whom died en route. Between 4 and 5 November 1821, gales hit the British coasts and many vessels were damaged or lost. ''Shipley'', at Deal, lost two anchors. Still, she left for Port Jackson two days later on her last voyage transporting convicts. She arrived at Port Jackson on 11 March 22. She had embarked male 150 convicts, of whom one died en route. On 23–24 November 1824 gales again hit the British coasts, destroying many vessels. ''Shipley'' was at Portsmouth, bound for Valparaiso, when she was driven on shore at South Beach. She subsequently had to undergo repairs.

Loss

''Shipley'' was wrecked at Kitridge Head,

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...

. All 147 people on board were rescued. ''Lloyd's List'' reported that on 19 April 1826 the transport ''Shipley'', from Cowes and Madeira, Abbot, master, had struck upon Cobler's Reef, drifted over, and was totally lost. However, all her crew and the troops aboard were saved.''Lloyd's List'' №6121.
/ref>

Citations

References

* * Farr, Grahame E., ed. (1950) ''Records of Bristol Ships, 1800-1838 (vessels over 150 tons)''. (Bristol Record Society), Vol. 15. * * * {{1826 shipwrecks 1805 ships Ships built in Whitby Captured ships Convict ships to New South Wales Maritime incidents in April 1826 Age of Sail merchant ships of England Ships sunk with no fatalities