Wennington

Official Number 51081

The Wennington was a full-rigged ship built by the Lune Shipbuilding Company. She was the first iron ship to be built at Lancaster, and was built to Special Survey and was launched in March 1865. She was registered at Liverpool and was owned by Wilson & Co. until 1875. She was subsequently owned by the Lancaster Shipowners Co. Ltd.

Source 1 lists the ship's masters as : E. Williams (1865-7), Reade (1867-9), G. Byron (1869-71), Davies (1871-73), J.McAvoy (1873-4), Winder (1874-7), Sterwood (1877-78). Destined voyages are listed in Lloyds Register as Australia (1865-69), San Francisco (1869-71), Rangoon (1871-73) and New Zealand (1873).

The Wennington arrived at Wellington, NZ,  in 1874 with 299 passengers. The following year she landed 137 passengers at  Otago. She returned to Wellington with passengers in 1877.

In January 1878, the Wennington, under the command of Capt. Sterwood, sailed from Samarang, Indonesia, bound for Cork or Falmouth. She had a crew of 18 and one passenger. Her cargo of 1,151 tons of sugar had been loaded in baskets, and carefully stowed under the supervision of the captain.  The Wennington was last seen on the 30th January 1878 when she passed through the Bali Straits. She went missing, lost with all nineteen people aboard.
 

Sources :

1. Lloyds Register of Shipping 1865-79 (signal code HCQM).
2. Mystic Seaport Library Ship Register Search has shipping register details for all years from 1869 to 1879.
3. American Lloyd's Register of American and Foreign Shipping, 1869
4. American Lloyd's Register of American and Foreign Shipping, 1878
5. Wreck details from "Abstract Returns of Wrecks and Casualties on Coasts of U.K.; Casualties to British Ships elsewhere, and to Foreign Ships on Coasts of British Possessions Abroad, 1878-79 , Parliamentary Papers, House of Commons, 1880 (C.2519) lxvi.189; Merchant Ships--Foundered and Missing, 1st January 1873 to 16th May 1880 , pp. 244-245, Parliamentary Papers, House of Commons, 1880 (C.2625), lxvi.444-445." - research by Michael Palmer.
6. There is a photo of the nearly-completed Wennington at the shipyard in March 1865, in the book "Merchant Sailing Ships 1850-1875; Heyday of Sail" by David R. Macgregor (1984).
7. Passenger List below from Ian Robertson

The Wennington sailed from the Firth of Forth in late 1867 and arrived in Melbourne in February in 1868 (Source 4). The passengers were named as follows:

Surname  Given names Age Allen  Mrs. 24 Allen  John  2 Almon  John  22 Arfmann  J H 22 Armstrong  Mary J 26  Armstrong  Robert  20 Armstrong  Thomas  18 Baldrizze  Pietro  40 Bannan  Edward  23 Baylor  Peter  32 Bell  R  19 Bilsland  Thomas  48 Broderick  John  30 Caffrey  Francis  7 Caffrey  John  17 Callne  Henry  22 Carroll  Michael  25 Elliot  James M 22  Gorman Martin A   Harlh  Christine 17 Heintgle  Anne  7 Heintgle  Johann  30 Heintgle  Willhelmine  25 Hill  William  25 Hodgson    Infant  Hodgson  James  Infant Hodgson  John  25 Hodgson  Mary  28 Hodgson  Richard  50 Johnson  James  34 Johnson  Mary  11 Jones  Susannah  19 Jones  Thomas  30 Lawson  Andrew  24 Lawson  Fanny  Infant Lawson  Mary  20 Maestri  Josue  24 Maestro  Francisco  18 McAusland J  32 McLachlan  Jane  22 McLochlen K  40 McLochlen  Kate  11

Surname Given names Age McLochlen Mary 38 Morgan William A   Pentland   Infant Pentland  Mrs  27 Pentland  Eliza  4 Pentland  H  29 Porter  James 23 Porter  Margaret  15 Robertson Eliza 3 Robertson  Isabella    Robertson  James  27 Robertson  Janet  23 Ross  W Allister 17 Rutherford S  20 Sasse  Detherick  34 Scoja  Battista  40 Smith  Thos W 30 Taffelli  Dominico 24 Taffelli  Romano 24 Tazzelli Martino 38 Thomson  A Mrs. 57 Thomson  Alexander  5 Thomson  Andrew  10 Thomson  Christian  8 Thomson  Isabella  31 Thomson  John  34 Thomson  John  7 Tidmarsh  (Capt.)  Edward H   Tiemann A  35 Tiemann Johann  26 Tweeddale  H  22 Waters  Anne  40 Waters  Elizabeth  8 Watson  James  30 Watson  Sarah  60 Watson  Sarah  - Whingates  Joseph  38 Wilby  George  35 Wilkinson  Richard  48 Williams  Owen  18 Winllemin  Louis  30 Wright Mrs  28 Wright  Isabella  5