Imagine a Stormy Night at Sea...

The wind howls. Driving rain and spray soak you with frigid water. The helmsman fights the wheel as the force of the gale tries to tear it from his hands. The ship bucks out of control. You have no idea of your ship’s position as it hurtles through the darkness. Suddenly, the thunderous roar of breakers can be heard. The ship slams into the shoal and heels over. Now trapped, the ship is battered by heavy surf and once sturdy timbers splinter apart. Frigid seawater rushes into the hold as you and your shipmates scurry for shelter and hope for rescue. Your vessel has been shipwrecked.

Over the years, this scene played out repeatedly as the expanding economy of early America led to explosive growth in the number of ships traversing the North Atlantic.

Located between the major ports of Boston and New York City, Nantucket saw as many as 250 vessels pass by every day in the late 19th century. Even the most diligent captain and crew could be caught off guard by the unpredictable storms and dense fog which frequent the island. While celestial navigation techniques could determine latitude and longitude with a reasonable degree of accuracy, fog or storm conditions that concealed the sun and stars prevented their use. Charts marking shoals and other hazards were often inaccurate. And weather prediction was often based on sea conditions and primitive barometers. Within moments, a ship’s crew could find themselves run aground on one of the many shoals and pinned in place by strong currents.

 

Over 700 shipwrecks have occurred off the coast of Nantucket. The Nantucket Shipwreck & Lifesaving Museum shares many of their stories in the museum’s Shipwreck Gallery. Among the featured shipwrecks are the tales of the Great Gale of 1879, the W.F. Marshall in 1877, the T.B. Witherspoon, the H.P. Kirkham , and the Mary Anna; these narratives are also told online at our website.