Express

Official Number 21304

The Express was a two-masted schooner built at Whitehaven by William Bowes, and launched on the 19th January 1827. She was one of three schooners of similar size and tonnage built at Whitehaven in this period, all intended to be regular traders between Whitehaven and London (the others being the Enterprise and the Alert).

In 1840 the Express was registered at Whitehaven and was owned by Thomas Hammond & Co., master Capt. H.T.Walker. Her registry was transferred to Maryport in 1847.

The Express was bought at Maryport for £210 18s 9d by John Carswell of Palnackie and James Carswell of Dalbeattie on the 18th  May 1858 (see Source 4). The schooner was registered at Dumfries in the following year, her owners being listed as John, James and Thomas Carswell.

The Express was wrecked near Red Bay, Co.Antrim on the 16th January 1880. She was carrying limestone from Red Bay to Workington.

Sources :

1. "Shipbuilding in Whitehaven - A Checklist" by Harry Fancy, Whitehaven Museum (1984).
2. Launch reported in the Cumberland Pacquet newspaper, Tuesday, 23rd Janaury 1827, page 3.
   
3. A List Of The Cumberland Shipping, Corrected To February 1840, by William Sawyers, Comptroller Of Her Majesty's Customs At The Port Of Whitehaven.
4. Information provided by John Searle. His great-grandfather's diary states that the vessel was bought for £500 less a discount. Vessel signal code NFSC.
5. Dumfries Shipping Register  (this is online but the URL is changed so frequently that I have given up linking to it).
   
6. Irish Shipwrecks Online, citing from "Shipwrecks of the Ulster Coast, by Ian Wilson, ISBN 0948154993.
7. Wreck reported in the Daily News, Wednesday, 21st January, 1880 - gives place of wreck as Cushendall Bay.