11 Sheringham men drowned at sea

Date: 2 Nov 1861 [unknown]
Location: Sheringham, Norfolk, England
Surnames/tags: Cooper Craske Wilson

The loss of The Triumph, a fishing lugger, with 11 fishermen from Sheringham

An article appeared in The Norwich Mercury on 6 November 1861 under the headline

‘THE FIRST OF THE NOVEMBER GALES. GREAT LOSS OF LIFE AT SEA.”

It described a storm ‘of an alarming and destructive character’ that raged along the eastern coast during Friday night (1st November) and the whole of Saturday (2nd). The article reported that some ships had returned to the port of Yarmouth having seen that a fishing lugger, believed to to be The Triumph, had gone down about 40 miles from port with 10 or 11 men or board. ^[1]

Two months later, in several Norfolk papers including the Yarmouth Independent 4 January 1862, a letter was published under the headline 'Fishing Lugger Lost - Eleven Men Drowned. Appeal for the Wretched and Destitute'. ^[2] It was written to the Editor by John William de Caux, the Yarmouth Correspondent for The Yarmouth News asking for support for the bereaved families of the fishermen. His letter referred to several people by name.

• Robert Cooper, the master, one of whose sons (Hilary) drowned with him
• Robert Craske who left a wife and 4 children
• John Cooper who left a widow near confinement
• James Cooper who left a mother whose only support he was
• John Wilson and other crew leaving relatives towards whose maintenance they contributed

On 29 March 1862 a second letter from John William de Caux was published advising that the appeal had raised £52 13s and declaring how the moneys collected would be distributed. ^[3]

• Fred Cooper and Martha Cooper, orphans of Robert Cooper the master - £4 1s each
• Rebecca Craske, widow of Robert Craske - £8 2s; and her 4 children Henry, Mary Ann, Sophia and William Robert - £4 1s each
• Elizabeth Cooper and her infant daughter, widow and daughter of John Cooper £8 2s and £4 1s respectively
• Charlotte Cooper, mother of James Cooper, who was her only supporting relative - £8 2s

Sources

1. ↑ Initial Report of Storms November Gales - Loss of life at sea (Accessed 26 May 2022) Findmypast.co.uk Newspapers and Periodicals (Subscription Required}, Searching Lugger, Storms:Norwich Mercury 06 November 1861; Page 3 of 4; Section: Yarmouth News
2. ↑ Appeal for dependents of lost crew Lugger Lost - Appeal for Wretched and Destitute (Accessed 26 May 2022) Findmypast.co.uk Newspapers and Periodicals (Subscription Required}, Searching Lugger, Wretched, Destitute:Yarmouth Independent 04 January 1862; Page 5 of 8; Section: Correspondence
3. ↑ Distribution of appeal fund Distribution of appeal fund (Accessed 26 May 2022) Findmypast.co.uk Newspapers and Periodicals (Subscription Required}, Searching Loss of Lugger Triumph:Yarmouth Independent 29 March 1862; Page 5 of 8; Section: Correspondence