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The Dangerous River ...
Body Found
from the Hull Packet of 2nd November 1813
On Wednesday morning, the body of a man, habited like a sailor, was found floating near the shore, at a
small distance from Wintringham.
He had a wooden leg, and in one of his waistcoat pockets was a leathern pouch, containing some tobacco, and a shilling of the date of 1723, marked J.H.A.H. - He was buried at Wintringham on the following day.
Accident on the Three Sisters of Wintringham
from the Hull Packet of 7th August 1840
About five o'clock in the afternoon, another accident of a dreadful nature, occurred in the Junction Dock on
board a sloop named the Three Sisters of Wintringham, where a "purchase-man," named Thomas Rushton, a fine athletic fellow, was engaged in shifting a heavy piece of oak timber, when it fell upon him, and
literally smashed out his brains. He was conveyed to the Infirmary, where he lingered until half-past nine o'clock and expired. He has left a widow and three children.
Missing on crossing to Winteringham
from the Hull Packet of 1st December 1848
The neighbourhood of Winteringham, near Barton, was thrown into a painful state of excitement last week, in consequence of two men, named James Moore and Paterson
Everett, having left Weighton lock, on the Yorkshire side, with a cargo of pots, for Winteringham, and not having since been heard of.
It blew hard from the S.W. at the time the boat left Weighton lock, and there is every reason to believe that the men must have met with a watery grave, as the mainsail and foresail of the boat have since been picked up. Everett was a Winterton man, and has left a wife and two children, and Moore, who was a widower, has left seven children totally unprovided for.
Sudden Death
from the Hull Packet of 24th August 1849
NEWPORT
On Thursday the 16th inst., Mr John Sargeant, master of the keel Victoria, of Blacktoft, after taking in a cargo of cliff stone at Hessle, in proceeding
to his destination, Yokefleet, in consequence of the ebbing of the tide brought up in the Brough roads on Thursday: whilst there he eat a very hearty dinner, but between five and six o'clock he was attacked with
cholera, which in a short time became so severe that it was thought advisable to have him conveyed to his residence at Newport, where the best medical aid was procured (Mr. H. J. Raines of that place, was in
immediate attendance), and the most prompt and anxious attention was paid to his case, and every means used for his restoration, but without the desired effect, as he expired a little after one o'clock on Friday
morning, after suffering the most excruciating pain. He was very greatly respected by his employers, Messrs. Grasby and Reynolds, and a numerous circle of friends and relatives.
He was the youngest son of the late Captain George Sargeant, of Wintringham, near Barton, Lincolnshire, and was in the 31st year of his age.
Wrecked keel brought safely to the Haven
from the Hull Packet of 6th November 1863
The keel belonging to John Fussey of East Halton, was wrecked on Whitton Sands, on Monday night, but on Tuesday morning Mr Thomas Burkill, and others, from
Winteringham, rendered valuable assistance and succeeded in getting the vessel safe into Winteringham Haven with the loss of several stores, and about 15 tons of coal.
She was freighted for Mr. Charles Wells, of Hull.
Winteringham folk’s kindness to shipwrecked sailors
from the Hull Packet of 11th December 1874
FATAL WRECKS ON THE HUMBER
THIRTY FOUR VESSELS ASHORE
(BY AN OCCASIONAL CORRESPONDENT)
Returning home from Barton, on Wednesday afternoon, my attention was arrested by the appearance of three weather-beaten sailors, who had been driven into the place in a spring-cart, and who had evidently been
"roughing it", to all intents and purposes, in the gale which burst over the coast at an early hour that morning.
One of them was attired in a thick light overcoat, the bright brass button son which told that it had formerly belonged to some coachman or servant in a gentleman’s family, and had been lent by some kindly hand. Another was provided with a thick, warm overcoat, such as sailors do not generally wear; and all three had a haggard and worn appearance. Following them into the train, their conversation soon turned on the gale, which had now subsided, but which, during the short time it lasted, was described to have been the “awfullest” that has been witnessed on the Humber for many years past. From the remarks that were made, and which enlisted the sympathy of all the other persons in the compartment, it seemed that no less than 34 small vessels had been driven on the Lincolnshire shore by the furious gale, and that several lives had been lost, whilst the survivors who so narrowly escaped had endured terrible suffering during the bitterly cold morning. A large carrying trade is done between Hull and places on the rivers Ouse and Trent by means of ketches, keels and other craft of that description; and these are frequently towed up the the stream by small steam tugs, until they are enabled to make their own way in the less rapid currents of the tributaries of the Humber. About three o’clock on Wednesday morning four of these vessels, in tow to the tug “Wards,” left Hull, the weather at that time being comparatively favourable, though a rather stiff breeze was blowing from the northward. The Sarah, belonging to Mr. Samuel Lee of Gunthorpe, near Nottingham, was laden with 1,500 loaves of sugar, 18 tons of linseed cake, and 190 quarters of barley; the L’Orient, owned by Mr. Wm. Cook of Hull, had on board 140 quarters of wheat, 100 quarters of barley, and 90 tons of super-phosphate; and the Ocean, belonging to Mr. John Thomas Weightson, of North Muscombe, and the Newark Castle, of Newark, were laden with linseed. Soon after five o’clock the wind increased to a gale, and it was with considerable difficulty that the tug could make way against the heavy wash of the river. The L’Orient was the first ketch in the tug’s wake, and my informant, whose name is Wilson, states that the waves completely swept the deck of his vessel for a considerable distance. The Sarah came next, having on board William Mitchell, captain, and Charles Sanders as mate, so it appears that though the crew consists of only two men, they have these distinctive titles. The Ocean had also two married men on board, and their wives were asleep in bed at the time of starting, though in consequence of the rough weather they had hurriedly thrown on a few garments and hastened on deck. In the Newark Castle was Captain Swanwick, his wife, and little daughter (the latter being aged about nine years), and also a mate and his wife and child. At half-past five o’clock the hurricane burst in its full force, and the line of crafts was then abreast of Winteringham Lights, on the Lincolnshire side. Great surprise was expressed at the tug keeping so close to the lee shore, though as the men remarked, they were entirely under the control of the steamer which was towing them. Just at this point, and without the slightest warning, the tow-rope of the tug was slipped, and, without waiting to see the fate of the four ketches, it appears she steamed off, leaving the poor men and women in the little crafts entirely at the mercy of the storm! The strain of the leading rope having been removed, the ketches, to use the language of the men, were “all of a heap,” bumping together, and on the mud bottom, like shells upon the waves. Had they struck upon rocks instead of mud they must have been dashed to pieces: and as it was, the boats began to make water rapidly. The L’Orient was the first to go down, and Wilson only managed to clutch the gunwale of the Ocean, and thus escaped with his life, being pulled on deck by the men on board. At this time there were four men, two women, and a child on the Ocean; and Mitchell and Sanders, seeing the difficulty of their position, jumped overboard from the Sarah, as she swung round upon the mud-bank, and succeeded in scrambling ashore. They had no ropes with which to render any assistance to those still on the river, so, adopting the maxim that “necessity is the mother of invention,” the cut away the lamp halyards of the Winteringham Lights, and after much difficulty succeeded in making it fast to one of the ketches. The Ocean had by this time gone down, and Wilson was again overboard, but succeeded in drawing himself into a small boat, into which Captain Swanwick’s little girl was put. But the boat was soon filled, and its occupants “swilled” out; and in the struggle for life Wilson found it impossible to save the child. She was, however, brought ashore by one of the men of the L’Orient, but though she breathed once or twice after getting to land she died in a very few minutes. Her father and mother were subsequently drawn by a rope through the waves and mud and reached land in a thoroughly exhausted condition; the woman being totally unable to stand, and quite unconscious. It was quite an hour and a-half before the whole of the party were brought ashore, the women having been hauled in first, with the other child who, though suffering severely from exposure, is likely to recover. They were now quite two miles from any place where either warmth or refreshment could be obtained, and the men, taking off their overcoats, wet as they were, wrapped the unfortunate females in them, as some little protection from the rain and nipping, cold wind. There is a little shed under the legs of the lights, and here, for more than two hours, the party huddled together, until daylight should come to their assistance. They had then to cross a country intersected by dykes and ditches for nearly a mile, till they came to any road, the men carrying the almost lifeless body of Mrs. Swanwick till they discovered a wheelbarrow in one of the fields, and which they afterwards utilised as a conveyance for her. On reaching the highway one of the men hurried forward to the village of Wintringham and obtained a spring cart, in which the party ultimately reached the village, and were treated with the utmost kindness by the inhabitants. The Rev. C. Knowles, the esteemed rector of the Parish, was one of the first on the scene, and rendered most valuable assistance in supplying the men and women with dry clothes, and otherwise caring for their immediate wants. Meanwhile, the sailors dried their clothes in a malt kiln in the village, and Captain and Mrs Swanwick were put to bed at the inn, in a very precarious condition. The inhabitants generally exerted their utmost efforts to render what little assistance they possibly could to the poor castaways, and their conduct in this respect was spoken of in terms of gratitude by the men in the railway carriage. On the other hand, they did not scruple to deprecate in forcible language the inhumanity of the crew of the steam-tug who, had they stood by them, might have rescued their lives , and very probably got the ketches into a place of safety on the river. No doubt we may hear more of this before the matter is finished with.
During the same morning a number of small vessels were driven ashore, and it is said thirty-four in all may be seen resting on the Lincolnshire side of the river, between Hull and Goole.
The market boat, which plys [sic] being [sic] Hull and Barton, was driven high and dry upon the fields, on the western side of Barrow Haven, and her crew succeeded in finding their way home, leaving the vessel safe on terra firma. When daylight dawned the keel Alert, belonging to Messrs. Saner & Co., of Hull, laden with bricks, which had been moored near to one of the jetties, at Barrow Haven, was found ashore, having dragged her anchor a considerable distance. Her crew, consisting of the master, Henry Hutchinson, and his mate, were missing, and it is almost beyond doubt that both were washed overboard and drowned. The cargo has been transferred to another vessel and the Alert was floated off with last night’s tide. At Ferriby Sluice three keels, laden with linseed, sank during the gale, and their cargoes were destroyed, though I have yet been unable to ascertain whether or not any loss of life has occurred.
Steamer Wrecked (again!)
from the Hull Packet of 26th September 1884
A STEAMER WRECKED IN THE HUMBER.
- The steamer Killarney (Captain Rowbottom), from Goole to Bruges, with a general cargo, grounded on Saturday night twelve miles above Hull, capsized, and filled. The crew were saved. The Killarney is an iron steamer, of 359 tons gross, and owned by the Goole Steamship Company. The Killarney lies in about 18 or 19 feet of water near the Winteringham Lights, on the Lincolnshire coast. Her cargo, or rather portions of it, soon after she foundered were washed from her hold, and bales have been picked up by the watermen and others. The men on board had a narrow escape of their lives, and lost everything. They remained by the steamer after the Killarney sank in the hope that when the tide rose she would lift again, but instead of doing so she launched into the river, crossing the channel, and finally heeling over as the tide flowed. Her cargo was a valuable one and is covered by insurance, as is also the vessel herself. It is noteworthy that she had made over 1,000 voyages out of Goole, and her loss is due to the monetary loss of steerage power forcing her on to the bank. The Killarney has had many narrow escapes, and has been all but destroyed on several occasions.
Steamer Raised
from the Hull Packet of 21st November 1884
WINTERINGHAM
The s.s. Killarney, which sank on the 20th September in the Whitton Channel, has been raised.
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But the river has been an enemy as well as a friend. As can be
seen from this Customs Map produced in 1734, the river then was very different to the river today. Most obviously - there is no Read’s Island - but that is just one example of the
constantly shifting shape of the waterway. In the nineteenth century, brickworks were washed away on Ferriby Road, and it wasn’t until the middle of the twentieth century that
embankments prevented many high tides inundating that same road.
