Stephen Whitney (ship)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Stephen Whitney was a passenger carrying sailing ship which was wrecked on West Calf Island off the southern coast of Ireland on 10 November 1847 with the loss of 92 of the 110 passengers and crew aboard.
The 1034 ton ship left New York on 20 October for Liverpool carrying passengers and a cargo which included raw cotton, cheese and resin. On 10 November in thick fog the captain, C.W. Popham, mistook the Crookhaven lighthouse for the one at the Old Head of Kinsale. At around 10 pm the ship struck the western tip of West Calf Island, completely breaking up within about ten minutes.
The loss of the ship triggered the decision to replace the Cape Clear Island lighthouse with one on Fastnet Rock.
[edit] References
- GGGrandPa's Scrapbook pt 1. The Ships List. Retrieved on 2007-12-16.
- Wrecks off Cork (B). www.irishwrecksonline.net. Retrieved on 2007-12-16.
- Fastnet Rock Lighthouse. Beam magazine No. 32 (The Commissioners of Irish Lights). Retrieved on 2007-12-16.
