SS Naronic

The Naronic was a 1892 finished cargo steamer of the White Star Line. He had been designed for the transport of cargo between Liverpool and New York City, but had - at that time not unusual - even capacity to transport a small number of passengers. The Naronic since March of 1893 as lost, her whereabouts are now unknown.

The last journey

After the Naronic had completed a number of successful crossings, she left on February 11, 1893 under the command of Captain William Roberts for the last time Liverpool with course New York. The main cargo it transported cattle, so they in addition to the 50 -strong crew had 24 cowherd men aboard on this trip. After a final stop at the island of Anglesey north Wales, where they put the port pilots disembark, she made her way to the open sea.

The disappearance of the vessel

After the Naronic had not reached weeks after its expiry, its port of destination New York, the worst was feared. Since the Naronic had no Morse code on board, it was not the ship been possible to make an emergency call. The British steamer Conventry then sighted on March 4, two empty lifeboats and driving the Naronic that by 2 clock at night near the later position of the Titanic disaster, the second by 2 clock in the afternoon in an easterly direction thereof a. While the first sighted boat floated bottom up, the second was apparently sprung a leak. For more information on the whereabouts of the Naronic delivered four mysterious message in a bottle messages, two of which washed up on the 3rd and on March 30 on the U.S. east coast and two more were recovered in June and 18 September 1893 in the Irish Sea or near Liverpool.

The four bottles of mail messages

• Bottle # 1, retrieved on March 3, 1893 in Bay Ridge near New York:

" Feb. 19, 1893 - Naronic sinking All hands praying God have mercy on us. .. " - " [ Date]. - The Naronic drops all hands rise up in prayer May God be gracious to us. . "

• Bottle # 2, retrieved on 30 March 1893 in Ocean View, Virginia:

" 3:10 AM Feb.19 SS Naronic at sea To who picks this up:. . Report When You find this to our agents if not heard of before, did our ship is sinking almost beneath the waves It 's such a storm did we. can never live in the small boats. One boat has already gone with her human cargo below. God let all of us live through this. We were stuck by an iceberg in a blinding snowstorm and floated two hours. Now it's 3:20 PM by my watch and the great ship is dead level with the sea. Report to the agents at Broadway, New New York, M. Kersey & Company. Goodby ave ". . - " 3.10 clock [ at night ], Feb.19 SS Naronic at sea to those who takes this to yourself: you know when you find it, our agents [ the shipping company ], if they do not already know, that our ship encoder is realized rapidly sinking. the storm is so strong that we could never survive in small boats. a boat is already set, together with its human cargo. God that we will survive this. We rammed an iceberg in thick snow storm and swam after two hours. According to my clock now it 3.20 clock and the big ship is located at the upper deck at water level. reports, this is our agent on Broadway, New New York, M. Kersey & Company. Farewell. "

• Bottle No. 3, rescued in June 1893 in the Irish Sea:

Controversy

The unusual messages were later repeated in doubt. On the one hand were some of the names by which they were signed, not on the crew or passenger list. On the other hand, it was strange that - believed the messages were genuine - two were found in the U.S. and two in the UK. While it is generally not uncommon for a bottle of America from Europe reached, but needed them for distance usually considerably longer than the few months that would arise in the case of Naronic. A safe conclusion as to the actual cause of the crash could only offer the discovery of the wreck of the Naronic.