RootsChat.Com
Scotland (Counties as in 1851-1901) => Scotland => Ross & Cromarty => Topic started by: bearkat on Saturday 02 December 06 14:25 GMT (UK)
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I hope I am posting this on the right board.
I found this snippet of information online at
http://www.rchs.uhi.ac.uk/communit/p37/ht/hy/DTTS/dtts_071.html
"In Balintore cemetery there is the gravestone of
Samuel Woodford and his son, Henry James, lost on the reef in
January 1897. Their ship is not named and they may possibly have
been from Leoramundo."
It is an extract from a book called "Down to the Sea - an account of the fishing villages of Hilton, Balintore and Shandwick"
Samuel could be my ggguncle.
In the 1891 census Samuel, a master mariner, and his son, Henry were living in Sunderland. I can't see either of them in 1901 (but he often away at sea for the census).
Does anyone know how I can find out if there is any more information on this gravestone?
Or to find out more about the shipwreck?
many thanks
bearkat
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I now know for sure that this is my Samuel.
Any ideas how I can find out more about the shipwreck?
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If you're passing through Balintore this summer I'd really appreciate a photo of Samuel & Henry's Grave. ;)
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Dont know if you got a copy
(http://i392.photobucket.com/albums/pp8/Ghostwhisperer_01/Balintore14.jpg)
In loving memory of Samuel Woodford aged 66 and of his son Henry James aged 22 who were lost on the Three Kings Rocks Jan 31st 1897.
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Thank you so much for going to the trouble of taking the photo for me - it is so clear even after all this time.
It's so sad that they lost their lives this way. Samuel was a very experienced sailor, having sailed as far as Japan.
It is lovely to know that Rootschatters are willing to do this for a stranger. If you need any help down in Kent just shout.
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No problem :)
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If anyone is near Balintore Cemetery can you check if there is a gravestone for a John McKenzie died between 1841 and 1851. Hewas a Mason and His wife was Helen Munro d 1858. was the innkeeper. They lived with their family in Balintore.
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You could try contacting the Seaboard Centre
https://seaboardhistory.com/
contact details are at the bottom of the web page.
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Have you seen this?
https://canmore.org.uk/site/209518/leon-raymundo-three-kings-rocks-south-sutor-inner-moray-firth
And this, interesting Canmore could not find them, local knowledge? More research required.
https://www.alamy.com/the-three-kings-rock-stacks-on-cullen-beach-moray-grampain-region-image8809996.html
https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=16.1&lat=57.69490&lon=-2.83544&layers=168&b=1
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Thank you for posting. It's very interesting to see where the ship was wrecked. You can certainly see how dangerous those sharp rocks would be.
Although Samuel is listed on the gravestone, I understand his body was never found.
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Local knowledge coming up.
Those sharp rocks are not where the Leon Raymundo was wrecked.
Do not confuse the Three Kings Rocks off the Sutors of Cromarty with the entirely separate Three Kings Rocks on the beach at Cullen.
The inquiry into the wreck found that the Leon Raymundo had been wrecked on 'the reef known as the King's Sons' ... of the parish of Nigg. See https://www.ainmean-aite.scot/three-kings-rock-creag-harail-mic-an-righ/ and https://uk.fishermap.org/depth-map/moray-firth-scot/ for a chart showing exactly where it is - off Port an Righ on the east coast of the parish. (You'll need to zoom in quite a lot to see it.)
The attached clipping is from the Highland News of 3 April 1897.
The Three Kings Rocks are too high on the beach at Cullen to have been the site of this wreck, quite apart from being nowhere near the Sutors of Cromarty. See https://www.geograph.org.uk/search.php?i=188485285
The Three Kings Rocks at Cullen are not listed in Canmore because Canmore records man-made features of the landscape and sea, and the Three Kings Rocks are entirely natural.
The Three Kings Rock or reef off Nigg is only mentioned on Canmore because it is the site of one or more wrecks. Note that the header of the listing categorises the item of interest as 'Schooner'. Not 'Rock'. Canmore's statement that the exact site cannot be determined refers to the exact position of the wreck of the Leon Raymundo, not to the position of the reef on which she was wrecked, which is clearly ascertainable from map evidence.
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Although Samuel is listed on the gravestone, I understand his body was never found.
There are death certificates for both Samuel and his son. See screenshot.
Also, interestingly, one for what looks like a brother of Samuel.