BOOKS FROM IRELANDOnly the Stones Never Die
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On the 14th June 1894, about 400 people, many of them teenagers, were about to set off for Scotland to work picking potatoes. An annual event, the young people would travel to the west of Scotland to stay and work for up to six months. That year, it is believed that a greater number of first-timers were travelling, due to a poor potato harvest at home the previous year, and the families desperately needed their income. As the large wooden-hulled sailing boat approached Westport Quay, its passengers caught their first sight of the large steamer, which would take them to Scotland. They rushed to one side of the boat to get a better view. The boat became unstable before a gust of wind caught the sails, and the boat capsized. The passengers were thrown into the water, and the boat came after them, with many people trapped under the large canvas sails, which became heavy and impenetrable once wet... At least 32 people died.
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(2 months ago) |
26 Jul, 2025
Achill Island - Clew Bay boating disaster, 1894.
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