Southport Visiter, April 13th, 1850.
SHIPWRECK OFF THE AFRICAN COAST
The crew of the bark CONCORDIA, reg 411tons, belonging to Mr Thomas PEAKE of Plymouth, and was commanded by Mr BARRETT, who with a crew of 14, left Plymouth about Christmas last, bound to Sierra Leone for timber.
The bark had 250tons of limestone for ballast, and on the 18th Feb last, at 11pm, when under all plain sail, steering, S by W, half W, with a light wind from the N. W, thick hazy weather, strong westerly current, struck on sand bank at low water.
Got water and provisions ready in the ship’s boats, by daylight the vessel had bumped up 3miles further inland and they found they were in the Bay of Yoff, to the south of Senegal, nr Cape Verde, 7miles north of Goree Island.
The natives, robust tall men, increased in number, over 3days they encased the vessel numbering 8000 on the shore and 500-1000 on the ship.
Capt BARNETT went to Goree Island on the 19th, returning on the 20th with a French interpreter, tents were erected on shore, the natives eventually stole everything off the decks and out of the hold, tore away the deck house, bulwarks and stanchions.
The Commodore at Goree sent a Capt and Lieut to inspect the vessel, which was irretrievable.
The crew, with the help of camels were conveyed across the isthmus at Cape Verde, by the Pap mountains to the French station at Goree and placed on the 23rd Feb, on the, L’UTILE, razee, Line-of-Battle ship, now used as a guard ship, where among other prisoners of the French Fleet, were the crew of a Brigantine, the master an Englishman, who had been murdered by them and his vessel run ashore.
The CONCORDIA’S crew complained that for 8days, they had the same poor fare and foul water as the prisoners, at night they lay where they could. 5 caught yellow fever, one died on the ALERT.
On the 8th day, 11th March, they took passage on a French Merchant ship, and in 24hrs reached Gambia, where they were held by the English consul till the 15th, when they joined the ALERT and reached Plymouth on the 14th inst.
Copyright 2002 / To date