Beyond the Breakers

In this episode we discuss the 2000 sinking of the Kirkcudbright scallop dredger Solway Harvester . Sources: Full report  Summary Report Scallop Dredging Fishing Gear - Dredges (NOAA) Support the show

This week we discuss the sinking of the HMS Egret and its overall importance in the history of naval warfare. Support the show

Le quatorze juin, un dimanche De l'an dix neuf cent trente et un Le ciel était bleu de pervenche Et l'air embaumé de parfum De la joie-z-au cœur, cinq cent promeneurs Embarquent d'un quai de Nantes Sur le vapeur " Saint-Philibert " Sans penser qu'une mort navrante Tenait leur cercueil entr'ouvert - "Le Naufrage du Saint-Philibert" This week we are back...

In July 1890, a relaxing day trip turned tragic when the sternwheeler Sea Wing sank on Lake Pepin, taking with it scores of passengers - the majority of whom hailed from nearby Red Wing, Minnesota. Sources: Johnson, Frederick L. "Unlocking the Mysteries of the Sea Wing" Kinkenberg, Dean. "The Sea Wing Disaster" Pierce County, WI - The Sea Wing Disaster Sea Wing Disaster, 1890 S...

This week we discuss the sinking of the Austro-Hungarian dreadnought SMS Viribus Unitis in the closing days of World War One. *Originally released 1/16/22; edited and re-uploaded 3/8/22  Sources (available in PDF on Patreon):  “Austria’s Navy and the Adriatic.” Scientific American , vol. 111, no. 10, 5 Sep 1914 Demark, Nikolina. "3000 Tonnes of Steel at the Bottom of Pula Port." Total Cr...

This week we discuss the loss of two US Coast Guard vessels, the Jackson and the Bedloe, in September 1944.  *Originally released 1/10/22; edited and re-uploaded 3/19/22 Support the show

To kick off Season Two of the podcast, we're undertaking our first ever two-part episode to discuss the SS Noronic . Part 1 will be released on Monday, 1/3 followed by Part 2 on Wednesday 1/5. *Originally released 1/5/22; edited and re-uploaded 3/9/22 Sources: Bunch, Adam. "Toronto's most deadly disaster: the nightmare on the SS Noronic ." Spacing , Jan 26, 2016. "The Burn...

To kick off Season Two of the podcast, we're undertaking our first ever two-part episode to discuss the SS Noronic . Part 1 will be released on Monday, 1/3 followed by Part 2 on Wednesday 1/5. *Originally released 1/3/22; edited and re-uploaded 3/9/22 Sources: Bunch, Adam. "Toronto's most deadly disaster: the nightmare on the SS Noronic ." Spacing , Jan 26, 2016.  "The Bur...

Now available for everyone! This was originally the Patreon bonus episode for September  Hear us discuss the White Ship Disaster of 1120, which laid the groundwork for a bloody and chaotic time “when Christ and his saints slept” in the kingdom of England.  Support the show

This week we discuss the John B. Cowle , which sank in 1909 after a collision with returning Breakers guest star the Isaac M. Scott . *Originally released 12/20/21; edited and re-uploaded 3/3/22 Sources: Numerous articles from the Cleveland Plain Dealer and Duluth News Tribune (shared on Patreon in a public post), accessed via the America's Historical Newspapers database. Deadliest American D...

This week we discuss the early stages of the Battle of the Atlantic and the loss of the British vessel HMT Bedfordshire.  *Originally released 12/13/21; edited and re-uploaded Support the show

This week we discuss the sinking of the Russian monitor Rusalka in 1893, leading us eventually to one of the most unique shipwrecks of all those we've covered so far.  **correction** - Towards the end of the episode Tanner mistakenly says that Rusalka sank during the reign of Nicholas II; he did not become Tsar until 1896. Rusalka sank during the reign of his father Alexander III. This error...

This week we discuss the loss of the MV Derbyshire, the largest British merchant vessel to be lost at sea.  *Originally released 11/27/21; edited and re-uploaded 2/25/22 Support the show

This week we discuss the wreck of the Edmond , one of the many "coffin ships" that carried Irish emigrants fleeing the Great Famine. The Edmond sank at Kilkee in 1850 after being driven against the rocks by a violent Atlantic storm. Resources: An Gorta Mor - the impact and legacy of the Irish Great Famine Ireland's Great Hunger Museum The Irish Potato Famine - Digital History Irish...

This week we travel to the Pacific Northwest to explore the tale of the SS Valencia, which ran aground on Vancouver Island after missing the entrance to the Juan de Fuca Strait. The subsequent ordeal suffered by her passengers and crew took the lives of 136, according to the officially recorded death toll. *Originally released 11/15/21; edited and re-uploaded 3/20/22  Selected sources and further...

We discuss the sinking of the paddle steamer Anthony Wayne on Lake Erie in April of 1850. *Originally released 11/8/21; edited and re-uploaded 3/22/22 Selected sources: "Anthony Wayne" - Shipwrecks and Maritime Tales of the Lake Erie Coastal Ohio Trail Batemon, Shondra - "From Wreck to Rediscovery - PS Anthony Wayne: a historical treasure" Krueger, Bradley Alan - Anthony Wayne...

In honor of Halloween, we get spooky this week. Taylor tells stories of the Black Dog of Lake Erie. Is it out for revenge on the uncaring sailors who allowed it to drown in the Welland Canal? And Tanner relates the tales of ghostly happenings around the 1873 sinking of the steamer Ironsides in Lake Michigan, and Connecticut's steamship Atlantic disaster from 1846. Does the spirit of young Hen...

This week we're discussing the deadly Paisley Canal Disaster of 1810, a tragedy that claimed the lives of 84 people just days into the operation of the Glasgow, Johnstone, and Ardrossan Canal. *Originally released 10/25/21; edited and re-uploaded 3/20/22  Selected Resources: "Paisley pub on site of Britain's worst canal disaster to honour victims " -  Alastair Dalton, The Scots...

This week we take a trip to one of our favorite countries, Norway. We discuss the Helge Ingstad, which was a modern navy frigate which encountered a problem that has been a part of maritime history since sailing began. Norwegian Safety Investigation Report Part 1 , Part2 Norwegian animation with radio traffic from the incident. (Note, it is in Norwegian, but still very interesting to see it all pl...

This week we discuss an incident considered to be the deadliest peacetime disaster at sea in history - the sinking of the ferry  Doña Paz  off the Philippine island of Mindoro in 1987. Source material: Asia's Titanic - Thousands Died Thirty Years Ago (Maritime Executive)  Dona Paz victims waiting for justice 25 years after - Joey A. Gabieta,  Inquirer Visayas - survivor accounts and quotation...

Since we weren’t able to put together an episode this week, we’re releasing a pretty fun Patreon bonus episode from the month of August for everyone. Enjoy our discussion of a few WWI naval engagements, homemade (shipmade?) guns, and the ultimate scuttling of the German High Seas Fleet during internment at Scapa Flow.  Support the show

This week we discuss the Great Lakes Storm of 1913. Recommended reading: Schumacher, Michael. November's Fury: The Deadly Great Lakes Hurricane of 1913 . (2013) *Originally released 9/26/21; edited and re-uploaded 2/15/22 Support the show

**skip to about 9:30 to get right down to the business of the episode** This week is actually a discussion of several incidents involving DUKWs, commonly known as "duck boats," with a focus on the 1999 Miss Majestic incident in Hot Springs, Arkansas, and the 2018 Table Rock Lake (Missouri) Ride The Ducks accident.   NTSB Safety Recommendation Report "Odd DUKW" (Smithsonian, 200...

This week we discuss the 2015 sinking of the Russian freezer trawler Dalniy Vostok [Дальний Восток] in the Sea of Okhotsk. *Originally released 9/6/21; edited and re-uploaded 3/16/22  Sources referred to in the episode: An animated representation of the sinking of Дальний Восток Short interview footage with one of the survivors (with English subtitles) ТАСС-English article from 4/7/15 'Крушен...

This week we discuss the deadliest incident for the US Navy of the post-WWII era, a fire aboard the carrier  USS Forrestal   in July of 1967.  Support the show