Island History: December shipwrecks on the Outer Banks
These days, the month of December is celebrated as a holiday season. In the early days of the United States Life-Saving Service (1871-1915), however, it was part of the “storm season” when the Life-Saving stations were operational and active. These few months produced an enormous number of storms, mostly nor’easters. They were just as dangerous as hurricanes, producing high winds and huge waves, and they were worse in that they lasted longer – many consecutive days. In addition to them, a simple one-day low pressure system often generated violent and wrecking surf.
I have located twenty-nine Outer Banks shipwrecks that occurred during this month, and during the period of 1876 to 1927. In order of the calendar days for December, the first was the Wetherby, December 2 in 1893 at Diamond Shoals. There were five on December 4, from 1882 to 1927, which were the Enterprise, Lena Breed, Ida Lawrence and Kyzikes and Cibao.
The last two are Chapters 21 and 22 in my Volume III Shipwrecks of the Outer Banks, currently being written. The Kyzikes was built in 1902 as the S.S. Paraguay, originally as a coal-powered iron tanker. Later sold and converted to an oil tanker, sold again, and name changed. “It was to sail in the Mediterranean but sank on its initial voyage under new registry when it was caught in a violent sea and floundered on a shoal off Kill Devil Hills. The force of the impact split the vessel in two and four men perished.” 1 Much more in upcoming Volume III.
“The Norwegian steamer Cibao, loaded with 17,000 bunches of Jamaican bananas and bound for Baltimore, ran into the same storm [as the Kyzikes] and stranded 75 miles to the south, at a point off the mouth of Hatteras Inlet, two miles from shore and in the midst of a sea of breakers. She was discovered Sunday morning by a lookout at Hatteras Inlet Station.”2 The entire story is complicated, detailed and painful – as seen in Chapter 22, Volume III.
Wrecks from December 5 through the 14th included some tragedies. Barkentine Olive Thurlow was a total wreck with the loss of one life, (complete story may be in Volume IV). Schooner Wesley Oler was even worse; another total wreck with the loss of 10 lives – will definitely be in Volume IV.
Nellie Wadsworth, Thomas Goddard, Montana, Wm. Davidson followed with no loss of life, but the schooner Clarence H at Oak Island lost five and the schooner Montana wrecked at Pea Island losing one life.
The second largest tragedy in this group was the schooner Governor Ames, a total wreck at Chicamacomico with the loss of eleven lives, which will certainly be in Volume IV.
From 1882 to 1904 (and two exceptions)
December 14 saw the wreck of the schooner John Floyd at the treacherous Diamond Shoals, but all saved. Three on the 17th (Wright Brothers Day!) included Isaac Clark also at Diamond Shoals, Blanche at Ocracoke, both all saved, and Joseph Neff which lost one life at Oak Island.
On December 20, the schooner Whitney Long saw all saved at Creeds Hill. On December 21, Martha Wallace wrecked at Cape Lookout, but all were saved. The famous wreck of the barkentine Ephraim Williams at Big Kinnakeet Life-Saving Station produced the eternal slogan, “So Others May Live,” and is Chapter 11 in my Volume I.
Christmas Eve, sadly, witnessed the wrecks of the America and Samual Hall, both at Chicamacomico but happily, with all saved. The bark Spero also occurred the same day at Cape Hatteras, again all saved. Tragically, also on this date the Ariosto saw “The ‘Entirely Needless’ Tragedy” of the loss of 21 lives.
December 27 nearly closes out the month with the wrecks of Richard Spofford at Ocracoke with one loss of life, but all saved from the Emma Cotton at Pea Island, and the Northeastern at Cape Hatteras.
The final December entry for this period is the incredible true, nearly unbelievable story of the 198-ton, three-masted schooner Ario Pardee that would endure an incredible 152 hours in five consecutive storms before finally becoming a total loss at the Wash Woods Life-Saving Service Station. The reader will likely be exhausted by the end.
Exception No. 1
The last account will not be in this period, nor will I interpret it. Rather, it will speak for itself. This is included because a new partial shipwreck has recently appeared, and this might be it!
From the December 18, 1942, Dare County Times:
(For clarity: it was not the Gull Shoal station that spotted the Mirlo; it was Chicamacomico, the next station to the north. Interestingly, Gull Shoal is commonly misspelled as a plural.)
Exception No. 2
The Union ironclad USS Monitor sank off Cape Hatteras in a storm while being towed on December 31, 1862. That is another whole story…coming soon!
END NOTES
1https://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/missions/2010ecu_nearshore/shipwrecks.html
2 https://northcarolinashipwrecks.blogspot.com/search?q=Cibao
Keeper James Presentations TM is a series of live programs presented by local historians, historical interpreters and performers Keeper JamesTM Charlet and Linda Molloy. Each program about the U.S. Life-Saving Service consists of vignettes of true, exciting, highly dramatic Outer Banks stories of ‘America’s Forgotten HeroesTM.’ For more information, see www.KeeperJames.com/programs.
Books by Keeper James:
- Volume I is Shipwrecks of the Outer Banks: Dramatic Rescues and Fantastic Wrecks in the Graveyard of the Atlantic, Globe Pequot Press (imprint of Rowman & Littlefield), ISBN 978-1-4930-3590-8 (Hardcover), 978-1-4930-3588-5 (Paperback), 978-1-4930-3589-2 (eBook) 2020 by James D. Charlet.
- Volume II is Shipwreck Rescues of the Outer Banks: Sensational Wrecks and Heroic Rescues by the United States Life-Saving Service ISBN 978-1-4930-8770-9, also Globe Pequot Press, 2025, by James D. Charlet. Due April 15, 2025.
- Volume III is currently being written. The working title is Early Coast Guard on the Outer Banks – 1915 to 1940 ~ Rescues and More in the Graveyard of the Atlantic, also Globe Pequot.
- Volumes IV and V have stories, accounts, and graphics that are being collected for future publication by Globe Pequot.
