Sarah Bell

Official Number
63270

The Sarah Bell was a large full-rigged iron ship built by Williamson & Son at Harrington. She was launched on New Year's Day, 1870, and had been built for John Bell, of Liverpool, where the ship was registered. She was intended for the California trade (see Source 1). Her first voyage was to San Francisco, and her master was Capt.Wilfrid Ditchburn, who was to retain her command for ten years. Source 3 states that Capt.Ditchburn frequently sailed with his daughter aboard, and that she would play a piano to entertain the crew. Capt.Ditchburn left the ship in 1877 to take command of the Egremont Castle. The Sarah Bell was reduced to barque rig. Capt.J.C Dixon took command, and there were further changes of master in subsequent years. The Sarah Bell worked in the trade between Liverpool and Australia, New Zealand and California, carrying passengers and goods, until about 1886, when she seems to have gravitated into the nitrate trade from Chile. The barque remained in the ownership of John Bell. & Co. until her loss in 1889.

The Sarah Bell departed Cardiff on the 6th October 1889, bound for Valparaiso with a coal cargo. At 5 am on the morning of the 22nd October, at lat. 38.25 N, long. 33.13 W, she was run into by the Glenavna Park. The Sarah Bell was cut down to her waterline, on the starboard side near the foremast. Whilst the vessels were entangled the first and second mates and some others of the crew of the Sarah Bell jumped to the other vessel. The two barques then drifted apart, and the master, Capt.J.N.Hurst, and the remainder of the crew abandoned the Sarah Bell in the launch and the gig. The captain's Newfoundland dog was the only casualty as the vessel sank. The master and some others were only dressed in their nightclothes. They rowed to the Glenavna Park, but this vessel was badly damaged and leaking.  At daylight distress flares were fired, bringing two other vessels to the scene, the Norwegian barque Racehorse and the Crummock Water (Capt Amery), both bound for the UK. These vessels took off all the men from the two crews, and when they left the decks of the Glenavna Park were awash and she was bound to sink. The Crummock Water arrived at Plymouth on 2nd November with the master, first and third mates, carpenter, steward, cook, five apprentices and three seamen. Five more seamen from the Sarah Bell and the crew of the Glenavna Park had reached Falmouth on the Racehorse on the preceding day.

Name
Year Built
Gross Tons
Length (feet)
Breadth (feet)
Depth (feet)
Masts
Figurehead
Stern
Lloyd's Classn.
Sarah Bell
1870
 812
194.4
32.1 
 19.8
 3
 
 
 

Sources :

  1. Launch report in the Barrow Times, 8th January 1870.
  2. Lloyd's Register of Shipping 1871-2: Sarah Bell, ship, 866 tons, owned by Bell & Co., registered at Liverpool, master Capt.J.Ditchburn, voyage Harrington - San Francisco, then London - Australia.
  3. "In the Days of the Tall Ships" by R.A.Fletcher.
  4. Online shipping registers at Mystic Seaport Library have entries for the Sarah Bell from 1871 to 1879 (ship) and 1878 to 1891 (bark).
  5. Record of American and Foreign Shipping, 1885 - names master as Capt.J.Wards, owner as John Bell & Co., bark registered at Liverpool.
  6. Wreck reported in the Times newspaper, Monday, 3rd November, 1890, pages 7 and 10. The position of the collision given by Capt. M'Murtry of the Glenavna Park was lat. 37.15 N, long. 33.20 W (SW of the Azores). The Glenavna Park had been bound from Rio Grande for Liverpool.