THE
WEXFORD
A classic photo of the Wexford, showing the “romance” of the Wexford profile. The photo, originally from the late Dr. William “Bill” N. Watters, has been enhanced by Captain “Bud” Robinson.
From the author’s collection.
THE
WEXFORD
Elusive Shipwreck of the Great Storm, 1913
PAUL CARROLL
NATURAL HERITAGE BOOKS
A MEMBER OF THE DUNDURN GROUP
TORONTO
Copyright © Paul Carroll, 2010
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise (except for brief passages for purposes of review) without the prior permission of Dundurn Press. Permission to photocopy should be requested from Access Copyright.
Published by Natural Heritage Books
A Member of The Dundurn Group
Editor: Jane Gibson
Copy Editor: Allison Hirst
Design: Jennifer Scott
Printer: Transcontinental
Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication
Carroll, Paul, 1944
The Wexford : elusive shipwreck of the great storm, 1913 / by Paul Carroll.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-55488-736-1
1. Wexford (Ship). 2. Shipwrecks---Huron, Lake (Mich. and Ont.). I. Title.
G530.W49C37 2010 917.13’2043 C2009-907475-3
1 2 3 4 5 14 13 12 11 10
We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts and the Ontario Arts Council for our publishing program. We also acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Book Fund and The Association for the Export of Canadian Books, and the Government of Ontario through the Ontario Book Publishers Tax Credit program, and the Ontario Media Development Corporation.
Care has been taken to trace the ownership of copyright material used in this book. The author and the publisher welcome any information enabling them to rectify any references or credits in subsequent editions.
J. Kirk Howard, President
Printed and bound in Canada.
Front cover image: The Last Sighting, oil, 2000, artist Captain C. “Bud” Robinson. Back cover image: The Goderich Lighthouse, circa 1880, watercolour, 2000, artist Paul Carroll.
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This lamentable tale of the Wexford shipwreck is dedicated to the memory of thousands of mariners, especially those unknown sailors whose bodies have never been recovered and whose names have never been recorded, lost on the Great Lakes over the long history of plying these waters for commercial trade from the time of the European explorers to the present day.
My manuscript preparation is dedicated to my two sons, Karsten and Kalen, who know that persistence and determination can accomplish extraordinary goals.
Thou rulest the raging of the sea:
when the waves thereof rise, Thou stillest them.
— Psalm 89, Verse 9
TABLE OF CONTENTS
“Wexford Found Off Grand Bend” by Tim Cumming
Chapter 1 Historical Perspectives: Great Britain to the Great Lakes
Chapter 4 The Crew List, November 1913
Chapter 5 A Memorial: November 16, 1913
Chapter 6 Weather Forecasting in 1913: Descriptions of the Storm
Chapter 7 The Carnage of the Storm
Chapter 8 The Aftermath: Consequences Abound
Chapter 9 The Goderich Inquest
Chapter 10 Searching for the Wexford
Chapter 11 The Wreck Today
Chapter 12 The Plunder of the Wexford
Epilogue Remembering the Wexford, November 11, 2000
Appendix A “Discovery of the Wexford” by David Bannister
Appendix B A Letter to the Minister of Culture, Province of Ontario
Appendix C Legislation Affecting Marine Archaeological Sites
Appendix D Shipwrecks Along the Huron Shoreline