ARTICLES Isle of Man - The Brig Lily, 28 Dec 1852
The following short piece was found while searching the website of THE MANX NOTEBOOK at www.ee.surrey.ad.uk/Contrib/manx (to become www.manxnotebook.com at the end of January 2001) and seems to fit in well with the ballad on the Loss of the Herring Boats .
Once again the QUALTROUGH family lost one of their young men.
An explosion of gunpowder in the hold of the shipwrecked Brig LILY on the rocks at Kitterland Island in Calf Sound was believed to be due to a forgotten candle stub left by plunderers of the vessel. The explosion took place whilst the cargo was being unloaded.
Fishing boat entering Calf Sound
Five crew died in the wreck and 29 in the explosion, most of whose bodies were blasted beyond recognition in explosion that was heard up to 18 miles away.
Memorial Stone at Kirk Christ Rushen Churchyard
It says: "In Memory of the twenty nine men who lost their lives by an explosion of gunpowder while saving the cargo of the wrecked brig LILY at Kitterland Island on 28 December 1852 leaving 22 widows and 77 orphans"
Enos LACE aged 51
William COWLEY aged 42
William KERMODE aged 55
Edward GALE aged 42
Henry GALE aged 37
Thomas WITTED aged 26
John CUBBON aged 57
William LAWSON aged 52
Thomas CALLISTER aged 43
John CALLISTER aged 29
John FELL aged 27
Samuel CALLISTER aged 29
John CALLISTER aged 22
Robert CALLISTER aged 33
William TAUBMAN aged 42
Thomas TURNBULL aged 32
George COSTAIN aged 32
William WATTERSON aged 31
Thomas NELSON aged 46
Charles CLUGTON aged 43
John GALE aged 45
Edward QUALTROUGH aged 22
William WATTERSON aged 29
William CONE aged 22
John HUDGEON aged 21
Edward WATTERSON aged 25
John WATTERSON aged 31
John CRAIG aged 32
John WEIGHT aged 26
With 5 CALLISTERs, 4 WATTERSONs, and 3 GALEs, some families were hit harder than others, however all who died must have left behind much heartache.
Submitted by Elizabeth Feisst (January 2001)
© Copyright by Malcolm Qualtrough, Elizabeth Feisst and the late John Karran Qualtrough.