Istanboul - a general history

Completed May 1856; Official No. 7374; Code Letters JSQM; Code Letters HKBF.
Owners: Wood, Spence & & Co & R James Brown & Co, Sunderland; 1856 Australian Auxiliary Steam Clipper Co Ltd, London (Company wound up in 1858 after only two voyages between England & Australia); 1859 George Duncan (East India Avenue) London 1865-renamed Turkish Empire. Advertised for sale in the Liverpool Journal of 6 January 1877 & purchased by RA Stewart, London.
Masters: 1856 James Watkins; 1856-59 John Edward Cole; 1859-65 Alexander Deuchar (C.N. 15104 Liverpool 1856); 1869-72 James Hutton Barclay (C.N. 3390 Dundee 1856); 1873-74 Whelman; 1876-78 Adamson; 1879 Alden J West.

Istanboul, on occasion recorded as Istamboul, was the largest ship to be built in the North of England at that time & was equipped with both sails & a steam powered screw. This meant that the auxiliary steam power could be implemented if there was a lack of wind but the vessel would not be delayed due to engine breakdowns or having to take on fuel. Under canvas her speed was up to 17 knots with steam only up to ten knots. The combination was not completely successful as the screw impeded the sailing abilities of the ship & the engine was not very powerful. This appears to be confirmed as she was eventually converted to a sailing vessel. (Lloyd’s Register of 1860/61 lists her as a sailing vessel).

Miscellaneous: 19 November 1857 William Quinton was fined 20s for disorderly conduct on board the vessel with an alternative of 24 hours imprisonment; August 1863 Richard West (alias Weeks) was brought before the court at Melbourne for picking the pocket of John Breasby, a seaman aboard Istanboul. West was found guilty of stealing £1 & some tobacco & sentenced to three months imprisonment; 1864 Joseph Wragg, mate, summoned the master, Deuchar, for wages that had been deducted from his pay for two missing bales of cotton. The Liverpool Court decided against him stating that the mate was responsible for the cargo so therefore responsible for the loss; 16 March 1871 during a heavy blow in the Channel four of the crew that were on the jib-boom of the Turkish Empire were blown into the water. A boat was immediately lowered but only one man was picked up alive. The drowned men were boatswain William Smith & seamen David Christie & W Adams.

On 2 February 1872 Turkish Empire sailed from London bound for Melbourne with a crew of 33 & eight passengers. The crew consisted of the master, three officers, boatswain & his mate, sail-maker, carpenter, steward, four boys & 20 seamen. The passengers consisted of four smelters, the wife & daughter of one of these men, an adult male & a boy. On Saturday, 20 February 14 of the crew were drunk & becoming disorderly so the chief officer asked the passengers what their position would be should the crew mutiny. The passengers said they would be with the officers. Meanwhile the 2nd officer & the carpenter had gone down the forecastle & found that the bulkhead of the fore-hold had been broken down & some beer had been taken. The drunken men then came on deck & when the 2nd officer followed them up he was attacked, his legs being hit with a plank & his clothes torn. The master managed to calm the men down & although the men were still drinking & would not allow anyone to go down the forecastle everything remained quiet until the following Saturday. That day the men became disorderly again & the master told the passengers that the safety of the ship & their lives were at stake.

The master had six rifles & two revolvers & a passenger had a rifle of his own. The other male passengers were given a rifle each &, although some did not want to fight, they were told that the females would be ravished & all of them would be killed if they did not defend themselves. The 2nd officer was still laid up hardly being able to walk after the beating he took. When the watch was called the crew would not obey but stayed in the forecastle making an awful noise. The officers managed to put the man at the wheel & the look-out in irons. The group protecting the vessel stayed armed on the quarter deck until Monday when another man was put in irons. One of the men, very drunk, came aft & was shot in the shoulder & although he shouted for help the other mutineers were either too drunk or too frightened to come to his assistance. As the mutineers came up for food they were put in irons one by one until all 14 were secured. Some managed to get their irons off so stocks were made for their feet & the passengers stood sentry over them with loaded firearms. Four of the mutineers were released the following day & behaved well for the rest of the voyage.

At Williamstown Police Court in Melbourne the mutineers were charged with conspiring to disobey the lawful commands of the master & nine of them were sentenced to a forfeit of £2 each from their wages & 12 weeks imprisonment with hard labour. When Turkish Empire was advertised for sale in 1877 she was described as ‘built in a substantial manner in 1856, restored in 1867 & thoroughly caulked & remodelled in 1871 & well worth inspection by intending purchasers.’ However this vessel had been dogged by bad luck. Her early voyages had not been profitable & she had been mortgaged frequently for repairs, although this was not put down to defects in her build. Her restoration in 1867 was because she had been damaged when she had narrowly avoided running aground under the lee of Mount Ida on the Turkish coast.
Voyages: 14 November 1856 London for Melbourne; 2 March 1857 Marseille for Australia; 12 July 1857 London for Melbourne; left Melbourne for Plymouth on 14 January 1858 with wool, tallow & gold dust & 131 passengers which included R Bower, Deputy Assistant Commissary General & 19 military invalids of the 40^th Regiment, one of the 11^th Regiment & their families. She had encountered heavy winds from 127.15/117.6W to 61/66S, icebergs & a field of ice & arrived Plymouth on 12 May 1858; 1 March 1863 Plymouth for Melbourne.

In charge of a pilot, Richard Cline, Turkish Empire sailed from St John on 6 March 1879 bound for Dublin with deals & ends & a crew of 14. That evening she encountered heavy snow & a storm in the bay & was thrown on her beam ends. Efforts were made to lighten her by throwing part of the cargo overboard. The following morning land was sighted about two miles to leeward so the pilot ordered the boats to be lowered but owing to the heavy seas & the list on the vessel this was not possible. Some of the crew then attempted to launch the pilot’s boat, which was on deck, but as it went over the side it was torn from their grasp by the waves leaving some of the men injured. All this time Turkish Empire was drifting southward towards land. At about 1am she slammed broadside on rocks at Big Duck Island, Grand Manan off the north-east coast of Maine. She had a heavy list to starboard causing the heavy sea to roll over her other side breaking her three masts & almost cutting her in two. The wreck was seen by fishermen who attempted to render assistance but the vessel had broken up before she could be reached. Those that had not drowned by being pulled down with the ship clung to portions of the wreck. The pilot & seven of the crew were picked up by fishermen or washed ashore. Seven lives were lost including the master. Less than a month after the death of the master, Alden West, his wife Orpah passed away at the age of just 28. They left a two year old daughter. The vessel was insured for $15,000 & the cargo for $13,000.

The following appeared in the New York Times on March 11^th, 1879:
“Particulars of the loss of the ship Turkish Empire. Eastport, Maine, March 10^th, 1979.
The following are additional particulars of the loss of the English ship Turkish Empire, which left St. John Friday last for Dublin, loaded with deals and ends. The Turkish Empire, which was formerly the steamer Stamboul, and built at West Hartlepool, England, was in command of Capt. West, and carried a crew of 13 men. At the time of the disaster she was in charge of Pilot Cline.

A stiff gale was blowing Friday night, and the ship was sailing under close-reefed sails, when the cry of “land-ho!” was shouted by the watch. Before the ship could be put about she went ashore on Big Duck Island, Grand Menan, off the north-east coast of Maine. The wreck was soon discovered by fishermen on shore, who made preparations to render what assistance lay in their power. Boats were launched into the surf, and became almost untenable by the fury of the water, which was making quick work of the Turkish Empire, and before succour was at hand she went to pieces.

Seven of the crew and Pilot Cline clung to portions of the wreck, from which they were rescued in an almost exhausted condition. Capt. West and six of the crew were lost, notwithstanding every effort was made to save them. The rescued men were brought to this place. The beach is strewn with portions of the wreck and cargo. No bodies had come ashore up to the last intelligence from the scene of the disaster. Capt. West belonged in Harvey, Albert County, New Brunswick, and leaves a family in St. John.

The Turkish Empire was of that class of vessel known as composite – that is, part of iron and part wood – and was owned by Stewart Brothers, of London. Her dimensions were 229 feet keel, 37 feet 4 inches beam, and 22 feet 9 inches depth of hold.”

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