Lady Forbes was launched at Leith in 1799. She became a West Indiaman, sailing under a series of letters of marque. She survived a major hurricane and an attack by pirates. From 1819, she was a whaler in the British northern whale fishery. She made three annual whaling voyages before she was lost in 1822 when ice crushed her.
| History | |
|---|---|
 Great Britain | |
| Name | Lady Forbes |
| Owner | 1799: William Sibbald & Son[a] |
| Launched | 1799, Leith |
| Fate | Crushed by ice 22 June 1822 |
| General characteristics | |
| Tons burthen | 335,[2][3] or 337 (bm) |
| Complement |
|
| Armament |
|
Career
editLady Forbes first appeared in Lloyd's Register (LR) in 1799.[2]
| Year | Master | Owner | Trade | Source & notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1799 | T.Bishop | Sibbald | Leith–Petersburg | LR |
| 1800 | T.Bishop Gourlay |
Sibbald | Leith–Petersburg Leith–Jamaica |
LR |
Captain David Gourlay acquired a letter of marque on 25 December 1799. After the resumption of war with France he acquired a new letter of marque on 21 January 1805.[3]
Between 21 and 23 August, Lady Forbes survived the 1806 Great Coastal hurricane. She was part of the Jamaica fleet, 109 merchantmen plus escorts, returning to England.[4] Of the 109 vessels, by October five vessels of the 109 in the convoy were still unaccounted for, though only 13 were known to have sunk. The seventy crew on the vessels known to have been lost were drowned.
| Year | Master | Owner | Trade | Source & notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1808 | D.Gourlay[b] J.Richardson |
Sibbald | Leith–Jamaica | LR; repairs 1806 & 1807 |
| 1810 | J.Richardson A.Nelson |
Sibbald | Leith–Jamaica | LR; repairs 1806 & 1807 |
On 25 January 1811, Lady Forbes, of Leith, Nelson, master, was driven ashore at Annotto Bay, Jamaica. After she unloaded part of her cargo she was gotten off without any damage.[6]
| Year | Master | Owner | Trade | Source & notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1812 | A.Nelson D.M'Vicar |
Sibbald | Leith–Jamaica | LR; repairs 1807 & 1810 |
Captain M'Vicar died at Morrant Bay. Captain William Wight acquired a letter of marque on 19 December 1811. He acquired a second one on 1 December 1812.[3]
| Year | Master | Owner | Trade | Source & notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1813 | D.M'Vicar M.Wright |
Sibbald | Leith–Jamaica | LR; repairs 1810 & 1812 |
| 1815 | W.Wright Robinson |
Sibbald | Leith–Jamaica | LR; repairs 1810 & 1812 |
| 1816 | Robinson Marjoribanks |
Sibbald | Leith–Jamaica | LR; repairs 1810 & 1812 |
On 2 February 1817, pirates in two schooners boarded Lady Forbes off San Domingo. They plundered her of her firearms, cutlasses, and powder. She was on her way from Jamaica to Leith.[7]
On 12 September 1817, Lady Forbes, Marjoribanks, master, arrived at New York City from Leith, with passengers.[8] From New York she sailed on to Jamaica.
| Year | Master | Owner | Trade | Source & notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1818 | Marjoribanks | Sibbald | London–New York | LR; repairs 1819 |
| 1819 | Marjoribanks Robertson |
Sibbald | London–New York | LR; repairs 1812 & 1819 |
| 1820 | Robertson | Hurry & Co. | London–Greenland | LR |
In 1819, Hurry & Co. purchased Lady Forbes, which became a northern whale fishery whaler sailing out of Liverpool. That year she was the only whaler operating out of Liverpool. In 1820, Baffin and James joined her. The whaling season lasted from February–March to July–October. Between whaling seasons, Lady Forbes sailed to Archangel or New Brunswick. In 1819 and 1820, Lady Forbes hunted whales in the waters off Greenland. In 1821, Captain William Manger replaced Captain Robertson; under Manger, Lady Forbes hunted whales in Davis Strait.
| Year | Master | Whales | Tuns of whale oil | Seals | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1819 | Robertson | 13 | Lloyd's List (LL) | ||
| 1819 | 13 | 124 | Coltish[9] | ||
| 1820 | 10 | 110 | LL | ||
| 1820 | 11 | 125 | Coltish[9] | ||
| 1820 | 11 | 186 | 350 | ||
| 1821 | Manger | 8 | 86 | Coltish[9] | |
| 1821 | Manger | 8 | 110 | LL |
Another source reports that in 1821, Lady Forbes had boiled 200 tons of oil.[10]
Fate
editIce crushed Lady Forbes on 26 June 1822, while she was whaling in Davis Strait. Her crew was saved.[11][12]
The day before, several vessels were made fast to ice flows at 72°5'N. The next day a small channel opened. Brunswick managed to get through. Lady Forbes tried, but the ice came back, crushing her. Her crew barely had time to save their clothes. Captain William Manger shifted to Cumbrian, Johnson, master. On her on Sunday he raised the Bethel Flag, the first time it had been raised in Davis Strait, and conducted a prayer service for the seamen from all the nearby whalers.[13]
Lady Forbes was one of seven whalers lost that year.[14][15]
Notes
edit- ^ The firm was involved in the West Indian sugar and rum trade. In addition to Lady Forbes, the firm owned Isabella Simpson, Roselk, Lune, and some other vessels. The firm went out of business circa 1826.[1] Isabella Simpson was lost in July 1834.
- ^ Gourlay went on to become the manager of the Old Shipping Company of London and Leith.[5]
Citations
edit- ^ Martine (1888), p. 10.
- ^ a b LR (1799), Seq.no.L330.
- ^ a b c "Letter of Marque, p.72 – Retrieved 25 July 2017" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 October 2016. Retrieved 27 October 2018.
- ^ "The Marine List". Lloyd's List. No. 4088. 7 October 1806. hdl:2027/uc1.c2735022.
- ^ Martine (1888), p. 3.
- ^ "The Marine List". Lloyd's List. No. 4547. 22 March 1811. hdl:2027/hvd.32044105232920.
- ^ "The Marine List". Lloyd's List. No. 5164. 1 April 1817. hdl:2027/hvd.32044105226351.
- ^ Dobson (1998), p. 72.
- ^ a b c Coltish (c. 1842).
- ^ Lubbock (1937), p. 218.
- ^ "(untitled)". The Morning Post. No. 16068. 13 September 1822.
- ^ "Davis Straits Whale Fishery". The Morning Post. No. 16074. 20 September 1822.
- ^ Lubbock (1937), pp. 245–246.
- ^ "The Marine List". Lloyd's List. No. 5733. 13 September 1822. hdl:2027/uc1.c2735032.
- ^ Lubbock (1937), p. 250.
References
edit- Coltish, William (c. 1842). An account of the success of the ships at the Greenland and Davis Straits fisheries 1772-1842 inclusive.
- Dobson, David (1998). Ships from Scotland to America, 1628-1828. Vol. 1. Genealogical Publishing.
- Lubbock, Basil (1937). Arctic Whalers. Glasgow: Brown, Son & Ferguson.
- Martine, John (1888). Reminiscences of Port and Town of Leith.