Looking for 2 lost ships 1826 & 1829

[Mole]

It looks as if you have your Capt Butler's first name, now, grosjean - thanks to Sandy.

Has anyone yet managed to access the shipwreck site mentioned on this thread?
www.shipwrecks-sa.com   I'm having no joy and getting a 404 error message.

Regards
Mole

[grosjean545]

It looks as if you have your Capt Butler's first name, now, grosjean - thanks to Sandy.

Thank you for this information, but, unfortunately, I already knew it. In fact, it was my "starting point". It was for this reason that I'm looking for any information about captains named Richard Butler, because there is no more information in Birth/Death/Marriage records.

But, once again, thank you for the time you spend for me and my ancestors!

[Mole]

I was under the impression that there had been some doubt, at first, as to whether he was Richard or Robert.

cheers
Mole

[grosjean545]

Hi everyboby,

Once again, I need your help to trace the brig Thomas from 1813 to her loss in 1829. I found on NASA website that Thomas was used since 1813-1814 to ship sundries between Cape Town and Mauritius.

I need your help to know if we can find some reference to her travels in departures/arrivals. All I could find online are travels for 1827 to 1829. If you could help me for the first years, it could be helpful.

I would like to know when we can find the first reference to a captain named "Butler" fot this ship, and who were the other captains before him.

Thank you in advance.

I always need to be sure that the first name for this "R Butler", captain of Brig Thomas is really Robert. I think it could be a mistake, because I also found T. Butler for the same person. I hope it could be Richard to connect him with tha captain of the "Harmony".

[Mole]

Hi, problem is finding an early enough source in the shape of a Cape newspaper. Check online for their starting dates. The first independent newspaper, the South African Commercial Advertiser only began in 1824, for example, but it was suppressed in certain years: see
http://www.eggsa.org/newspapers/index.php/south-african-commercial-advertiser
Cape Government Gazette a bit earlier ca 1820/21.
Mole

[grosjean545]

Thank you, Mole, for your answer.

I didn't think about this, for earliest newspapers. But, perhaps, we can find something about this ship in the departure/arrivals inside Almanac and Directory, for this period.

I will see on googlebook.

[sandyc2]

According to the "African Court Calendars" that I have access to (some missing), the "Thomas" was in Port with these as captains:

1813: A Landele (Mauritius to London) & C. Allen (Mauritius to Cape)
1817: William Scott (Mauritius to Cape) & G. Jackson (Downs to Cape)
1819: W. Scott (Rio de Janeiro to Cape) - arrived 20th February 1819

[There is also a listing for a "Thomas", Robert Cornfoot, which arrived on 10 January 1819 from Portsmouth & St Jago to the Cape which departed again on 30 March, and it appears again in 1822, with Richard Winspear as Captain, from Portsmouth & St Jago to the Cape].

The Harmony was wrecked on 13 March 1826 so I checked when Butler would have become Master of the Thomas and found these:
"Cape Town Gazette & African Advertiser", Friday, March 17th, 1826:
Arrived Table Bay 17th March, Thomas, English Schooner, J. Finnis, Master, from St Helena 7th Feb
"Cape Town Gazette & African Advertiser", Friday, 5 May 1826:
Departed Table Bay 2nd May, Thomas, English Schooner, R. Butler, Master, for the Mauritius.

Hope this helps
Sandy

[grosjean545]

Oh, yes, it was very helpful! I could now trace more easily travels for these 2 ships. Thank you very much, Sandy (and everyone who help me).
 
I'm now almost sure that it could be the same captain for these two ships, because dates are similars and I've got this "R" for forename initial.

I know (because I found this in a book : "Knysna, the forgotten port", Margaret Parkes & V.M. Williams) that captain Butler from the Harmony have written a letter to John Rex after her loss, in 1826. I would like to know where I could find this letter and perhaps all the report of this loss. If I could find this letter, I could compare the writting from my ancestor and this captain.

Perhaps, I could do he same with captain Butler from Thomas, because He wrote a letter for payment in 1827 that could be found in NASA.

I have some questions too about Captains :
- Who is the owner of this kind of ship (coasting brig)? Captain or other people?
- What he has to do when her ship was lost?
- Could he find some job easily? In Cape Town?

Thank you, once again, for all of you!

[gingerbit]

Hi there
I went to my local library to-day (greater Durban area) for your "Knysna lost port" book but the only copy is in the main Durban library and it is never lent out. Perhaps some one will read this and be able to get there before me - only in a few weeks time -
regards
Gingerbit