Chart of Tramore Bay

Chart of Tramore Bay

Wednesday 30 September 2015

The Earl of Sandwich, 30 November 1765

The ship was built in Yarmouth in 1762. She was 120 tons, single decked and owned by a Mister Polgrove.

The Earl of Sandwich, Cockran, from the Canaries for London, being drove by contrary winds up the Irish Channel, the crew rose on the 30th Ult. and murdered the captain, mate, a boy, a gentleman, his lady and daughter, passengers; after which plundered the ship and opened the ballast port with intent to sink her: since which we hear the ship was stranded in the river of Waterford.[1]

Dublin, Extract of a letter from Waterford, dated Friday the 6th instant:
Last Wednesday evening, at six o’clock, came in Captain Honeywell from Newfoundland.
(4th December) About four leagues to the SW of the Tower, he had like to have run foul of a large three mast vessel. The weather was very hazy, which prevented his seeing her. Her top gallant yards were up, and she was so deep in the water, that he could only see her rails. She had no boat on board nor could a living creature be seen.
     Upon this report, eight boats went out yesterday morning, but the sea was so high, they could not venture so far to the westward, and returned without being able to give any account of her. Yesterday morning some pipes of wine were drove on shore at the Islands of Cain, the estate of Mr Wyse; they have already saved fifty of them. Many persons imagine they came out of the above vessel; but I think she was too far from the land to have them stranded so soon. Mr Gahan, the Land Waiter, and a party of soldiers are gone to secure what is drove on shore.
        By a man who came last night from Ross, we learn that four sailors came there on Wednesday, and they were going to Dublin. They had several bags of dollars, numbered and made up after the Spanish method for the use of merchants. They were very prodigal of them at the Publick Houses, particularly to the females. They gave a large gratuity to a guide, and after purchasing a case of pistols, set off in the morning for Dublin.
     They suppose the above vessel to have been sunk on Thursday morning early, and gone to pieces, they have found part of her stern and other particulars, and yesterday they got in all 70 odd pipes of Madeira wine, capuchins, and women’s apparel; so that it is conjectured she had passengers on board. She is thought to have been a very rich ship, and from various circumstances it is believed those villains have murdered the rest of the crew, and afterwards scuttled her, and supposed she would have gone to the bottom soon after they quitted her.
     This instant a man was brought me who found on the strand of Garreras, a London cocket for a hogshead of sugar in loaves, going to the canaries, dated 10th of August 1765, and shipped on board the earl of Sandwich, signed William Bates; it was wrote on thin leather, and by that means preserved. We think it may give some light to the owners of the unfortunate vessel.
     By a gentleman just come from the Mayor, they have made out the cocket as follows: It is signed by William Bates, Comptroller of the Port of London, for one hogshead of refined sugar, containing eight hundred and eight pounds, dated the 5th of August 1765, marked O in a diamond, shipped by one Brye, on board the Earl of Sandwich, one Cochran, master, for the Canaries.
    By a tanner from Ross this day, we are informed two of the men’s faces already mentioned, were much cut, and upon being asked how they came by such wounds, they said they came from Mexico and were met by a pirate, and that they received some wounds in defending their treasure. Three of the four are English and the fourth, an Irishman.
 Inclosed I send you a copy of a letter from Ross; you may be assured the writer is a man of veracity. You cannot conceive what a noise this affair makes here.
Copy of a letter from Ross
There was an extraordinary affair happened here on Wednesday last: about ten in the morning, four tolerable well-dressed men came to a Publick House in this town, and called for a room, to which being shewed they deposited their bundles, with which they seemed very heavy loaded, and after about half an hour’s delay, three off them went off again, as they said, to bring the rest of their goods, leaving one of their company to take care of what they had brought; the three who went returned about four in the evening, and putting up what they had brought, ordered the landlady upstairs, and desired she would take the things, which they opened before her, and dry them before the fire; upon which they drew out a large quantity of necklaces, earrings, &c. which when she had dried, they made her a present of a necklace and earrings, which have been tried since and are set in gold; they changed 1250 dollars with one Moran here, and would exchange more had he gold to give them for the dollars; the landlady sewed up twelve large bags of dollars for them, and saw with them a large quantity of gold dust, and two ingots of gold.
   They set out for Dublin, yesterday morning, and were only six hours gone when there was a search made to stop them, as it appeared they came ashore at Fisherstown Marsh in a ship’s boat, in which there has been found twenty loose dollars. If you should hear in Waterford anything which gives any light into this affair, I would be obliged to you to advise me of it.
They let the boat go adrift at Fisherstown.[2]
Dublin, December 14:
         The three villains, who are in custody in Newgate for the murder of Captain Cochran, commander of the Earl of Sandwich, from Tenerife to London, Captain Glass, his wife and daughter, passengers on board, and the rest of the people in the ship, being separately examined, the purpose of their declaration was as follows: ‘They first knocked Captain Cochran's brains out with an iron bar; and then fell upon the two seamen, whom they soon dispatched; upon Captain Glass's hearing the noise, he ran up, and seeing what they were about, returned, as they imagined, for his sword; knowing him to be a very able resolute man, one of the villains followed him down the steps, and upon the captain’s returning with his sword drawn, the who went down took hold of his arms behind, and pinioned him; then called to his associates, who with a great deal of difficulty, disarmed him, run him through the body, and; upon making a second lunge, run their hellish companion through the arm.
       Captain Glass being murdered, none remained but Mrs Glass, her daughter, and two boys; they then told Mrs Glass that she must be thrown overboard, she fell on her knees and begged for mercy; the daughter hearing their resolution, the ran to her mother and clasped her in her arms, when those barbarians threw them both overboard. They then took to the longboat, expecting the ship would sink every moment, having opened the ballast port. One of the boys, being a good swimmer, leaped off the side of the vessel, and the boat being heavy laden with the money, he soon overtook her, and begged hard to be admitted; but to no purpose; he laid hold of the gunnel, when, the savages loosed his hands, and saw the creature sink just by them. The other boy, by a roll of the ship, fell overboard and was drowned.’         
        It is said they threw into the sea a large quantity of dollars to lighten the boat; that they buried a chest of money in the sands in Waterford Harbour, where they landed; and the remaining bags of dollars which they could not carry, they hid in holes in the rocks; after refreshing themselves at a village called Ballybrazil, they were robbed of 1300 Dollars. - It is said Captain Glass went from England to establish a Settlement on the Coast of Africa. George Galley, cook, the fourth villain, is secured at Carlow.
P.S. It is said the number of bags amounted to 250, each of which contained, as is supposed, 100 dollars. Two of the villains are English, one Dutch, and one Irish. They first scuttled the ship, supposing she would have soon gone to the bottom; this was about four leagues from Waterford, and she was so deep that her rails were just above water. Seventy pipes of Madeira wine floated ashore, with capuchins and women's bonnets, so that it is supposed the ship is now gone to pieces.
[3]

A part of the stolen goods were later recovered and the perpetrators were hanged and their bodies displayed on the Muglins Rock, off Dalkey Island. The ship was auctioned at the Customs House, Waterford, on 27 August 1766:
To be sold by public cant, on the Customs-house quay at Waterford, on Monday the 15th day of September next, one hundred and sixty three pipes, hogsheads and quarter casks of choice wines, of the growth of the Canary Islands, some raw silk and broad cloth, saved out of the wreck, Earl of Sandwich, stranded at Tramore, in the harbour of Waterford. The Cant to begin at eleven o’clock in the morning and to continue until all are sold.[4]

John Rogers of Tramore was said to have made a salvage claim on 23 February 1767 for the remaining 1,200 dollars that were found aboard.




[1] Lloyd’s List, 17 December 1765.
[2] Freeman’s Journal, 10 December 1765.
[3]Berrow's Worcester Journal, 26 December 1765.  
[4] Freeman’s Journal, 26 August 1766.

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